Supporting library cooperation In East Central Illinois

April 5, 1996

Secretary
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, DC. 20554

Comments in Response To:
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Order Establishing Joint Board
(FCC 96-93; CC Docket No. 96-45)

Lincoln Trail Libraries System is a state sponsored organization serving the libraries of 116 members in East Central Illinois. Academic, public, school, and special libraries participate as members. Lincoln Trail member facilities are spread over approximately 250 buildings in a nine county area. This area is largely rural. The median population served for participating school districts is 795, and the median size for participating public libraries is 3,402. The median budget of all participating libraries is $54,000, with some annual budgets as low as less than $10,000 per year. We would like to share with you our perceptions of the changes in providing library service in this largely rural area and the role of our libraries in their communities. The provision of telecommunication services and the cost of those services significantly Impacts the services libraries are able to provide.

As more and more information is available in a digital format, libraries need to provide patrons with access to this information. The role of the library in a community is to provide access to information. This Includes serving the needs of businesses to connect to current financial data, of students of all ages to connect to instructional resources, and of individuals to assess product Information, influence legislation, or further their knowledge on a subject. Libraries face a growing challenge to provide continuing education opportunities within their communities. This is required for individuals to stay up-to-date with new developments and retrain for new jobs. To provide patrons with this information, each library needs a direct connection to an Internet provider that will allow them to access up-to-the-minute information for their patrons. A dial access connection Is not sufficient for the bandwidth required to download large full-text files, or to use graphic and video resources. Libraries need stable connections that can provide quality images quickly. Also, libraries need to be able to support multiple simultaneous users from their facilities.

There are several major trends affecting changes in library services. One is the move toward more and more Information being disseminated in digital format. It used to be that libraries purchased copies of materials to be housed in their facilities and available for use from there. Now libraries are finding the need to access information when it is requested from an originating source. This allows access to the more current information. Access to information is now sold rather than physical copies of information being available for sale. This trend is evident in many areas, such as the availability of federal government information via electronic access from the Government Printing Office. These trends include access to agricultural and agri- business data.

Another trend is the need to serve patrons at remote locations from the library. This means that libraries need to provide access to their resources, particularly the resources they obtain in electronic format, via dial access or the Internet. Libraries perceive that there is the need for all patrons, including both business and residential users, to have at least a dial access Internet connection that will allow a patron to connect to library databases and download resources. The availability of library resources on the Internet is no longer limited to browsing remote library catalogs. All patrons should have an Internet Service Provider within local calling range, so that long distance charges are not incurred to use publicly available information sources.

The access described above is currently available in many urban areas, and that access is growing. It is no longer an option because of changing trends In publishing and information distribution formats for small rural libraries to provide traditional services. All libraries and their patrons need these electronic access services for their communities to remain viable. A model where each location can have Internet access will best serve needs in the long run. Therefore, we believe it is imperative for Internet connections to be included in basic universal service. The higher demand of libraries is that their buildings have direct dedicated connections that can support multiple users.

Please consider these needs as you formulate basic universal service for all Americans. In addition, please consider the limited budgets of our libraries. Not only is it a challenge to make these services available in all locations, it will be a challenge to make them affordable to all consumers. We believe at the very least that libraries with a tax exempt status should be able to be exempted from paying taxes on their telecommunication services.

Sincerely,

LINCOLN TRAIL LIBRARIES SYSTEM

Anne Wendler
Consultant

Attachment: Lincoln Trail map with list of participating libraries

xc: International Transcription Service

LINCOLN TRAIL LIBRARIES SYSTEM

Committed to excellence in library service through empowerment of library information partners and citizens

SERVING ACADEMIC, SCHOOL, SPECIAL AND PUBLIC LIBRARIES IN NINE COUNTIES OF EAST CENTRAL ILLINOIS

IROQUOIS COUNTY
Clifton
Donovan
Watseka
Gilman
Sheldon
Onarga
Milford
Cissna Park
Loda
FORD COUNTY
Piper City
Melvin
Gibson City
Paxton
VERMILION COUNTY
Hoopeston
Rossville
Armstrong
Potomac
Bismark
Oakwood
Danville
Fithian
Catlin
Fairmont
Westville
Georgetown
Ridge Farm
Sidell
CHAMPAIGN COUNTY
Fisher
Rantoul
Mahomet
St. Joseph
Champaign
Urbana
Ogden
Sidney
Homer
Philo
Tolono
PIATT COUNTY
Cisco
Mansfield
DeLand
Monticello
Bement
DOUGLAS COUNTY
Villa Grove
Tuscola
Newman
Arthur
Arcola
EDGAR COUNTY
Hume
Chrisman
Paris
Kansas
COLES COUNTY
Oakland
Charleston
Mattoon
CLARK COUNTY
Marshall
Martinsville
Casey
West Union

1704 W Interstate Dr. n Champaign, IL 61821
(217) 352-0047 Fax (217) 352-7153 1-800-ASK-LTLS