[Apologies for cross-posting]
Dear colleagues:
The ALA Core SAC Working Group on $v Retention is sharing two open letters to the Library of Congress. Details and links to the open letters are below.
We invite anyone who shares our concerns to sign one or both letters, as an individual and/or on behalf of an organization. You can also use the form to endorse the recommendations of the Working Group, if desired.
The signing form can be found here: https://forms.gle/9Q5b5Vc57jTqMjw76
The deadline for signing and/or endorsing is July 31, 2026.
In January 2026, the Library of Congress (LC) announced with a month's notice that it would cease adding form subdivisions to new cataloging records, leaving many libraries scrambling to adjust. Since LC has intimated that more shifts are on the way, including possible deletions of documentation and authority records, our open letter requests information regarding LC's timeline and scope for further changes to Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH).
In the April 2026 SACO Office Hours, LC stated that it was "pulling together a discussion group" to look "overall at LCSH modernization," beginning January 2027 (transcript, 55-57 minute mark). Given the assurances that LC "want[s] to hear from others," and our desire to make sure membership is representative of the broad library community, our open letter requests more information about the timeline, scope and composition of the group.
The Working Group will cease activities at the end of July 2026. We are accepting recommendation endorsements until that time; thank you to the organizations and individuals who have already endorsed! Developments on this issue include: the deletion of authority records with form subdivisions from CYAC (children's subject headings) in February 2026 (approved in April 2026); LC's suggestion in the February 2026 SAC Midwinter meeting that LCSH authority records with form subdivisions and documentation might be deleted as soon as next year; and the first Summary of Decisions (Feb. 2025, issued in April 2026) rejecting proposals for new form subdivisions.
Please feel free to contact Working Group chair Deborah Tomaras at Deborah.Tomaras@marist.edu with any questions. Thank you for contributing to public discussion and shared information within the library community!
For those interested in following this issue after July, the ALA Core SAC Subdivision Continuity Working Group will be taking up the topic. Please contact the chair (Sasha Frizzell, SFrizzell@binghamton.edu) with questions or to volunteer!
Sincerely,
Deborah Tomaras, Working Group chair
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Deborah Tomaras
Metadata and Resource Management Librarian
Marist University, James A. Cannavino Library
She/Her/Hers
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