We're finding that our customers will go anywhere where they perceive they can get a better deal. I think that with increased recognition of being part of a National Library and the increased consortium purchasing that might ensue, we'll be able to offer our customers increased access to information resources at reduced prices. Either we know a subject ourselves, or we know where we can obtain information about it. This is the essence of a library's role in the Department. Making information and resources available to patrons in cost-effective and efficient ways.
Libraries are under siege today.
A National Library can help stabilize the concept of, and need for a library. It can help stretch our budget dollars by using its collective strength to acquire better pricing for resources, and it can open doors for more resources for the libraries within the DOE family. If we can show that we provide a valuable service and that this service is enhanced because it's based on a foundation that transcends our immediate environs, I think we will all benefit. It has been said that the irony of the information age is that it has given new respectability to uninformed opinion. Our libraries' staffs, trained to the expert level, know where and how to get verified information, and can help patrons separate fact from uninformed opinion.