Summary

This policy governs the acquisition and maintenance of the UNT Libraries government information collections, which include federal, state, and local government information resources; legal materials; and maps. These collections are currently housed in the Sycamore Library at Sycamore Hall.

Federal Depository Library Program

The UNT Libraries was designated a Federal Depository Library in 1948. The Federal Depository collection currently serves the 13th Congressional District of Texas, which includes the Texas Panhandle, parts of Texoma and northwestern parts of North Texas. The primary clientele of the federal depository are the residents of the 13th Congressional District and the students, faculty, and staff of UNT.

The Sycamore Library is responsible for the Government Documents collection. Staff follow the guidelines and instructions for selection and disposal set forth in the Legal Requirements and Program Regulations of the Federal Depository Library Program. When questions arise over the interpretation of these guidelines, the Government Information Librarian consults with the Regional Depository Librarian at Texas Tech University.

Acquisition

The majority of items in the collection are obtained through the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP); the majority of items currently selected are born digital publications, although tangible materials are still received. Staff and librarians monitor the FDLP eXchange and request materials to supplement the collection as needed. To complement the depository collections, privately published materials are purchased selectively, after consideration of relevance to the curriculum, and space and budget constraints.

Language

English language materials are primarily collected, but other languages may also be considered.

Selection Guidelines

The UNT Libraries bases its depository item selection on the curriculum and research needs of the campus as well as the government information needs of the 13th Congressional District. The UNT Libraries selection profile includes the FDLP Basic Collection. General publications and data are selected when appropriate and relevant to academic disciplines and research as well as local constituencies.

The geographic focus of the collection includes some international emphasis; the U.S. as a whole; the five-state region: Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arkansas; Texas; the counties comprising the North Central Texas Council of Governments (Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Erath, Hood, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Navarro, Palo Pinto, Parker, Rockwall, Somervell, Tarrant, and Wise); and the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.

Below is a separate collection development statement for maps. A collection development policy is also available for General Collection Research Data.

Preservation Steward

The UNT Libraries, through Memoranda of Agreement (MOA), serves as a Preservation Partner to the Government Publishing Office (GPO). By agreeing to retain print collections of value to the FDLP and the local UNT community, the UNT Libraries serves as a Preservation Steward. Additionally, materials within scope of the FDLP are accessed and preserved in the UNT Digital Library, extending this partnership to include Digital Preservation Steward. As a Preservation Steward, the UNT Libraries is committed to preserving the following materials:

• Statistical Abstract of the United States
• Area Handbook Series
• Indian Reading Series
• Department of the Army Technical Manuals
• Annual report of the Bureau of Ethnology/Bureau of American Ethnology
• Bulletins, Bureau of Ethnology/Bureau of American Ethnology
• Handbook of North American Indians
• War Department Technical Manuals
• U.S. Congressional Serial Set
• Comics & Graphic Novels
• Coloring Books & Activity Books
• Digitized U.S. government publications from a variety of agencies

Texas State Publications

The UNT Libraries has been a Texas State Publications Depository since the program’s inception in 1963. Documents received prior to 2011 are cataloged and housed at the Sycamore Library. Materials distributed since 2011 are digitized for inclusion in The Portal to Texas History (see Digital Collections).

Digital Collections

The UNT Libraries serves as an Affiliated Archive of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and a Digital Preservation Steward in the FDLP by committing to make publicly accessible digital resources within scope of the FDLP at no fee. Digital collections within scope of the FDLP include digitized content as well as harvested web content. These collections are accessible through the UNT Digital Library and The Portal to Texas History. The selection guidelines listed above, as well as our official partnerships with the U.S. Government Publishing Office and NARA guide our acquisition of born-digital government publications and conversion of tangible materials.

The UNT Libraries serves as host for the Texas Register by agreement with the Texas Secretary of State. The UNT Libraries digitizes and makes discoverable Texas State Publications distributed by the Texas State Library and Archives. These collections are available in The Portal to Texas History.

Legal Materials

The purpose of the UNT Libraries’ Legal Collection is to provide access to legal materials in support of the UNT curriculum. The collection is intended to be a resource for the academic community, as well as for local and regional community members.

The Legal Collection, as referred to in this policy, consists of legal materials located in the Sycamore Library as well as items available via subscription databases. The Sycamore Library staff provides reference assistance and access to the collection. The Government Information Librarian, in consultation with subject librarians, requesting faculty, and Collection Development librarians, is primarily responsible for selection of the collection.

Acquisition

The current collection consists primarily of legal databases with historical materials available in print. Materials obtained through the Federal Depository Library Program and the Texas State Publications Depository Program, such as the United States Reports, Code of Federal Regulations, United States Code, U.S. Statutes at Large, and the Texas Administrative Code, are considered supplements to the Legal Collection.

Language

English language materials are primarily collected.

Collection Areas

The print collection is no longer kept current, with the exception of Vernon’s Texas Code Annotated and a few other select materials. Historical collections include primarily U.S. federal and Texas state laws. Some foreign government and international law materials are purchased from departmental allocations.

UNT Libraries subscribe to databases that provide expanded access to legal materials, including materials relevant to the legislative process, and current and historical Congressional documents, and information about past and current members of Congress. Databases provide access to statutory, regulatory, legislative and case information for the U.S. federal government, U.S. states, Canada, and some European countries not found in the print collection, as well as numerous law reviews and legal news publications. Other UNT Libraries databases provide access to legal forms, legal dictionaries, and legal periodicals.

Maps

The purpose of the UNT Libraries Map Collection is to provide access to cartographic materials in support of the UNT curriculum. The collection is intended to be a resource for the academic community, as well as for local and regional community members.

The Map Collection consists primarily of flat maps with dimensions that prevent them from being stored in regular library stacks. Folded maps may also be included in the collection, depending on dimension and/or anticipated usage.

The Map Collection is maintained as a part of the government information collections and is housed in the Sycamore Library and offsite at the Library Annex. Sycamore Library staff provide reference assistance and access to the collection. The Government Information Librarian, in consultation with subject librarians, requesting faculty, and Collection Development librarians, is primarily responsible for selection, maintenance, and storage of the collection.

Acquisition

Maps will be purchased selectively, after consideration of relevance to the curriculum and size and space constraints. All requests for additions to the Map collections will be reviewed by the Government Information Librarian to assure appropriate storage options are available.

Language

English language materials are primarily collected, but other languages may also be considered.

Collection Areas (Geographic Area & Coverage)

• Denton County: All scales and subjects.
• DFW Metroplex [includes Denton, Dallas, Tarrant, and Collin counties]: All scales; transportation, political, demographic, relief, geologic.
• Texas: All scales; transportation, political, demographic, relief, geologic, including historical materials.
• 5-State Area [Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Arkansas]: All scales; reference and thematic maps, natural resources.
• Southwest U.S.: Reference and thematic maps.
• United States: Reference and thematic maps, including historical materials.
• Mexico: Reference and thematic maps, including historical materials.
• World

Reference and thematic maps of Earth as a whole, continents, regions, and nations, including historical materials.

Excluded Materials

Aerial photography, aeronautical charts, nautical charts, and maps larger than 41” x 51” are generally not collected.

Dates

• Approved: 07/03/12
• Revised: 05/07/20, 08/13/24

License Information