What will change now that the Internet Archive has been designated a federal government depository library?
Internet Archive Designated as a Federal Depository Library | Internet Archive Blogs
https://blog.archive.org/2025/07/24/internet-archive-designated-as-a-federal-depository-library/
SF-Based Internet Archive Is Now a Federal Depository Library. What Does That Mean? | KQED
https://www.kqed.org/news/12049420/sf-based-internet-archive-is-now-a-federal-depository-library-what-does-that-mean
The U.S. Federal Publication Depository Library Program originated from an 1813 joint act of Congress which mandated the distribution of certain government publications to libraries. Libraries designated as Federal Publication Depository Libraries are obligated to hold copies of government publications and provide interlibrary loan and reference services.
On July 24, Senator Alex Padilla of California designated the Internet Archive as a federal government depository library ina letter (PDF file) sent to the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) . Federal law allows members of Congress to designate up to two eligible libraries as federal government depository libraries, and Senator Padilla exercised this right.
'The Internet Archive's digital-first approach is a perfect fit for a modern federal depository library and will expand access to federal publications in an increasingly digital environment,' Senator Padilla said in a statement to KQED . 'The Internet Archive has broken down countless barriers to accessing information, and I am honored to award them this designation to further their mission of providing 'universal access to all knowledge.''
Brewster Kahle, founder of the Internet Archive, said, 'We are excited about the existence of organizations like the Internet Archive that have physical collections but also make them accessible as part of the Internet. Integrating these materials into services like Wikipedia strengthens the entire Internet ecosystem and makes government materials more accessible to digital learners.'
The government materials distributed through the Federal Library Depository Program include a variety of items, including maps, environmental reports, health studies, congressional records, newspapers, books, and more. Kahle said these records can run into the millions of pages and could take up an entire floor of a public library.
In fact, in 2020, the San Diego Public Library announced that it would abandon its status as a depository library for federal publications,
There is also a method of storing government publications on microfiche or microfilm, which are much smaller than paper, but these media have the disadvantage that they are easy to copy but difficult to access. GPO has been working on digital preservation of government publications since 2016, and in addition to operating an online database of government records, it is also promoting the digitization of the Federal Government Publications Depository Library Program.
Federal depository libraries are also transitioning to the GPO's digital approach, but digitizing the vast amount of documents they have accumulated is a difficult task. The Internet Archive has years of experience helping libraries and other academic institutions digitize their collections and host them online, which could be of use to the Federal Depository Library Program.
In addition, the Internet Archive is launching Democracy's Library, a free online library that compiles government research results and publications, in 2022, and participating in the Federal Government Publications Depository Library will also promote this effort. 'Participating in this program will bring us closer to the source of the materials, making them more reliably delivered to the Internet Archive and accessible to Internet Archive supporters and users of partner libraries,' said Kale.
In recent years, the Internet Archive has faced legal challenges over some of its archiving activities. In 2020, during the pandemic, the Internet Archive abolished waiting lists for digital book lending under the name of 'National Emergency Libraries,' and was sued by four major publishers.
The publishers ultimately won the lawsuit, and the Internet Archive was forced to remove 500,000 books from its lending list.
Internet Archive removes 500,000 books from lending list due to publisher victory - GIGAZINE
In addition, music labels such as Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment have filed lawsuits over the hundreds of thousands of records that the Internet Archive has made available online. If the labels win, they could be liable for damages of up to $693 million (approximately 103 billion yen).
The lawsuit between Internet Archive and record companies has expanded the damage claim amount to about 100 billion yen, while there are also moves to settle - GIGAZINE
It is unclear whether joining the Federal Library of Congress will affect the Internet Archive's copyright lawsuit. Because government publications are not subject to copyright, the Internet Archive can digitize, archive, and distribute them without worrying about copyright.
'I think in the digital age, we're finally beginning to understand what it means to have libraries and to keep copies of materials for the long term,' Kahle said. 'It's more important than ever to have these materials available.'
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