FURTHER PLANS

The GPO is in the midst of a graphic arts industry transition. The industry is changing from one of designing and manufacturing printed products to a more encompassing one of disseminating as well as reproducing information. Ink-on-paper products and their distribution are being challenged by other means which provide the end user with equivalent information or information products. The nature of these means presents two complicated challenges. First, inherent in the technology employed are the means for communicating the information to the end user directly. Secondly, also inherent in the technology are the means for the information originator to format and even produce the final product.

In the past, the GPO has concentrated its technological improvements only in those areas that are directly related to the traditional printing process. In the future it will be necessary for the GPO to broaden its view of the role of the printer. More emphasis will be placed on using new technologies and the most cost-effective approaches to achieve the end results of information reproduction and dissemination.

The Superintendent of Documents has begun an ambitious effort to further improve the performance of the Cataloging and Indexing Program and Depository Library Distribution Program through additional automation and mechanization. This effort, which we are calling the Federal Documents Data Base, will integrate data capture, processing, and storage activities for the Cataloging and Indexing and Depository Library Distribution programs. The implementation of the Federal Documents Data Base will provide numerous benefits. It will eliminate duplicative data capture and processing activities, increase productivity, result in the more timely issuance of output products such as the "Monthly Catalog of U.S. Government Publications," and it will be utilized to drive a new system for the distribution of Government documents to Federal depository libraries. Moreover, the development of this system has generated significant interest and enthusiasm throughout the Federal depository library community due to its potential for providing on-line access to bibliographic and other data.

Complementing the development of the Federal Documents Data Base, are the activities of the Ad Hoc Committee on Depository Library Access to Federal Automated Data Bases. The Committee, staffed by representatives of the library community, the private sector, and government agencies, and chaired by the Staff Director of the Joint Committee on Printing, is studying the feasibility of providing access to Federal information in electronic form to Federal depository libraries. Currently there is no direct connection between this Committee's activities and the development of the Federal Documents Data Base.

It is believed, however, that the Federal Documents Data Base will be a logical framework for providing full text retrieval to Federal depository libraries, if such a service is found to be feasible by the Committee. We anticipate working closely with representatives from user libraries in developing this capability.

The Cataloging and Indexing and Depository Library Distribution programs are two of the most important responsibilities of the GPO. It is our view that development of the Federal Documents Data Base will accommodate the information age and significantly improve services to the general public, the ultimate consumer of Government information.

Although not included in our submission, we intend to work with the subcommittee to seek authority in the fiscal year 1985 budget to use revolving fund monies for the purchase of a triangular piece of ground directly adjacent to our present Central Office facility.

This ground is located on First Street, N.W., between G and H Streets. The total area being considered for purchase is 41,496 square feet.

It is GPO's intent to build a multi-purpose building on the site. It will also allow the redesign of our loading dock area that will be necessary to reduce congestion on H Street.

With the relocation of the Library Programs Service from Alexandria, Virginia to the Central Office later this summer, it is expected that a marked increase in truck traffic will occur, thereby further congesting our current truck handling capabilities.

The envisioned multi-purpose building will in addition to general support activities, house a data base center to meet the growing demands for information dissemination placed upon GPO. The rapid growth and technological advances in electronically recorded stored and transmitted information will require GPO to develop a repository of this data in such a manner that it can be accessed and transmitted in an

immediate time. We envision that the building will be designed to accommodate this need.

It is planned that GPO will continue to provide information to the Appropriation Committee as to the progress of the purchase negotiations on a continuing basis. Should the negotiations exceed our ability to fund the purchase through revolving fund monies, a supplemental appropriation request will be sought.

I will be happy to respond to your questions.

TOTAL AMOUNT OF FEDERAL PRINTING

Mr. FAZIO. Thank you, Bill.

At this time I would like to get some sort of handle on where GPO fits in with the total amount of printing the Federal Government does.

Perhaps for the record you could outline for us the total amount of printing the Federal Government does and how much of that is done by GPO or procured through you and, therefore, how much is done independently by agencies?

Mr. BARRETT. I don't have the exact figures. I can furnish them for the record.

Executive branch printing and duplicating costs in inplant operations (OMB printing and duplicating survey) 1

1Executive branch printing/duplicating costs do not inlcude shipboard plants, mobile topographic or tactical plant nor other mission specific plants operated by the Department of Defense.

FEDERAL PRINTING

Mr. BARRETT. I think the figure we have been using is about 60 percent of the total government printing and 72 percent of that, is contracted out commercially.

Mr. FAZIO. So the other 40 percent would be done either in house by other government agencies or, on contract that you would enter into?

Mr. BARRETT. Yes, sir.

Mr. FAZIO. Do you have a feel for how much is contracted?

Mr. CULLEN. I will have to furnish that for the record.

The best knowledge we have is approximately half of that.

Mr. FAZIO. Is contracted?

Mr. CULLEN. Yes.

[The information follows:]

Based on the data provided in the previous table on Federal Government Printing, about 45 percent of the total is procured by GPO.

OMB SURVEY

Mr. FAZIO. Do you happen to know whether the OMB survey has been completed? Wasn't the purpose of the survey to try to deter

mine the total amount of printing and where that was being done? I understood this was an effort to reduce the total and also to learn what was contracted versus what was done in-house?

Mr. BARRETT. I think one of the OMB surveys had to do with plant closings. They asked us for technical assistance in devising questionnaires and a little bit of data processing service. We analyzed figures. We helped them. About 1,025 plants were identified as perhaps not necessary or which should be converted from printing plants to duplicating facilities.

After the agencies had a chance to rebut that, I am told by people at OMB, it looks like at present it is possible that 130 civilian agency plants may be closed.

Mr. FAZIO. About ten percent?

Mr. BARRETT. Yes, sir. And eleven plants in the Department of Defense.

Mr. FAZIO. Could you supply that for the record-maybe we won't put it all in the record, but we would like to see that material. Could you provide it to us?

Mr. BARRETT. Yes, sir. Be glad to.

[CLERK'S NOTE.-The results of the OMB survey will be held in subcommittee files for a short time period.]

INITIAL ESTIMATE

Mr. FAZIO. The initial estimate was somewhat inflated. The opposition was probably great, also. I have a feeling perhaps what we would find when we see that data is that the agencies made a strenuous justification of the need for the exemption based on the timeliness of their own operations?

Mr. BARRETT. Certainly.

Mr. FAZIO. Obviously you are not totally objective, but we constantly look to you to get a handle on this. From your perspective, do you think the reasons for making exceptions to the rule that at least 60 percent of the time brings work to you are valid? How would you evaluate this 40 percent that goes elsewhere? Do you think we should be continuing to pursue printing more through the GPO? Where do you draw the line between what is normal and justifiable for an agency's independence and mission needs and what is an unjustifiable or ineffective deviation from the policy of using GPO as the government's printer?

Mr. BARRETT. As the government's acting Public Printer, my honest answer would be I think we should do most of the printing. As a printing officer who came from a federal agency several years ago, I know there are printing requirements that have to be done on the Naval base, the military base or the agency that has to be done more quickly than GPO can do it. I think there is a middle ground.

CLOSE TO MIDDLE GROUND

Mr. FAZIO. Do you think we are close to the middle ground or do you think there is still room to get closer to the middle ground? Mr. BARRETT. I think we are perhaps at the middle ground or we could go a little higher in GPO.

Mr. FAZIO. In this study you referred to, do you think the ten percent figure is a reasonable amount of progress? Do you think we may have caved a little bit to the turf?

Mr. BARRETT. I think there was caving, yes.

Mr. FAZIO. Could you tell us how many printing plants there are or will be in the federal service in addition to those that you operate?

Mr. BARRETT. Does anyone know that? We don't know that offhand. We can supply that for the record.

[The information follows:]

Question. How many printing plants does the Federal government operate? Response. There are approximately 252 printing plants in the federal service in addition to those operated by GPO.

PRINTING PLANTS

Mr. FAZIO. I have several questions that I will submit to be answered for the record in order to further the area of the printing plants discussion.

[The questions and responses follow:]

Question. How many printing plants does the Executive Branch operate? Response. We have been informed by the Joint Committee on Printing that there are approximately 250 authorized printing plants operated by the Executive Branch. Question. Last year, the Public Printer mentioned that many of these plants should be consolidated or shut down. Has that happened to any of them? Response. To date we have received requests from two Executive Agencies for contracts to cover their printing needs that were previously performed at their in-plant facilities.

Question. Update the revenue schedules from page 466 of last year's hearings. Response.

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

Mr. FAZIO. Mr. Barrett, we note that the workforce has been reduced by two hundred fifty-four people since October 1, 1982.

Mr. BARRETT. Yes, sir.

Mr. FAZIO. You are down to about 5,800 total?

Mr. BARRETT. Yes, sir.

Mr. FAZIO. Could you give us some background to indicate what has been happening there in terms of this sort of annual attrition? Mr. BARRETT. Most of it is attrition.

Mr. FAZIO. How much?

Mr. BARRETT. I would say all of it is attrition.

Mr. FAZIO. Could you tell us what is happening that allows those kinds of reductions in manpower to take place?

Mr. BARRETT. Conversion from hot metal to electronic photocomposition. We do have-have had in the past an aging workforce. It is time for them to move up and out. We have not been replacing them. We still have a hiring freeze.

Mr. LEWIS. May I follow up on that, Mr. Chairman?
Mr. FAZIO. Yes.

COST OF GOVERNMENT PRINTING

Mr. Lewis. Mr. Chairman, earlier today Mrs. Boggs and I were at another subcommittee. The Veterans people were before us. They were talking about, under the directive phasing out some 29 employees that they had in their own print operation; we asked questions relative to their relationship with GPO, would they be using your services, would they be contracting out.

The bottom line was that, I gather, they were going to be phasing out their employees. I am not sure whether the attrition takes care of them or not, similar to your response to the Chairman. They indicated specifically, their analysis suggests to them, tells them that while they will have six employees remaining to handle the contracting, that the bottom line or net cost is going to be an added cost to the government for their printing services.

I am not sure how they figured that out or how those numbers worked out, but it seems to me if we have several agencies of government addressing themselves to the same thing, maybe we need some help figuring out how we can put together an analysis as to what the effects of this movement is in the government, what role GPO should be playing.

Certainly, if the marketplace is supposed to work, we shouldn't be having added costs.

Mr. BARRETT. Yes, sir.

Mr. LEWIS. Can you respond to that?

Mr. BARRETT. I can try. Almost all of the work that will accrue because of the closing of plants will be procured commercially and come through GPO. We have fast moving contracts. We do attach to that a surcharge. However, the consolidation of services and one agency doing most of the contracting out should result in an overall savings to the government.

Tommy, do you want to speak to this in more detail?