circumstances where the requesting entity would have been able, under the other provisos of section 108, to supply such copy from materials in its own collection.
3. No request for a copy or phonorecord of any materials to which these guidelines apply may be fulfilled by the supplying entity unless such request is accompanied by a representation by the requesting entity that the request was made in conformity with these guidelines.
4. The requesting entity shall maintain records of all requests made by it for copies or phonorecords of any materials to which these guidelines apply and shall maintain records of the fulfillment of such requests, which records shall be retained until the end of the third complete calendar year after the end of the calendar year in which the respective request shall have been made.
5. As part of the review provided for in subsection 108(i), these guidelines shall be reviewed not later than five years from the effective date of this bill.
The CONTU drafters apparently had grand illusions of being in Congress. Let’s use plain English, and some examples and comments, to explain what the Guidelines really say.
- The Guidelines apply only to journal articles published within the last five years.
- In any one year, the Guidelines expressly permit a library to request from another library copies of five articles from the same journal title. Some call this the “Rule of 5” or “Suggestion of 5.”
Example 1
You work in a college library. Professor Spaulding, a visiting professor for one semester, needs articles from several journals your library does not own. Are you absolutely limited to requesting from other libraries no more than five copies from each title?
- Comment: No. Here is what the Conference Committee wrote about the Guidelines:
- The conference committee understands that the guidelines are not intended as, and cannot be considered, explicit rules or directions governing any and all cases, now or in the future. It is recognized that their purpose is to provide guidance in the most commonly encountered interlibrary photocopying situations, that they are not intended to be limiting or determinate in themselves or with respect to other situations, and that they deal with an evolving situation that
