Each year, the ACRL Government Relations Committee, in consultation with the ACRL Board of Directors and staff, formulates an ACRL Legislative Agenda. Drafted with input from key ACRL committees, ACRL leaders, and the ALA Public Policy and Advocacy Office, the ACRL Legislative Agenda is prioritized and focuses on issues at the national level affecting the welfare of academic and research libraries. The ACRL Board of Directors recently approved the 2022 ACRL Legislative Agenda.
The 2022 ACRL Legislative Agenda focuses on eight issues that the U.S. Congress has recently taken, or will most likely take, action on in the year ahead:
- Federal funding for libraries
- Net neutrality
- Affordable College Textbook Act
- Consumer data privacy
- Public access to federally funded research
- Accessible Instructional Materials in Higher Education Act (AIM HIGH)
- Federal funding for higher education
- Environmental impact of data centers
The agenda also includes a watch list of policy issues of great concern to academic librarians but where there is no pending legislation. Issues on the watch list are: changes to federal copyright laws (SMART Copyright Act of 2022), Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) Modernization Act, and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA)/Immigration Issues.
The full 2022 Legislative Agenda is available on the ACRL website.