Collection Development and Status Statement: Government Documents and Information

As the largest depository of United States government publications in the Nashville metropolitan area and Middle Tennessee, and as the only depository of United Nations publications in the state of Tennessee, Vanderbilt University's Central Library selects and makes available materials reflecting the information needs of the general public, particularly residents of (as of the 118th Congress) the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Congressional Districts of Tennessee.

As part of the Jean and Alexander Heard Library of Vanderbilt University, the staff managing the government documents collection share the library's mission to support the curricular and research needs of the university community.

Staff managing the collection also keep at the forefront the library's strategic plan, including close attention to integrating knowledge discovery through our physical and virtual services and staff activities and engaging locally, regionally, and globally in creating access, disseminating knowledge, and preserving cultural memory.

As a member of the Federal Depository Library Program, Vanderbilt follows the GPO’s Legal Requirements & Program Regulations of the Federal Depository Library Program as the formal basis of collection development.

In addition, Vanderbilt is bound by a separate but FDLP-mandated state holdings agreement. This agreement sets out further retention and discard requirements, which are set out in detail in the Agreements with Other Depository Libraries section of this LibGuide and in a separate LibGuide, Discards/Needs & Offers.

Per the Legal Requirements,

The foundation of a depository library collection includes both tangible (e.g. print, microfiche, CD-ROM/DVD) and online content. Depository libraries must provide access to FDLP content, including:

• Publications selected, distributed, and received through the Federal Depository Library Program
• The FDLP Basic Collection
• Publications available through official FDLP partnerships
• Online publications cataloged in the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP), including publications found in gov.info.gov, demonstrated through a combination of cataloging, creation of Web pages, and integration of online material into traditional library finding aids such as subject guides

This collection development and status statement was last updated by Frank Lester on 19 March 2024.