FY12 SLAA Survey items

State Library Administrative Agencies Survey Items
Part A. State Library Administrative Agency Identification
These are basic identification items such as name, address, telephone number, and web address of the
SLAA, the name of the chief officer and respondent to the survey, and the state fiscal year reporting period
for which data are provided. These items are necessary for survey processing, including mail-out, edit
follow-up, and file maintenance.
Part B. Governance
Question 1 asks for the SLAAs administrative location in state government. The location and organizational
structure of the SLAA in state government differs across the states. Organizational changes in state
government may affect the SLAAs' governance structure. These data are necessary to complete the
national profile of SLAAs.
Part C. Allied Operations, State Resource Centers, State Reference/Information Service Centers, and
State Centers for the Book
Question 2 asks whether any allied operations are combined with the SLAA. This information is important in
measuring the scope of services and responsibilities of the SLAA to state government in areas not ordinarily
considered a state library agency function. The role of SLAAs in serving the needs of state government
varies across the states. Some SLAAs have primary responsibility for maintaining state archives, providing
legislative and reference services to state employees, and managing state government records. SLAA
staffing patterns, level of funding, and other resources will vary depending on the number and type of allied
operations. These data help complete the profile of each SLAA regarding special operations.
Question 3 asks whether the SLAA contracts with a local public library or academic library to serve as a
state resource center or reference/information service center. This question is important to assess the
different ways in which SLAAs provide library services to the public. SLAAs may provide library services
through their SLAA outlets only, via contracts with public or academic libraries only, or by both methods.
This question will provide useful descriptive information of their varied service arrangements.
Question 4 asks whether the SLAA hosts or provides any funding to a State Center for the Book. This
information is an important indication of an SLAA’s level of commitment to the Center for the Book program
sponsored by the Library of Congress that promotes books, reading, literacy, and libraries.
Part D. Services to Libraries and Library Cooperatives
Question 5 asks which services the SLAA provides to different types of libraries or library cooperatives in
the state. SLAAs play an important leadership role in the development of library services statewide. They
also directly provide some library services and programs. These items help enumerate the type of services
provided and the types of libraries served by the SLAA, providing a national profile of SLAA services to
libraries and library cooperatives. This information also helps complete the picture of public library service
in the state.
Part E. Public Service Hours, Outlets, and User Groups
Question 6 requests the total hours open during a typical week for all SLAA outlets combined, regardless of
whom they serve, as a measure of their total library service activity. Question 7 requests the total hours that
the main or central SLAA outlet is open, due to its primary significance.
Question 8 asks for the total number of SLAA outlets, by type of outlet, regardless of whom they serve. This
information is primarily collected to complement the outlet data items on IMLS’s Public Libraries Survey and
contribute to a national picture of public library service.

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Question 9 asks for the number of SLAA outlets that serve specific user groups, by type of outlet. These
items are important as a measure of direct library service by the SLAA to specific groups of state residents.
Historically, SLAAs have had responsibility for developing or directly providing library services to the blind
and physically handicapped, residents of state correctional and other state institutions, state government
employees, and the general public. SLAAs have varied in user group emphasis, and these items capture
their differences, contributing to a national profile of SLAAs and their service to various user groups. The
type of service outlets open to the general public, one of the user groups, also helps complete the national
picture of public library service.
Part F. Collections
Question 10 asks for the size of collections in selected formats in SLAA outlets that serve the public or state
government employees. These items (with the exception of the item on government documents)
complement collection items on the IMLS Public Libraries Survey and thereby help complete the national
picture of public library service. The items are important as a measure of the SLAAs' collection size and
format emphasis. These data are also useful in comparing an SLAAs' standing relative to other SLAAs in
these areas, and thus in developing a national profile of SLAAs in this regard.
Data on collection size are used in planning collection budgets, interlibrary loan programs, and cooperative
purchasing programs. Government documents are included as a collection format on the SLAA survey
because they are not always catalogued with other formats and are an important measure of the SLAAs'
service to state government employees and the general public. Many SLAAs maintain significant collections
of local, state, and federal documents and serve as state and federal depository libraries.
The collections data on government documents can be used in conjunction with question 11 on the SLAAs'
status as a depository library as an indicator of SLAAs’ emphasis on the collection of government
documents and the scope of their collections. The work of state government requires extensive collections
of state and federal documents to support the functions of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches,
and special study commissions. The level of an SLAA’s interlibrary loan activity to government agencies
and libraries and the number of staff providing public library services are affected by the SLAA’s depository
status.
Part G. Library Service Transactions
Question 12 asks for total annual library service transactions for SLAA outlets that serve the general public
or State government employees, by the following type of transactions: circulation, library materials provided
to and received from other libraries, reference transactions, and library visits. These items are similar to the
service transaction items on the IMLS Public Libraries Survey and help to complete the national picture of
public library service. The items are also an important measure of the SLAA’s provision of direct library
service to the public. These data are also useful in comparing an SLAA’s standing relative to other SLAAs
in these areas, and thus in developing a national profile of SLAAs in this regard.
Part H. Library Development Transactions
Question 13 asks for total annual library development transactions of the SLAA, of the following types: the
number of LSTA and State grants awarded, and the number of continuing education program events and
attendance at events. One of the primary missions of SLAAs in state law is to develop library services
statewide. These items are important indicators of an SLAA’s library development activity. These data are
also useful in the comparative analysis of SLAAs' annual grant activity, as measured by the number of
grants awarded. The number of staff assigned to library development (Part I, question 14) is an important
part of this analysis. This information also contributes to a national profile of SLAA activities beyond the
traditional library services to the public.
Part I. Staff
Question 14 asks for a breakdown of SLAA staff: ALA-MLS Librarians, Non ALA-MLS & Non MLS
Librarians, other Professional and Non-Professional staff, by the following types of service: administration,
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library development, library services, and other services. These items provide important information on an
SLAA’s total staff size and distribution by types of library service. These data permit comparative analyses
of SLAAs' in this regard. The types of services provided by SLAAs to libraries and library cooperatives in
Part D, when used in association with the staff data in Part I, will provide basic descriptive information on
overall staffing levels, organizational emphasis by types of service, and the variety of specific services
provided by SLAA staff. Selected staff data complement items on the Public Libraries Survey and help
complete the national picture of public library service in this regard.
Part J. Revenue and Part K. Expenditures
Questions 15 and 16 in Part J identify the types of libraries for which SLAAs administer state funds, to
enable consistency checks with various revenue and expenditure data reported in Parts J and K, and to
improve the validity and reliability of the data.
Question 17 in Part J asks for SLAA revenue, by source and type of revenue. Question 18 in Part K asks
for SLAA expenditures by source of revenue and type of expenditure. These items are based on those
collected by the COSLA survey, which the SLAA survey replaced. These items are necessary to maintain
continuity between the IMLS SLAA survey and the COSLA survey, to permit trend analysis of revenues and
expenditures by categories of significance to SLAAs. These categories have their origins in state and
federal legislation related to SLAA functions and responsibilities. SLAAs compare their revenue and
expenditures to other SLAAs of similar size when developing their program plans and budgets. Selected
revenue and expenditure items also complement items on the Public Libraries Survey and thus help
complete the national picture of public library service. The financial data are also useful to policymakers
and library administrators at the federal, state, and local levels, and to library and public policy researchers.
Part L. LSTA State Program Expenditures
Questions 19 and 20 request LSTA state program expenditures by type and by use of expenditure. These
categories have their origins in the LSTA legislation, were included on the COSLA survey, and will permit
comparative analysis of SLAAs’ use of federal funds under the LSTA State Program.
Part M. Electronic Services and Information
The electronic measures collected in this part of the survey are an important gauge of the SLAA’s role and
level of responsibility in providing library access and public access to electronic data resources. Electronic
services are also an important focus of the LSTA, and the SLAA’s support of these services should be
measured. The activities that SLAAs support to promote electronic information sharing need to be identified
for policy and planning implications for their local public libraries and for other libraries and library
cooperatives that they serve.
Questions 21 to 23 ask whether the SLAA supports electronic networking, digitization or digital programs or
services, and library access to the Internet. These data are important measures of the types of electronic
service provided by an SLAA to libraries and library cooperatives, other state agencies, and the public.
Question 24 asks for the number of Internet workstations available to the public in SLAA outlets. These
data are an important measure of direct service to the public and public access to electronic information via
the SLAA.
Questions 25 and 26 ask for statewide database licensing expenditures, the type of user group access.
Question 27 asks the ways the SLAA facilitates electronic access to the holdings of other libraries.
Question 28 asks whether the SLAA is an applicant for the Universal Service (E-Rate Discount Program).
These items are important for assessing the readiness of SLAAs to support electronic information resource
sharing through database linkages, and for assessing SLAAs’ developmental emphasis on access to rather
than ownership of library materials. This information is valuable in evaluating SLAA electronic services and
activity relative to other states.

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