Freedom of Information

Update on the National Inventory of Legal Materials
“During the past 3 years, more than 350 AALL volunteers have contributed their time as part of their state working group to help AALL create the first-ever National Inventory of Legal Materials. After countless hours of research, calls to government offices and conversations with colleagues to discuss their findings, volunteers created state inventories that contain invaluable information about more than 7,000 legal titles from all three branches of government in print and online. This fall, the AALL Government Relations Office and Digital Access to Legal Information Committee (DALIC) completed our preliminary analysis of the inventories and posted the results on AALLNET. We’ve also linked to each of the 51 inventories so that anyone can see the underlying data.”
http://aallwash.wordpress.com/2012/12/12/update-on-the-national-inventory-of-legal-materials/

Internet Access

US says it won’t ratify UN telecom treaty
“The United States said Thursday that it will not sign a United Nations telecommunications treaty that U.S. technology companies warn would disrupt governance of the Internet and open the door to online censorship. The U.K. and Canada also said they would not ratify the treaty after negotiations ended at a conference hosted by the U.N. International Telecommunications Union (ITU) in Dubai.”
http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/272819-us-says-it-wont-ratify-un-telecom-treaty

Intellectual Property

Google Settles Copyright Dispute with Belgian Newspaper
“On Thursday December 13, 2012, Google and a group of Belgian newspaper publishers reached an agreement on a 6-year long copyright dispute.”
http://www.ipwatchdog.com/2012/12/16/google-settles-copyright-dispute-with-belgian-newspaper/

International Outlook

UK lost more than 200 libraries in 2012
“The fight to keep libraries open has dominated the headlines but the UK has quietly lost more than 200 branches over the past year, according to a detailed national survey. The rate of library closures has increased, reveals the annual report from the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy: 146 branches closed between 2010 and 2011, with the number stepping up to 201 this year. The UK now has 4,265 libraries, compared with 4,612 two years ago, and the number of closures is likely to grow. Campaigners in Newcastle are currently fighting plans to close 10 out of the city’s 18 libraries, with Billy Elliot playwright Lee Hall calling on the council to protect the city’s heritage last month.”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/dec/10/uk-lost-200-libraries-2012

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The Intersect Alert is a newsletter of the Government Relations Committee, San Francisco Bay Region Chapter, Special Libraries Association.