Following the pre-release of key data at the ALA Midwinter Meeting (the “Perfect Storm” briefing report), the ALA this week published the complete findings from the 2009-2010 Public Library Funding & Technology Access Study (www.ala.org/plinternetfunding).

Co-published with American Libraries magazine as their Summer Digital Supplement, the report finds:
• 67% of public libraries report that they are the only source of free public access to computers and the Internet in their communities.
• On average, public libraries provide 14.2 public computers per location, up from 11 computers one year ago.
• 76% of libraries report public use of Internet computers increased in 2009.
• 82% of libraries provide free wireless access, up from 37% only four years ago.
• 88% of libraries provide access to job databases and other job opportunity resources.
• 79% percent provide assistance to patrons applying for and accessing e-government services, up 23% from last year.
• 89% of libraries offer formal or informal technology assistance to library users, and 24% offer one-on-one technology training by appointment.
• 15% of all libraries report decreased hours of operation – triple the number that reported this was the case one year ago. This translates to lost hours at more than 2,400 library branches. Nearly one quarter of urban libraries report reduced hours.

The complete report with findings from the national public library survey administered by the Center for Library & Information Innovation at the University of Maryland, the state library survey and interviews with public and state library staff in Arizona and Tennessee, can be found here:
http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/archives/digital-supplement/summer-2010-digital-supplement

State-by-state data summaries are here: http://www.ala.org/ala/research/initiatives/plftas/2009_2010/statesummaries.cfm.

Additional materials – including the press kit, unabridged tables from the public library survey, links to updated issues briefs and the first of several maps showing state-level data points, can be found here: http://www.ala.org/ala/research/initiatives/plftas/2009_2010/index.cfm

Our first significant media mention came Monday on All Things Considered: http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2010/06/21/127990542/digital-challenges-for-u-s-public-libraries