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DATA BASE DOCUMENTATION
PART I - SURVEY SUMMARY
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A. TITLE
Public libraries data, 1990
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B. DESCRIPTION
The Federal/State Cooperative System for Public Library Data collected 32
basic data items for each public library and 7 identifying items. The data
items include number of service outlets, number of full-time equivalent staff,
operating income, operating expenditures, capital outlays, size of library
collection, annual public service hours, attendance, number of reference
transactions, total annual circulation transactions, and number of inter
library loans. All 50 States and the District of Columbia (D.C.) are included
in this file, which encompasses 8,978 public libraries.
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C. SURVEY METHODOLOGY See appendix A.
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1. UNIVERSE OR SAMPLE | 2. RESPONDENTS
|
Universe: See appendix A, | 8,978 libraries
Universe |
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3. DATE OF COVERAGE | 4. FREQUENCY OF | 5. RESPONSE RATE
| SURVEY |
See appendix A, Reporting Period | Annual | 99%
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6. HIGHLIGHTS
The 9,029 records include 51 summary records (one for each State and the
District of Columbia, plus data for the 8,978 public libraries). In
addition, there is a ASCII file containing the database documentation.
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D. RELATED STUDIES
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1. SURVEYS
1988 FSCS public library survey
1989 FSCS public library survey
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2. PUBLICATIONS
Public Libraries in Forty-Four States and the District of Columbia: 1988
(Working paper and data file)
Public Libraries in 50 States and the District of Columbia: 1989 (E.D. Tabs
and data file)
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DATA BASE DOCUMENTATION
PART II - FILE DESCRIPTION
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A. TITLE
Public libraries data, 1990
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B. FILE NAME
CEFSUMM.TXT
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C. TAPE SERIAL NUMBER
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D. Disk Status:
The file contains final edited data summarized for each of the 50 States
and D.C. This ASCII file along with the README.TXT file is located on the
first of two diskettes.
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E. STANDARD TAPE SPECIFICATIONS
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1. NUMBER OF TRACKS | 2. DENSITY
|
| 5 1/4" disk
| Double sided, Double Density
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3. PARITY | 4. LABEL(S)
|
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5. CODE CONVENTION
ASCII
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F. FILE DIMENSIONS
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1. RECORD LENGTH 2. RECORD FORMAT
473 Fixed block
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3. BLOCKING FACTOR 4. MAXIMIZE BLOCK SIZE
1 record per block 473
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5. RECORD COUNT
51
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G. SEQUENCE
The records are sorted by the field FKEY_POST.
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DATA BASE DOCUMENTATION
PART II - FILE DESCRIPTION
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A. TITLE
Public libraries data, 1990
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B. FILE NAME
PUBLIB90.TXT
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C. TAPE SERIAL NUMBER
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D. DISK STATUS
The file contains final edited data for 8,978 public libraries
This file is located on the second of two diskettes.
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E. STANDARD TAPE SPECIFICATIONS
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1. NUMBER OF TRACKS | 2. DENSITY
|
| 5 1/4" disk
| Double sided, Double Density
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3. PARITY | 4. LABEL(S)
|
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5. CODE CONVENTION
ASCII
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
F. FILE DIMENSIONS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. RECORD LENGTH 2. RECORD FORMAT
473 Fixed block
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3. BLOCKING FACTOR 4. MAXIMIZE BLOCK SIZE
1 record per block 473
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5. RECORD COUNT
8,978
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G. SEQUENCE
The records are sorted by the field PUB_FIPS.
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DATA BASE DOCUMENTATION
PART II - FILE DESCRIPTION
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A. TITLE
Public libraries data, 1990
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B. FILE NAME
README.TXT
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C. TAPE SERIAL NUMBER
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D. DISK STATUS
This ASCII file contains the database documentation including Methodology,
User Guidelines For Processing Federal-State Cooperative System (FSCS) Public
Libraries Data, 1990, Record Layout For 1990 Public Library Data File, Data
Element Specifications For 1990. This ASCII file along with the CEFSUMM.TXT
file is located on the first of two diskettes.
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E. STANDARD TAPE SPECIFICATIONS
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1. NUMBER OF TRACKS | 2. DENSITY
|
| 5 1/4" disk
| Double sided, Double Density
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. PARITY | 4. LABEL(S)
|
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5. CODE CONVENTION
ASCII
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F. FILE DIMENSIONS
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1. RECORD LENGTH 2. RECORD FORMAT
80 column ASCII
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3. BLOCKING FACTOR 4. MAXIMIZE BLOCK SIZE
1 record per block 80 column
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5. RECORD COUNT
XXX lines
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G. SEQUENCE
N/A
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APPENDIX A:
Methodology
Methodology
Introduction
These data diskettes contain 1990 data for 8978 public libraries in
50 States and the District of Columbia and 51 state summary
records. These data were collected under the third annual census
of the federal-state Cooperative System (FSCS) in July of 1991.
FSCS collected 7 identifying items and 32 basic data items for each
public library. The basic data items include data on service
outlets, FTE staff, operating income, operating expenditures,
capital outlay, library collection, public service hours, library
services, circulation, and interlibrary loans. Appendix B
provides guidelines for using the diskettes and a record layout for
each variable on the file. Both individual library records and
state summary records are in the same format.
The Universe
Data for 8978 public libraries were supplied to NCES by state
library agencies in machine readable format through the FSCS for
public library data.
FSCS is a cooperative system through which states submit individual
public library data to NCES on a voluntary basis. At the state
level, FSCS is administered by State Data Coordinators, appointed
by the Chief Officer of each State Library Agency. The State Data
Coordinator collects the requested data from all local public
libraries and submits these data to NCES. In the 1991 submission
year, all 50 states and the District of Columbia submitted data.
The respondents for this voluntary census were the 8,978 public
libraries identified in the 50 states and the District of Columbia,
by state library agencies. Data were not systematically collected
from public libraries on Indian reservations. Data were not
collected from military libraries that provide public library
services.
Data Collection and Use of Technology
Data requested by the FSCS are usually (only a subset) of the data
most states collect from their local public libraries. Generally,
states collect these data using paper forms, rather than in machine
readable form.
NCES has developed personal computer software, known as DECTOP
(data entry, conversion, table, output program), for this census.
States can use DECTOP for direct data entry (from questionnaires
used with the local public libraries) or to assemble their existing
machine readable data in a given format (e.g. Lotus 1-2-3, dBase,
or ASCII). States also may use DECTOP to edit their data before
submitting them to NCES on data diskette. DECTOP is then used by
NCES to merge files from all 50 states and the District of
Columbia, edit them, and produce the tables for NCES' annual ED
TABS.
-----------------
1Public Libraries in the U.S.: 1990. Washington, D.C., 1992.
Follow-up and Editing
With this collection, a permanent system for internal (state) and
external (NCES) review of FSCS data entry and of the editing
process was established.
Prior to data submission, NCES, its contractors, and members of the
FSCS Steering Committee provided technical assistance to states.
Some pre-editing of local public library data was completed by some
State Data Coordinators.
During data entry, DECTOP automatically performed error checks and
provided error messages and warnings to the user. The user was
alerted to four types of errors based on criteria specified in
advance. For example, relational errors indicated that two or more
related data elements were not within an acceptable calculated
limit. These included, for example, "Total Operating Expenditures"
being less than 75 percent of "Total Operating Income" or "ALA-MLS"
(A masters degree from a graduate library education program
accredited by the American Library Association (ALA) being greater
than "Total Librarians".
Out-of-range error messages were provided (e.g., "Average Public
Service Hours per Outlet is less than 10"). In addition, DECTOP
software automatically checked reported totals by summing
particular sections during data entry, to verify that totals were
correct. An historical data check also was performed
automatically. This step compared changes in data reported for
certain data elements between 1990 and 1991. Changes outside an
acceptable range were identified. For additional information on
editing, see appendix 1, which provides listings of DECTOP software
data error messages and historical data
check criteria.
States could also perform data editing after data entry, generating
an output error listing. States could also generate state summary
tables. These DECTOP features allowed states to correct their data
before submitting them to NCES. After State Data Coordinators
prepared the FSCS submissions, Chief Officers of State Library
Agencies signed forms authorizing their state's submission. In
August and September 1991, NCES, with the assistance of the FSCS
Steering Committee, systematically performed nonresponse follow-up
of states.
NCES staff conducted two major data editing operations, working
directly with State Data Coordinators. In August and September,
1991, and before the state data files were merged, NCES ran DECTOP
edits (the same error and historical checks described above) and
mailed the results to each state for verification, correction and
comment. This effort highlighted data quality issues for states.
After the files for the 50 states and the District of Columbia were
merged, preliminary ED tabulations were run and reviewed by NCES
and the FSCS Steering Committee in October 1991.
Finally, NCES staff, with the assistance of Dr. E. Walter Terrie of
the Center for Study of Population, Florida State University,
performed systematic analysis of missing entries and data
"outliers". The results of this analysis were mailed to states in
early December 1991 for correction, comment, and final review prior
to preparation of a final data file and publication of the ED. TABS
Each state reviewed only its own data.
Unit Response
Of the 8,978 public libraries identified by the states, 68 or less
than 1 percent of public libraries provided identifying
information, but no data. Note that these 68 public libraries are
included among the 8978 public libraries on the diskette.
Preliminary data from PLUS (public library universe system) suggest
that there are around 9,060 public libraries in the United States,
about 1 percent greater than the number of records on the file.
Some states differ to a greater degree than other states in the
number of public libraries shown under DECTOP and PLUS. Further
reconciliation between DECTOP and PLUS will be conducted after data
editing is completed on PLUS.
An automated system, PLUS includes identifying information on every
public library (including outlets, all state libraries, and some
library systems and cooperatives). This resource will be used to
improve FSCS data quality and beginning in FY 93 for drawing
samples for surveys of topical interest in public libraries. FSCS
plans to merge DECTOP and PLUS in 1992.
Item Response
Some states did not collect all FSCS data elements from their local
public libraries, and some public libraries did not respond to all
the FSCS data elements requested by their states. In November
1991, an analysis of DECTOP item nonresponse rates was completed by
Dr. E. Walter Terrie. For individual data elements, nationwide
item nonresponse rates among public libraries exceeded 15 percent
for only two data elements, Reference Transactions and
Attendance. The nationwide item nonresponse rate for Reference
Transactions was 19.5 percent. The nationwide item nonresponse
rate for Attendance In Library was 31.61 percent. NCES standards
note that variables with more than 30 percent missing data should
not be used in analysis. Dr. Terrie's analysis was based on the
DECTOP data base as of November 1991 and data for a handful of
public libraries were submitted after that. A chart that
identifies nationwide item nonresponse rates for all data elements
except the 7 identifying items, compiled from this analysis, is
provided in appendix 2.
Caveats for Using these Data
Using the Data to Make Comparisons
Estimates of totals, averages and ratios depend significantly on
the impact of nonresponse. Totals can be significantly
underestimated if the size of nonresponse is large.
The impact of nonresponse on averages and ratios is typically less
serious. In computing ratios of one data element to another, only
data for those public libraries responding to both data elements
should be used in the computation. The number of public libraries
responding to both data elements may be different from the number
responding to the individual data elements.
Because of nonresponse, and for other reasons of noncomparability
due to variations in reporting period and definitions, one should
be careful in making comparisons across categories, states, or with
previously published data.
If one is comparing these 1990 data with the published 1989 data,
it should be noted that response rates for 1989 were generally
lower than those for 1990. This implies that 1989 totals will
generally be smaller than the comparable 1990 totals since no
imputation for non-response was carried out.
Reporting Period
One methodological issue in using these data is the time period
covered by the data. The FSCS definition for reporting period is
the latest 12 months for which data are available for each public
library. This definition allows for several different reporting
periods within a state and among states. There were 9 different
reporting periods used by states for these 1990 data.
Collectively, these spanned a 2-year time period (January 1, 1989-
December 31, 1990). These are provided below along with the number
and names of states that reported under each time period. Texas
provided 1989 rather than 1990 data. Five states provided 12
months of data within an 18 month time span, and 1 state provided
12 months of data within a 21 month time span. Because of the lack
of a consistent time period it is recommended that the data user
exercise caution in comparing data between individual states.
The following 24 states' data was reported for the July 1, 1989-
June 30, 1990 time period: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California,
Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland,
Massachusetts, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina,
Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee,
Virginia, West Virginia,
and Wyoming.
The following 14 states' data was reported for the January 1, 1990-
December 31, 1990 time period: Colorado, Indiana, Kansas,
Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New
York, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Washington, and Wisconsin.
The following five states' data was reported for the October 1,
1989-September 30,
1990 time period: Alabama, District of Columbia, Florida, Idaho,
and Mississippi.
The following four states' data was reported for the January 1,
1989-June 30, 1990
time period: Illinois, Maine, Pennsylvania, and Vermont.
The following four states had unique reporting periods: Michigan
(about 11 reporting periods); Nebraska (January 1, 1989-September
30, 1990) Texas (January 1, 1989-December 31, 1989) and Utah (July
1, 1989-December 31, 1990).
Data Element Specifications
The data element specifications that NCES provided for this data
collection are shown in appendix C, Data Element Specifications for
FY 90 data.
The data element specifications actually used by some states in
collecting data from their local public libraries may not be
consistent with FSCS data element specifications. A scan of forms
used by states to collect FY 90 data suggested that there were
differences between FSCS data element specifications and those used
on a number of states' data collection forms. A subcommittee of
the FSCS Steering Committee is working on consistency of
definitions among states.
Public Library Definition
The FSCS definition of a public library is "an entity that provides
all of the following: a.) an organized collection of printed or
other library materials, or a combination thereof; b.) a staff to
provide and interpret such materials as required to meet the
informational, cultural, recreational, and educational needs of a
clientele; c.) an established schedule in which services of the
staff are available to clientele; and d.) the facilities necessary
to support such a collection, staff, and schedule. A public
library is established under state enabling laws or regulations to
serve the residents of a community, district, or region."
For purposes of the FSCS data collection, state law prevails in the
identification of a public library. Thus, not all states'
definitions are the same as the FSCS definition.
Additional Information
Additional information on public library statistics can be obtained
from Carrol Kindel or Adrienne Chute, Postsecondary Education
Statistics Division, National Center for Education Statistics, 555
New Jersey Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20208-5652; telephone (202)
219-1371 or 219-1772.
Acknowledgments
The production of a census of this magnitude has been a team
effort. It would not have been accomplished without the support
of the following individuals and organizations. -- the local
public librarians who provided the data, the FSCS State Data
Coordinators and the Chief Officers of State library Agencies who
coordinated the data at the state level, present and past members
of the FSCS Steering Committee which led the effort (Jane
Ouderkirk, Connecticut State Library; Darla Cottrill, State Library
of Ohio; Jan Feye-Stukas, Minnesota Department of Education; Keith
Curry Lance, Colorado State Library; Libby Law, South Carolina
State Library; Mary Jo Lynch, American Library Association; Joseph
Shubert, New York State Library; E. Walter Terrie, Florida State
University; Jan Walsh, Washington State Library; Gerry Rowland,
State Library of Iowa; Peggy Rudd, Virginia State Library &
Archives; Adrienne Chute, NCES; Carrol Kindel, NCES; Ron Hall,
NCES; Larry LaMoure and Art Podolsky, recently retired from NCES;
John Lorenz, NCLIS; Peter Young, NCLIS; and Mary Alice Hedge
Reszetar, NCLIS); the American Library Association (ALA), the Chief
Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA), the National Commission
on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS), subcontractors
Pinkerton (John Wunderly), and Peace Technology (Andrew Chen).
Thanks to one and all for your enthusiastic support.
APPENDIX I:
Data Error Messages and Historical
Data Check Criteria
DATA ERROR MESSAGES AND HISTORICAL DATA CHECK CRITERIA
DATA ERROR MESSAGES
NO. ERROR MESSAGE ERROR CONDITION(S)
00 No Library ID# provided The item is blank. DECTOP will
automatically assign a system
generated LIB ID#.
01 Library name is missing This item is a non-response or
is all zeroes.
02 Address is incomplete This item is a non-response or
is all zeroes.
03 Zip code not valid This item is a non-response,
is all zeroes, or has an
embedded blank.
04 Zip + 4 not valid This item is a non-response,
is all zeroes, or has an
embedded blank.
05 Telephone number not valid This item is a non-response,
is all zeroes, or has an
embedded blank.
06 Population of Legal Service This item is a non-response,
Area not valid is all zeroes, or has an
embedded blank.
07 No service outlets are shown The sum of 'centrals' +
'branches'+'bookmobiles' is 0.
08 Only one service outlet shown Only one service outlet is
and it is not a Central shown and it is not a central
library.
09 ALA-MLS blank The item is missing.
10 Total librarians blank The item is missing.
11 Other paid employees blank The item is missing.
12 Total paid employees blank The item is missing. If both
parts are shown, the total is
automatically generated.
13 ALA-MLS > Total librarians Number of ALA-MLS is greater
than total librarians.
14 Local government income blank The item is missing.
15 State government income blank The item is missing.
16 Federal government income blank The item is missing.
17 Other income blank The item is missing.
18 Total operating income blank The item is 0 or missing. If
the sum of all four parts are
greater than zero,, the total
is automatically generated.
19 Total operating income not All parts are non-responsive
equal to the sum of the parts If some of the parts are non-
responsive, but the total
still adds,, the non-response
codes are changed to zeroes.
If the difference in addition
is only $1.00,, the total
field is changed.
20 Other income > 15% of total Other income greater than 15%
operating income of the total operating income
check Other Income
definitions.
21 Salaries and wages blank The item is missing.
22 Employee benefits blank The item is missing.
23 Total staff expenditures not The item is 0 or missing. If
shown both parts are greater than
zero, the total is generated.
24 Total staff expenditures not Both parts are non-responsive.
equal to the sum of the parts If only one of the parts is
non-responsive, and the total
is the same as the other, the
-1 or -2 is change to 0. If
the difference in addition is
only $1.00,, the total field
is changed.
25 Total expenditures on collection The item is missing.
blank
26 All other operating expenditures The item is missing.
blank
27 Total operating expenditures not The item is missing.
shown
28 Total operating expenditures not The item is 0 or missing.
equal to the sum of the parts If one or two of the parts
are non-responsive, and the
total still is additive, then
the -1's and -2's are changed
to 0's. If the difference in
addition is only $1.00, the
total is changed.
29 Total operating income < 75% of Total operating income
total operating expenditures is less than 75% of total
operating expenditures.
30 Total operating expenditures < Total operating
75% of total operating income expenditures is less than
75% of total operating
income.
31 Capital outlay blank The item is missing.
32 Book and serial volumes not The item is 0 or missing.
shown
33 Audio materials blank The item is missing.
34 Films blank The item is missing.
35 Video materials blank The item is missing.
36 Current serial subscriptions The item is missing.
blank
37 Total annual public service The item is 0 or missing.
hours not shown
38 Average public service hours This item divided by
per outlet per week is less 52 (convert annual to
than 10 weekly),then divided by the
total number of outlets (the
sum of central libraries,
branch libraries, bookmobiles
and other outlets) is less
than 10.0.
39 Average public service hours This item divided by 52 then
per outlet per week is more divided by the total number of
than 75 outlets (the sum of central
libraries, branch libraries
and bookmobiles) is more than
75.0.
40 Annual attendance in library The item is 0 or missing.
not shown
41 Annual reference transactions The item is 0 or missing.
not shown
42 Annual reference transactions Reference transactions per
/attendance > 1.0 attendance is greater than
1.0.
43 Total circulation transactions The item is 0 or missing.
not shown
44 Total circulation transactions Total circulation transactions
/Population of Legal Service per Population of Legal
Area < 1.0 Service is less than 1.0.
45 Total circulation transaction Total circulation transactions
/Population of Legal Service per Population of Legal
Area> 20.0 Service Area is greater than 20.0.
46 Total circulation transactions Total circulation transactions
/annual attendance < 0.5 per annual attendance is below
0.5.
47 Total circulation transaction/ Total circulation transactions
annual attendance > 6.0 per annual attendance is above
6.0.
48 Interlibrary loans to other The item is missing.
libraries blank
49 Interlibrary loans from other The item is missing.
libraries blank
50 Negative number less than -2 The numeric entry is less than
not acceptable -2. As previously stated, -1
is used to denote not
collected, not available or
not reported, and -2
represents not user entered.
51 Invalid number or character An invalid number or character
was entered.
52 No longer used. No longer used.
53 No longer used. No longer used.
54 No longer used. No longer used.
55 No longer used. No longer used.
56 No longer used. No longer used.
57 Out of range from last year's The change in your data for a
data particular data element
from last year to this year
has been determined to be out
of an acceptable range. See
Historical Data Check for more
information.
HISTORICAL DATA CHECK CRITERIA
# DATA ELEMENT ACCEPTABLE RANGE (Inclusive)
08 Population of Legal Service Area +25% to -10%
09 Centrals +1 or -1
10 Branches +2 or -2 AND +15% to -15%
11 Bookmobiles +2 or -2 AND +15% to -15%
12 Other Outlets +2 or -2 AND +30% to -30%
13 ALA-MLS +2 or -2 AND +30% to -30%
14 Total Librarians +2 or -2 AND +30% to -30%
15 Other Paid Employees +2 or -2 AND +30% to -30%
16 TOTAL PAID EMPLOYEES +2 or -2 AND +30% to -30%
17 Local Government +25% to -10%
18 State Government +40% to -40%
19 Federal Government No criterion
20 Other Income No criterion
21 TOTAL INCOME +25% to -10%
22 Salary & Wages Exp +20% to -20% if within +0.5
to -0.5 FTE on Data Element
#16. Otherwise, no criterion
23 Employee Benefits +20% to -20% if within +0.5
to -0.5 FTE on Data Element
#16. Otherwise, no criterion
24 TOTAL STAFF EXP +20% to -20% if within +0.5
to -0.5 FTE on Data Element
#16. Otherwise, no criterion
25 Collection Exp +30% to -15%
26 Other Operating Exp +40% to -10%
27 TOTAL OPERATING EXP +30% to -10%
28 Capital Outlay No criterion
29 Book/Serial Volume +15% to -5%
30 Audio +40% to -10%
31 Films +15% to -30%
32 Video +75% to -10%
33 Subscriptions +30% to -10%
34 Unduplicated Hrs No longer collected
35 Public Serv Hrs/Yr No criterion
36 Attendance No criterion
37 In-library Use No criterion
38 Reference Transactions No criterion
39 Total Circulation +25% to -10%
40 Loan To No criterion
41 Loan From No criterion
APPENDIX 2:
Nationwide Item Non-response Chart
NATIONWIDE ITEM NON-RESPONSE CHART
FSCS Data Element Percent of Item Non-Response
Population of Legal Service Area 1.2
Service Outlets
Central Libraries 0.8
Branch Libraries 0.8
Bookmobiles 0.8
Other Outlets 13.0
Full-time Equivalent Staff
Paid ALA-MLS 11.8
Total Paid Librarians 4.9
Other Paid Staff 4.9
Total Paid Staff 2.7
Operating Income
Local Income 2.4
State Income 1.8
Federal Income 3.9
Other Income 2.6
Total Income 2.4
Operating Expenditures
Salaries & Wages 9.4
Employee Benefits 9.4
Total Staff Expenditures 2.6
Collection Expenditures 2.6
Other Operating Expenditures 2.5
Total Operating Expenditures 2.4
Capital Outlay 4.9
Library Collection
Book/Serial Volumes 2.9
Audio Materials 4.1
Films 14.0
Video Materials 11.3
Serial Subscriptions 2.9
Services
Public Service Hours 3.4
Attendance in Library 31.6
Reference Transactions 19.5
Total Circulation 3.1
Inter-Library Loans Out 11.6
Inter-Library Loans In 10.8
Source: Analysis of missing value patterns for FSCS Steering
Committee. Walter E. Terrie, Ph.D.. November 1991.
Note: The percentage given under the heading item non-response
are the percentage of public libraries nationwide which did not
respond to the FSCS data element. It is not the percentage of
states that did not respond.
APPENDIX B:
User Guidelines for Processing Federal-State Cooperative System (FSCS)
Public Libraries Data, 1990
APPENDIX B - USER GUIDELINES FOR PROCESSING FEDERAL-STATE
COOPERATIVE SYSTEM (FSCS) PUBLIC LIBRARIES DATA, 1990
State Summary Records
A state summary record for each state was created. The state summary
records can be found in the CEFSUMM.TXT file. Each state summary
record was created by summing the individual data fields for each
state and storing the sum(s) in the appropriate data field(s) in the
state summary record.
The only exception to the recording of sums in the state summary
record was for the variable "Population of the Legal Service Area".
A sum of the population of legal service area of each public library
in a state may, in some cases, exceed the state's population. This is
because adjacent public libraries may count the same population
(duplicated population). For example, a county library and a city
library within the same county may both receive income from the same
city, so both may serve and count the same population. For this
reason each state library agency was given the opportunity to provide
an unduplicated population of the legal service area for the state.
Unduplicated population of the legal service area is the total
unduplicated population of those areas in a state that receive public
library service. The populations of unserved areas are not included
in the unduplicated population. Fourteen states (California,
Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,
Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and
West Virginia) provided an unduplicated total population figure for
the state. For those states, the figure provided was used in the
summary record. For the states that did not provide an unduplicated
total population, the total of individual public libraries' population
of the legal service areas was used in the summary record.
Individual Public Library Data
The Public Libraries Data, 1990 file consists of data which were
submitted by state library offices in the 50 states and the District
of Columbia. The individual public library records can be found in
the PUBLIB90.TXT file. Each public library record represents a
responding public library. The public library files are divided into
11 parts, each corresponding to a part of the Data Entry Conversion
Table Output Program (DECTOP) data entry screen and the record layout:
Identification, Service Outlets, FTE Staff, Operating Income,
Operating Expenditures, Capital Outlay, Library Collection, Public
Service Hours, Library Services, Circulation, Interlibrary loans. All
records are in a fixed block flat file ASCII format. This is a
standard data format and can be imported into most software packages.
The following information about population of the legal service area
may be helpful in using either the individual public library records
(PUBLIB90.TXT) file or the state summary (CEFSUMM.TXT) file. States
provided duplicated population data for individual public libraries in
the (PUBLIB90.TXT) file. For these states the total of the individual
public libraries population of the legal service area will include
duplicate population counts. The following states provided an
unduplicated total of the individual public libraries population of
the legal service area in the (CEFSUMM.TXT) file: California,
Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,
Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, West
Virginia. However, the individual libraries in the (PUBLIB90.TXT)
file for these states may include duplicate population of the legal
service area for individual public libraries.
Per Capita Calculations
One of the variables used in making per capita calculations is
population of the legal service area. Because population of the legal
service area can be based on two different calculation methods (the
use of duplicated or unduplicated population of the legal service area
counts) the user should exercise caution in making per capita
comparisons between individual public libraries or states.
For numeric data fields the following were acceptable responses:
0 State had none of this item.
-1 State did not know this, did not collect this, could not collect
this item right now or this did not apply.
-2 Item nonresponse.
RECORD LAYOUT FOR 1990 PUBLIC LIBRARY DATA FILE
Variable Field Record Data
Name Length Position Type Description
IDENTIFICATION
FKEY_POST 02 001-002 A This is a two-character Post Office
State Code.
FKEY_SEQ 04 003-006 A This is a four character sequence
number assigned by NCES to the
record supplied by the state. This
sequence number starts with 0001 for
each state and is assigned
sequentially. The number portion of
the state summary record is 0000 in
all cases.
PUB_FIPS 02 007-008 A This is a 2 digit FIPS State code.
PUB_SEQ 04 009-012 A This is identical to FKEY_SEQ so
that either 001-006 or 007-012 can
be used for sorting the file.
LIB_CODE 20 013-032 A Library identification code as
provided, FSCS and the sequence
number, as indicated above, was
inserted in this field.
LIB_NAME 45 033-077 A Name of library.
LIB_ADDR 35 078-112 A Street address of library.
LIB_CITY 17 113-129 A City or town of library.
LIB_ZIP 05 130-134 A Standard five-digit postal zip code.
LIB_ZIP4 04 135-138 A Four-digit postal zip code
extension.
LIB_PHONE 10 139-148 A Phone number, including area code.
SER_POP 11 149-159 N Population of the legal service area.
SERVICE OUTLETS
SER_NUM_CN 05 160-164 N Number of central or main libraries.
SER_NUM_BR 05 165-169 N Number of branch libraries.
SER_NUM_BM 05 170-174 N Number of bookmobiles.
SER_NUM_OT 05 175-179 N Number of other outlets.
FTE STAFF
FTE_LIB_MS 11 180-190 N Number of FTE paid librarians with
a master of library science degree
from an American Library Association
(ALA) accredited program. This
field consists of 8 integers and 2
decimals with an explicit decimal
point.
FTE_LIB_TO 11 191-201 N Total number of FTE employees
holding the title of librarian.
This field consists of 8 integers
and 2 decimals with an explicit
decimal point.
FTE_OTH_PD 12 202-213 N All other paid FTE employees. This
field consists of 8 integers
and 2 decimals with an explicit
decimal point.
FTE_TOT_PD 12 214-225 N Total paid FTE employees. This
field consists of 9 integers and 2
decimal places with an explicit
decimal point.
OPERATING INCOME
INC_LOCAL 11 226-236 N Operating income from local
government.
INC_STATE 11 237-247 N Operating income from state
government.
INC_FED 11 248-258 N Operating income from federal
government.
INC_OTHER 11 259-269 N Other operating income not included
in INC_LOCAL, INC_STATE, and
INC_FED.
INC_TOTAL 12 270-281 N Total income. This includes INC_LOCAL,
INC_STATE, INC_FED, and INC_OTHER.
OPERATING EXPENDITURES
OPX_SALARY 11 282-292 N Salaries and wages for all library
staff.
OPX_BENEFIT 11 293-303 N Employee benefits for all library
staff.
OPX_TOT_ST 11 304-314 N Total staff expenditures. This
includes OPX_SALARY and OPX_BENFIT.
OPX_TOT_CL 11 315-325 N Total expenditures on collection.
OPX_OTH 11 326-336 N Other operating expenditures not
included in OPX_TOT_ST and
OPX_TOT_CL.
OPX_TOTAL 11 337-348 N Total operating expenditures. This
includes OPX_TOT_ST, OPX_TOT_CL and
OPX_OTH.
CAPITAL OUTLAY
CAP_OUTLAY 11 349-359 N Expenditures for capital outlay.
LIBRARY COLLECTION
COL_BOOKS 11 360-370 N Number of books and serial volumes.
COL_AUDIO 11 371-381 N Number of audio materials.
COL_FILM 11 382-392 N Number of films.
COL_VIDEO 11 393-403 N Number of video materials.
COL_C_SERL 11 404-414 N Number of current serial subscriptions.
PUBLIC SERVICE HOURS
PS_DUP 10 415-424 N Total annual public service hours
for all outlets of the public
library.
LIBRARY SERVICES
SVC_ATTND 11 425-435 N Annual attendance in library.
SVC_REFS 11 436-446 N Number of annual reference transactions.
CIRCULATION
CIRCULATION 11 447-457 N Total annual circulation
transactions. transactions.
INTER-LIBRARY LOANS
ILL_OUT 08 458-465 N Annual number of loans to other
libraries.
libraries.
ILL_IN 08 466-473 N Annual number of loans from other
libraries. libraries.
Data Type
N = A numeric field means that only the digits 0-9 are allowed.
A = Alpha character field, may include digits 0-9.
For definition of the variables please see Appendix C.
APPENDIX C:
Data Element Specifications for 1990
APPENDIX C - DATA ELEMENT SPECIFICATION FOR 1990
# DATA ELEMENT FIELD TYPE/ DATA ELEMENT SPECIFICATIONS
WIDTH DECIMALS
01 LIB ID# 20 Alpha This is the State-assigned
identification number for the
public library record.
02 NAME 45 Alpha This is the name of the
library.
03 ADDRESS 35 Alpha This is the complete street
address of the library.
04 CITY 17 Alpha This is the city or town of
the library.
05 ZIP1 5 Alpha This is the standard
five-digit postal zip code.
06 ZIP2 4 Alpha This is the four-digit postal
zip code extension for the new
nine-digit zip code system.
07 PHONE 10 Alpha This is the telephone number
of the library, including area
code.
POPULATION
08 Population of Legal 9 Numeric/0 This is the number of people
Service Area in the geographic area for
whom a public library has been
established to offer services
and from whom (or on behalf of
whom) the library derives income
plus any areas served under
contract for which the library
is the primary service provider.
The determination of this
population figure is the
responsibility of the
State Library Agency.
SERVICE OUTLETS
09 Centrals 3 Numeric/0 This is the single unit
library or the unit where the
principal collections are
kept and handled; also called
"main library." Some county,
multi-county, and regional
library systems may not have
a central library. Some
systems may have an
administrative center which is
separate from the principal
collections and is not open to
the public. This type of
building is not reported.
10 Branches 3 Numeric/0 These are auxiliary units
which have all of the
following: (1) separate
quarters; (2) a permanent
basic collection of books;
(3) a permanent paid staff;
and (4) a regular schedule for
opening to the public. They
are, however, administered
from a central unit. Regional
or divisional centers are
counted as branches.
11 Bookmobiles 3 Numeric/0 These are trucks or vans
specially equipped to carry
books and other library
materials; they serve as
traveling branch libraries.
Vehicles in use are counted,
rather than the number of
stops the vehicle makes.
12 Other Outlets 3 Numeric/0 Examples are outlets in senior
citizen centers, day care
centers, jails, or other
organizations or institutions
with small and frequently
changed collections of books
and other library materials.
FULL-TIME EQUIVALENTS STAFF
Report figures as of the last day of the fiscal year. Include unfilled
but budgeted positions. To ensure comparable data, 40 hours per week
has been set as the measure of full-time employment (FTE) for the
Cooperative System.
13 ALA-MLS 9 Numeric/2 These are paid librarians with
a master of library science
degree from programs
accredited by the ALA. This
category excludes all other
librarians. This category
is reported in FTE.
14 Total Librarians 9 Numeric/2 This is a person who does paid
work that requires
professional training and
skill in the theoretical or
scientific aspects of library
work, or both, as distinct
from its mechanical or
clerical aspect. This data
element also includes ALA-MLS
(Data Element #13). This
category is reported in FTE.
15 Other Paid 10 Numeric/2 This includes all other FTE
Employees employees paid from the
reporting unit budget,
including plant operations,
security, and maintenance
staff.
16 TOTAL PAID 10 Numeric/2 This is the sum of total
EMPLOYEES librarians (Data Element #14)
and all other paid staff (Data
Element #15).
OPERATING INCOME
Report income used for operating expenditures as defined below.
Include federal, State, or other grants other than those for major
capital expenditures. DO NOT include income for major capital
expenditures, contributions to endowments, income passed through to
another agency (e. g. fines), or funds unspent in the previous
fiscal year.
17 Local Government 9 Numeric/0 This includes all tax and
non-tax receipts designated by
the community, district, or
region of the public library
and available for expenditure
by the public library. It
does not include the value of
any contributed or in-kind
services nor the value of any
gifts and donations, fines, or
fees.
18 State Government 9 Numeric/0 These are all funds
distributed to public
libraries by State government
for expenditure by the public
libraries, except for federal
money distributed by the
State. This includes funds
from such sources as penal
fines, license fees, mineral
rights.
19 Federal Government 9 Numeric/0 This includes all federal
government funds distributed
to public libraries for
expenditure by the public
libraries, including federal
money distributed by the
State.
20 Other Income 9 Numeric/0 This is all income other than
that reported in Data Elements
#17, #18 and #19. Include, for
example, gifts and donations
received in the current year,
interest, library fines, and
fees for library services. Do
not include the value of any
contributed services or
the value of "in-kind" gifts
and donations.
21 TOTAL INCOME 10 Numeric/0 This includes income from the
local government, the State
government, the federal
government, and all other
income (Data Elements #17
through #20).
OPERATING EXPENDITURES
22 Salaries & Wages Exp 9 Numeric/0 This amount is the salary and
wages for all library staff
including plant operation,
security and maintenance staff
for the fiscal year. Include
salaries and wages before
deductions but exclude
"employee benefits".
23 Employee Benefits 9 Numeric/0 These are the benefits outside
of salaries and wages paid and
accruing to employees
including plant operations,
security and maintenance
staff, regardless of whether
the benefits or equivalent
cash options are available to
all employees. Include amounts
spent by the reporting unit
for direct, paid employee
benefits including Social
Security, retirement,
medical insurance, life
insurance, guaranteed
disability income protection,
unemployment compensation,
workmen's compensation,
tuition, and housing benefits.
Only that part of any employee
benefits paid out of the
public library budget should
be reported.
24 TOTAL STAFF EXP 9 Numeric/0 This includes salaries and
wages (Data Element #22), and
employee benefits (Data
Element #23).
25 Collection Exp 9 Numeric/0 This includes all expenditures
for materials purchased or
leased for use by the public.
It includes print materials,
microforms, machine-readable
materials, audiovisual
materials, etc.
26 Other Operating Exp 9 Numeric/0 This includes all expenditures
other than those given above
on staff (Data Element #24)
and collection (Data Element
#25).
27 TOTAL OPERATING EXP 10 Numeric/0 This includes total
expenditures on staff, total
expenditures on collection,
and other operating
expenditures (Data Elements
#24, #25 and #26).
CAPITAL OUTLAY
28 Capital Outlay 9 Numeric/0 These are funds for the
acquisition of or additions to
fixed assets such as building
sites, new buildings and
building additions, new
equipment (including major
computer installations),
initial book stock,
furnishings for new or
expanded buildings, and
new vehicles. This excludes
replacement and repair of
existing furnishings and
equipment, regular purchase of
library materials, and
investments for capital
appreciation. Note that local
accounting practices shall
determine whether a specific
item is a capital expense or
an operating expense
regardless of the examples in
the definitions.
LIBRARY COLLECTION
29 Book/Serial Volume 9 Numeric/0 Books are non-periodical
printed publications bound in
hard or soft covers, or in
loose-leaf format, of at least
49 pages, exclusive of the
cover pages; or juvenile
non-periodical publications of
any length bound in hard or
soft covers. Serials are
publications issued in
successive parts, usually at
regular intervals, and as a
rule, intended to be continued
indefinitely. Serials include
periodicals (magazines),
newspapers, annuals (reports,
yearbooks, etc.), memoirs,
proceedings, and transactions
of societies. Except for the
current volume, count unbound
serials as volumes when the
library has at least half of
the issues in a publisher's
volume.
30 Audio 9 Numeric/0 These are materials on which
sounds (only) are stored
(recorded) and that can be
reproduced (played back)
mechanically or
electronically, or both.
Included are records,
audiocassettes, audio
cartridges, audiodiscs,
audioreels, talking books, and
other sound recordings.
31 Films 9 Numeric/0 The term film is used
interchangeably with "motion
picture" which is a length of
film, with or without recorded
sound, bearing a sequence of
still images that create
the illusion of movement when
projected in rapid successions
(usually 18 or 24 frames per
second). Motion pictures are
produced in a variety of sizes
(8, super 8, 16, 35, 55, and
70 mm) and in a variety of
forms (cartridge, cassette,
loop, and reel).
32 Video 9 Numeric/0 These are materials on which
pictures, sound, or both are
recorded. Electronic playback
reproduces pictures, sounds,
or both using a television
receiver or monitor.
33 Subscriptions 9 Numeric/0 These include subscriptions
received both purchased and
gifts. This count does not
include the number of
individual issues but, rather
each serial title. The total
number of subscriptions in the
library system, including
duplicates, is reported.
34 Unduplicated Hrs 6 Blank No Longer Collected
PUBLIC SERVICE HOURS
35 Public Serv Hrs/Yr 8 Numeric/0 This is the total annual public
service hours for all outlets
combined. Report the sum of all
public service hours for all
library facilities (including
bookmobiles) for the entire
year. For bookmobiles, report
only the hours in which the
bookmobile is open to the
public. Do not include hours
for deposit collections or
other similar service outlets.
SERVICES
Notes for data elements #36 and #38: If annual counts are available
for Data Elements #36 and #38, please report them. Otherwise provide
annual estimates based on a count taken during a typical week in
October and then multiply that number by 52. A "typical week" is a
time that is neither unusually busy or unusually slow. Avoid holiday
times, vacation periods for key staff, days when unusual events are
taking place in the community or in the library. Choose a week in
which the library is open its regular hours. Include seven consecutive
calendar days, form Sunday through Saturday or whenever the library is
usually open.
36 Attendance 9 Numeric/0 This is the total number of
persons per year entering the
library, including persons
attending activities,
meetings, and those persons
requiring no staff services.
37 In-Library Use 9 Blank No Longer Collected
38 Reference 9 Numeric/0 A reference transaction is
Transactions an information contact which
involves the knowledge, use,
recommendations, interpretation
or instruction in the use of one
or more information sources by a
member of the library staff.
The term includes information
and referral service.
Information sources include
printed and non-printed
materials, machine-readable
databases (including
computer-assisted
instruction), catalogs and
other holdings, records, and
through communication or
referral, other libraries and
institutions and persons both
inside and outside the library.
When a staff member utilizes
information gained from previous
use of information sources to
answer a question, report as a
reference transaction even if
the source is not consulted
again during this transaction.
Note that it is essential that libraries do not include directional
transactions in the report of reference transactions. A directional
transaction is an information contact which facilitates the use of the
library in which the contact occurs but does NOT involve the
knowledge, use, recommendation, interpretation, or instruction in the
use of any information sources other than those which describe that
library, such as schedules, floor plans, handbooks, and policy
statements. Examples of directional transactions include giving
instruction for locating within the library, staff, library users,
or physical features, etc., and giving assistance of a
non-bibliographical nature with machines.
CIRCULATION
39 Total Circulation 9 Numeric/0 These are transactions that
involve lending an item from
the library's collection for
use generally (although not
always) outside the library.
This activity includes
charging materials manually or
electronically. Each renewal
is also reported as a
circulation transaction. These
data are reported as annual
figures.
INTER-LIBRARY LOANS
40 Loan To 6 Numeric/0 These are library materials,
or copies of the materials,
lent by one library to another
upon request. The libraries
involved in interlibrary loans
are not under the same library
administration. These data are
reported as annual figures.
41 Loan From 6 Numeric/0 These are library materials,
or copies of the materials,
borrowed by one library from
another library upon request.
The libraries involved in
interlibrary loans are not
under the same library
administration. These data are
reported as annual figures.
August 14, 2003
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