Senate Passes 10 Year Term for Librarian of Congress; Library Journal, 10/13/15

Bob Warburton, Library Journal; Senate Passes 10 Year Term for Librarian of Congress:

"As President Obama ponders his choice for the next Librarian of Congress, the first time in nearly three decades that such a nomination will be necessary, the U.S. Senate has passed a bill to put a 10-year term on the position. If passed by the House and signed by the president, the bill will strip the job of the lifetime tenure it has carried since 1802...

Politics aside, another reason supporters feel the limit is now necessary is the accelerating rate of change—in library service, in technology, and in the demands on and challenges to copyright law that tech brings in its wake."

New GAO Report: Strong Leadership Needed to Address Serious Information Technology Management Weaknesses at Library of Congress; Library Journal, 3/31/15

Gary Price, Library Journal; New GAO Report: Strong Leadership Needed to Address Serious Information Technology Management Weaknesses at Library of Congress:

"The following GAO (Government Accountability Office) was published today.

From the Highlights Document:

Strategic planning: The Library does not have an IT strategic plan that is aligned with the overall agency strategic plan and establishes goals, measures, and strategies. This leaves the Library without a clear direction for its use of IT...

Leadership: The Library does not have the leadership needed to address these IT management weaknesses. For example, the agency’s chief information officer (CIO) position does not have adequate authority over or oversight of the Library’s IT. Additionally, the Library has not had a permanent CIO since 2012 and has had five temporary CIOs in the interim. In January 2015, at the conclusion of GAO’s review, officials stated that that the Library plans to draft an IT strategic plan within 90 days and hire a permanent CIO. If it follows through on these plans, the Library will be in a stronger position to address its IT management weaknesses and more effectively support its mission."

Nation dates: Library of Congress criticized; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 4/1/15

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Nation dates: Library of Congress criticized:

"The federal government’s watchdog agency released a critical report Tuesday on the Library of Congress’s long-standing failures to manage the complex computer systems that are vital to its mission.

The result of a yearlong investigation by the Government Accountability Office, the report reveals a work environment lacking central oversight and faults Librarian of Congress James Billington for ignoring repeated calls to hire a chief information officer, as required by law.

These findings repeat the conclusions of previous reports dating back 20 years. Taken together, the reports reveal library mismanagement costing taxpayers tens of millions of dollars."