The University Library Invites You to Attend
"Celebrating 60 Years of Documents"
Constitution Day
September 17th is Constitution Day!
"Celebrating 60 Years of Documents," Thursday, September 25th, is an afternoon of events commemorating ULM's service as a documents depository. The festivities begin with a program of speakers at 1:00 p.m. in the University Conference Center, and finish with a reception in the University Library's Special Collections Passman Room at 4:00 p.m.
The events are open to the public. For more details, visit the "Celebrating 60 Years of Documents" page.
- 60th Anniversary, Membership in Louisiana State Documents Depository Program
- 45th Anniversary, Membership in Federal Depository Library Program
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Your Government Publications
The University Library collections contain more than 200,000 print and non-print federal and state publications. The Library receives these materials at no cost as part of the
Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) and the Louisiana State Documents Depository Program (LSDDP).
"Established by Congress in 1813, the FDLP is often referred to as "America’s first freedom of information program." The FDLP is based on the principle that "citizens should have free, unimpeded, local access to official information produced by their Government.... The FDLP provides Government information at no cost to designated depository libraries throughout the country and territories. These depository libraries, in turn, provide local, no-fee access to Government information in an impartial environment with professional assistance." (About the FDLP).
"The Louisiana State Documents Depository Program (LSDDP), established by the Louisiana Legislature in 1948, assures that the state's citizens have free, convenient access to Louisiana's public documents. The Recorder of Documents office administers the program, receiving copies of all public documents from state agencies and institutions, then creating the official list of these publications. The documents are distributed to the 41 academic, public and special depository libraries where everyone can use these materials" (About the LSDDP).
A brochure, "Government Publications and Information in the University Library," provides a map showing the location of government documents collections in the University Library and handy search tips. View or print the online (color) version, or stop by the Reference Desk for a black-and-white copy. For a quick overview on the how and why of using federal and Louisiana government publications, see Introduction to Government Information Resources, prepared by Ms. Lori Smith, government documents librarian, Southeastern Louisiana University.
On The Shelf
In the Stacks
Many government publications are shelved with the University Library's general collections and are treated just like any other library materials. Some are reference resources, which do not circulate, while others may be checked out. These books, periodicals, audiovisual, and other materials may be found by searching the online catalog. For example, searching by keywords "Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development" retrieves a list of more than 100 books, CD-ROMs, and other materials in circulating collections on first, third, fourth, and fifth floors.
In the Government Documents Collections, 2nd Floor
Other government publications are located in the Government Documents collections on the 2nd floor of the University Library. For information concerning the circulation policies for government documents, see Circulation Policy: Government Documents Collections.
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Federal Publications
Most federal government publications are shelved on the north (bayou) side of the 2nd floor, adjacent to the general collections (see map). These may be found in the online catalog with any search, and their location will appear as "Government (Federal) Publications, 2nd Floor." You may limit your search to retrieve only the federal materials which circulate by using the Advanced Search feature, and selecting item type "Government (Federal) Publications, 2nd Floor"; "Government (Federal) Publications, 2nd Floor, Non-Circ," will retrieve additional, non-circulating items. Most of the federal materials circulate; some do not, because they are reference-type materials, or very old, or just a few pages long, and easily photocopied.
When you identify these federal publications in the catalog, you may notice that they have unusual looking shelf numbers, such as "LC 19.16:" or "AE 2.106/3:26/". Federal materials are organized using a special classification scheme created by the federal government, known as "SuDocs" (Superintendent of Documents) numbers. The SuDocs numbers indicate the government agency which issued the publications. SuDocs number ranges are indicated by cards on the ends of the bookshelves, just as the Library of Congress numbers appear at the end of each set of shelves in the general collections. (For further information concerning the SuDocs scheme, see An Explanation of the Superintendent of Documents Classification System.)
Documents on microfiche are located in cabinets inside Media Servies, 2nd floor, Room 205, near the Government Publications Office. These may be found in the online catalog with any search, and their location will appear as "Media Services, 2nd Floor."
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Louisiana Publications
Non-circulating State of Louisiana publications are located within the 2nd floor Media Room, at the north end, near the Government Publications Office (see map). There are print and non-print materials in (or on top of) filing cabinets. The bulk of these Louisiana publications are uncatalogued at present, and therefore cannot be found using the online catalog. For assistance locating materials in the non-circulating Louisiana collection, contact the Government Publications Office.
These non-circulating collections are organized by Louisiana Document Numbers, which resemble the federal SuDocs number and reflect the state agency issuing the publication. (For further information concerning the Louisiana document numbering scheme, see Classification Schedule for Louisiana Documents. For an abridged list of Louisiana document class numbers, see the Summary.)
"E-Docs": Electronic Government Publications
Many electronic government publications may be accessed digitally via the library catalog. The University Library has more than 8,600 "e-docs." These may be retrieved with any search; their virtual "location" appears in the item record as "Electronic Government Publication." To read these materials, click on the blue "URL" link in the item record. If you wish to limit your catalog search to retrieve only these electronic materials, select the Advanced Search, and limit by item type "Government Publications, Electronic."
Web Resources
An increasing number of government publications and information resources are available via the Internet. In some instances, the online publication duplicates a print document or other physical format, but many resources are available online only. The following links provide access to some online government publications and information resources. (This area is under construction and will be expanded substantially over time. Please check back frequently for changes and additions.)
Help with Government Publications
For questions or suggestion concerning government documents, please contact the Government Publications staff:
Karen Cook, Government Documents Librarian
Charlotte Brown, Government Documents Specialist
Government Publications Office
University Library, Room 210 (map)
Phone: 318.342.1066
Email: govdocs@ulm.edu
