Abstract
This study focuses on the changes in the federal government's library policy as enacted about the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) between 1996 and 2014. I analyzed the Museum and Library Services Act (MLSA) of 1996, which includes LSTA, and MLSAs of 2003 and 2010 from three areas: (1) the process of enactment of the Reform Bill; (2) which parts of the LSTA and how they were revised; and (3) the changes made to the role of the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Three points became apparent. (1) Requests by the library community were fed through to the MLSA Reform Bill, which rapidly passed the assembly. (2) The purpose of the LSTA was converted from "consolidation" to "enhanced coordination." Inter-organizational resource-sharing and support for access to information were also pushed forward, combined with moves to foster cooperation with the field of education and labor policy. (3) The reorganization of the organizations that contributed to the federal government's library policy was expedited, and grant-in-aid programs, policy advice, and the obligation to collect statistics were made the responsibility of the IMLS.
