Every depository library is required to have the titles in the FDLP Basic Collection accessible for immediate use by library users.
How you accomplish this is a local decision.
Provide access to the Basic Collection by one or a combination of the following:
- Catalog each title in your local catalog, including active hyperlinks in the bibliographic record
- Catalog the Basic Collection using a collection level record and include an active hyperlink
- Catalog the Basic Collection in a shared or consortial catalog where the default option is to search records of all libraries
- Link to all the titles in the Basic Collection from your library’s website.
- Purchase and make available commercial equivalents (tangible or electronic) of the Basic Collection titles
- Incorporate Basic Collection titles into topical bibliographies or guides
- Acquire the print format, if desired, by selecting corresponding item numbers. Catalog the receipts.
Additional information
- Many catalog records include more than one PURL. The links from this guide connect to the most current content. Review each catalog record for additional links.
- Please note that selective Federal depository libraries are not required to select any of these titles in tangible format.
- You do not need to use the name "FDLP Basic Collection" when referencing the collection. If you find that your library users would make better sense of another name, such as "Core FDLP Resources", for example, please describe the titles in a way that makes the most sense for your community.
- Basic Collection LibGuide oriented for general public use
- This guide is intended for general public access since it includes publication titles and descriptions but not item, class, or catalog record numbers.
- Basic Collection on FDLP.gov
History
The list of titles constituting the FDLP Basic Collection was originally developed in 1977 to identify the most basic Federal documents for inclusion in all Federal depository collections. The list has been periodically updated since then, as library user needs and agency publication practices have changed.