The Public Library Association’s (PLA) 2011 Public Library Data Service (PLDS) Statistical Report is now available for advance purchase and will begin shipping in July. The report presents timely and topical data to assist public library administrators in making informed management decisions. Published annually since 1988, the PLDS Statistical Report is compiled from voluntary surveys submitted by public libraries across the United States and Canada. For the 2011 edition, 1462 public libraries have shared their data on finances, library resources, annual use figures, technology, and more. This year’s Report also features a special section on library finance which details independent taxing authority, cash reserves, services charged for, library foundations, governmental sources of income, and alternative sources of income in public libraries throughout North America.
To make the data even more dynamic and effective, PLA also offers access to the PLDS Online Database. A subscription to the PLDS Database provides unlimited Web access for one year to all data and reports currently available (2006-2011). Users can:
• View PLDS Tables with searchable data exportable into Excel/CSV file formats and linked data from other report sections.
• Access summary tables in interactive charts (breakdown by legal service area as well as by state and legal services within each state).
• Create customized PLDS datasets with user-defined data, calculations, charts and other analysis that can be saved and exported into Excel/CSV file formats.
The PLDS subscription database is $250 for one year and can be ordered here (PDF). The print publication (2011, $135) can be advance-ordered here.