================================================================= ALAWON Volume 6, Number 17 ISSN 1069-7799 March 18, 1997 American Library Association Washington Office Newsline In this issue: (79 lines) OITP WEBSITE REDESIGN RELEASED _________________________________________________________________ OITP WEBSITE REDESIGN RELEASED The website for ALA's Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP) has been completely updated and redesigned on the World Wide Web at http://www.ala.org/oitp. The OITP's new home page offers library advocates and others the opportunity to look at ALA's hot issues and activities on national technology policy that affect libraries. "Libraries on the Net" includes programs on how ALA is helping to bring access to the information superhighway to all Americans and links to examples of how libraries and librarians are working to build and add value to the information superhighway. One of the major activities OITP has been involved in has been coordination of ALA's response to the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) recommendations for discounted rates for libraries and schools. This FCC proceeding was mandated by the passage of the Snowe-Rockefeller-Kerrey-Exon (SRKE) Amendment provision to the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The FCC is expected to release the final rules by May 8, 1997. Rules could be implemented in time for discounted services to be available in libraries and schools by the start of the 1997-98 school year. The site's universal service page, http://www.ala.org/oitp/univserv.html, contains links to ALA's filings and analysis on this issues and includes a link to the Education and Library Networks Coalition's (EdLiNC) new state advocacy kit. EdLiNC, of which ALA is a member, encourages library advocates to share the kit materials with media and other key audiences and use them as a resource to develop letters and presentations. It includes a list of key decision-makers, an explanation of the state public utility commission role, sample letters and suggestions for advocacy and outreach activities. ALA has been an active participant since this proceeding began in April 1996, filing in all five rounds of public comments and making numerous other presentations to the FCC on behalf of libraries. OITP, whose mission is to promote the development and utilization of electronic access to information as a means to ensure the public's right to a free and open information society, opened in September 1995 as part of a vote of confidence in ALA Goal 2000. Establishment of OITP was made possible in part with funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. ________________________________________________________________ ALAWON is a free, irregular publication of the American Library Association Washington Office. To subscribe, send the message: subscribe ala-wo [your_firstname] [your_lastname] to listproc @ala.org. ALAWON archives at http://www.ala.org/washoff/alawon. Visit our Web site at http://www.alawash.org. ALA Washington Office 202.628.8410 (V) 1301 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, #403 202.628.8419 (F) Washington, DC 20004-1701 800.941.8478 (V) Lynne E. Bradley, Editor Deirdre Herman, Managing Editor Contributors: Andrew Magpantay Brian Marquardt All materials subject to copyright by the American Library Association may be reprinted or redistributed for noncommercial purposes with appropriate credits. =================================================================