Abstract
State government publications make up an important information resource, with over 20,000 publications listed annually in the Library of Congress Monthly Checklist of State Publications. As with federal government publications appearing in the Monthly Catalog, state publications listed in the Monthly Checklist reflect only about 60% of the total. Because of the diverse deposit and distribution policies in the states and the limited amount of subject access and bibliographic control, state government publications are probably among the least utilized of available information resources. Part of the lack of utilization may well be related to their lack of visibility and the limited access potential users have. In the course of research to meet the requirements for a doctorate in library science, this author examined some of the characteristics of state publications.1 The results of this examination are herein presented together with an explanation of the method used to gather data for the examination. References to LeRoy Merritt's study of United States government publications will be noted throughout the discussion of state publications since his procedure was used as a model for the current investigation. By basing the analysis of state publications on procedures similar to Merritt's analysis of federal publications, a later comparison of the characteristics of state and federal publications was facilitated.
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