NLS/BPH Factsheet, Annual Program Information, 2008

From a beginning of 19 libraries, the network has expanded to 57 regional and 71 subregional libraries throughout the U.S.

A free national library program of braille and recorded materials for blind and physically handicapped persons is administered by the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS), Library of Congress. Under a special provision of the U.S. copyright law and with the permission of authors and publishers of works not covered by the provision, NLS selects and produces full‑length books and magazines in braille and recorded formats. Reading materials are distributed to a cooperating network of regional and subregional libraries where they are circulated to eligible borrowers. Reading materials and playback machines are sent to borrowers and returned to libraries by postage‑free mail. Braille books, magazines, and music materials are also made available on the Internet through Web‑Braille. Established by an Act of Congress in 1931 to serve blind adults, the program was expanded in 1952 to include children, in 1962 to provide music materials, and again in 1966 to include individuals with other physical impairments that prevent the reading of regular print.

Funding

The International Union Catalog currently contains more than 446,000 titles (19 million recorded copies). The average reader borrows 30 books and magazines a year. Braille readers average 20 books and magazines a year.

The NLS program is funded annually by Congress. The fiscal year 2008 appropriation is $66,923,272. This fiscal year NLS was granted a budget increase of $13.5 million each year for six years for a total of $75 million, to expedite the transition of the audiobook program from analog to digital. The $13.5 million annual allocation will be removed in FY 2014.

Through an additional appropriation to the U.S. Postal Service, books and materials are mailed as “Free Matter for the Blind or Handicapped.” The combined annual expenditures for the program are approximately $166 million. Cooperating network libraries receive funding from state, local, and federal sources.

Eligibility

Audio production costs an average of $5.50 per book.

Any resident of the United States or American citizen living abroad who is unable to read or use regular print materials as a result of temporary or permanent visual or physical limitations may receive service.

Book Collection

More than 25 million copies of recorded and braille books and magazines were circulated to a readership of 822,596 in 2007.

Books are selected on the basis of their appeal to people with a wide range of interests. Bestsellers, biographies, fiction, and how‑to books are in great demand. A limited number of titles are produced in Spanish. Registered borrowers learn of new books added to the collection through two bimonthly publications, Braille Book Review and Talking Book Topics. Through the International Union Catalog available on the Internet, every network library has access to the entire NLS book collection and to the resources of cooperating agencies.

Magazines

About 80 percent of the NLS annual appropriation is expended on books, equipment, and related materials and 20 percent for support services.

More than seventy magazines on audiocassette and in braille are offered. Readers may request free subscriptions to U.S. News and World Report, National Geographic, Consumer Reports, Good Housekeeping, Sports Illustrated for Kids, and many other popular magazines. Current issues are mailed to readers at the same time the print issues appear or shortly thereafter. Magazines are selected for the program in response to demonstrated reader interest.

Music Scores and Books

The national music collection, the largest of its kind in the world, contains more than 22,000 titles.

Persons interested in music materials may receive them directly from the Music Section of NLS. The collection consists of scores in braille and large print; textbooks and books about music in braille and large print; music appreciation cassettes, including interviews and opera lectures; and self‑instructional cassettes for voice, piano, organ, electronic keyboard, guitar, recorder, accordion, banjo, harmonica, and other instruments. Braille scores and books are also available on the Internet.

Equipment and Accessories

The 4‑track audiocassettes recorded to play at 15/16 ips provide up to six hours of reading time. The average book consists of two cassettes.

Playback equipment is loaned free to readers for as long as they borrow recorded materials provided by NLS and its cooperating libraries. Cassette machines are designed for books and magazines recorded at 15/16 ips and the standard speed of 1‑7/8 ips on 2 and 4 tracks. Readers with very limited mobility may request a remote‑control unit. Hard‑of‑hearing readers may be eligible for an auxiliary amplifier for use with headphones. A cassette machine designed primarily for persons with limited manual dexterity is also available.

Volunteer Services

TelecomPioneers, GE Volunteers, other volunteers, and state personnel repaired 114,084 cassette machines in 2007.

Free correspondence courses leading to certification in braille transcribing (literary, music, and mathematics braille) and braille proofreading are offered. Training in audiobook production is available on request to local recording groups. A directory of agencies and volunteer groups that produce books for libraries and individuals is published periodically.

Information Services

NLS and network libraries respond to questions on various aspects of blindness and physical disabilities. This service is available without charge to individuals, organizations, and libraries. Publications of interest to people with disabilities and to service providers are available free upon request.

Consumer Relations

The consumer relations officer maintains regular contact with consumer groups and individual users of the program to identify and resolve service problems and to assure that users’ needs are being met.

For Further Information

Ask your local public librarian for more information about the program and how to apply for service. Information is also available on the Internet at www.loc.gov/nls.

NLS Factsheets

Books for Blind and Physically Handicapped Individuals

2008