Sign on for Support of Access to Science Bill

Dear colleagues,

The bipartisan Federal Research Public Access Act of 2006,introduced on May 2, 2006 by Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Joe Lieberman (D-CT), would require that US Government agencies make manuscripts of journal articles stemming from research funded by that agency publicly available via the Internet. The manuscripts will be maintained and preserved in a digital archive maintained by that agency or in another suitable repository that permits free public access, interoperability, and long-term preservation. Each manuscript will be freely available to users without charge within six months after it has been published in a peer-reviewed journal.

If Congress passes the bill into law, there will be a significant improvement in access to research as well as an increase of visibility of their works for researchers that are partially or totally funded in agencies whose annual extramural research budgets exceed $100 million.

The bill recognizes the benefits of timely sharing of research and the cost effective means to accelerate scientific advancement in using the internet. The beneficiaries will be scientists, scholars, funders as well as taxpayers whose investment in scientific research will be enhanced by technology transfer, timely and broad application of research to healthcare and more informed policy development.

Because it will improve access to science, the legislation is supported by various national organizations of academic libraries – including the Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries, Association of College and Research Libraries, Association of Research Libraries, and SPARC (Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition).

CPTech is writing a letter of support for the Federal research public access act of 2006 that we will send to Senators Cornyn and Lieberman next week. If you would like to sign on, let me know, I'll send you my first draft (or if you prefer you can write you own letter and fax it at numbers below).

I understand Senators Cornyn and Lieberman are hearing in force from publishers who oppose it, and we want to make sure they hear from us too.

Here is the full contact info for both senators:

Senator John Cornyn
517 Hart Senate Office Bldg.
Washington, DC 20510
Tel: 202-224-2934
Fax: 202-228-2856

Senator Joe Lieberman
706 Hart Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
(202) 224-4041 Voice
(202) 224-9750 Fax

MORE INFO at:

Bill Seeks Access to Tax-Funded Research Grant Recipients Would Be Required to Post Findings on Internet
By Rick Weiss Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, May 3, 2006; Page A21

TAXPAYER ALLIANCE SUPPORTS SENATE BILL BROADENING ACCESS TO FEDERAL RESEARCH
Cornyn-Lieberman Bill Requires Key Federal Funders to Post Research on Internet,
Bill Introduced on First Anniversary of NIH Public Access Policy Implementation

SPARC Advocacy Resources The Federal Research Public Access Act of 2006 FAQ