LSTA offers more program flexibility and requires less paperwork and reporting than previous programs. IMLS also now requires libraries to report on program activity by populations served, and in accordance with LSTA priorities. In response, agency staff substantially retooled grant administration procedures. Staff are also preparing for a five-year evaluation of LSTA activities, due in 2002. Libraries will increasingly be required to purchase robust telecommunications and Internet access services, and provide more computer hardware and software to meet public demand for access to networked government information.
Depository libraries continue to serve as centers for access to federal government information.
The Federal Documents Library Program provides access to both tangible and electronic publications not freely available. Participants involved in the development include government agencies, the National Archives, and the depository library community. GPO will continue to distribute electronic items through the depository program. The Library and Archives Commission currently owns more than 2,000 such items. Besides storage requirements to provide the service, the agency must also provide adequate computer workstations for the public to use while accessing the information.