[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 113 (Wednesday, July 13, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5069-S5070]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      CONFIRMATION OF CARLA HAYDEN

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, today the Senate confirmed Dr. Carla Hayden 
to be the 14th Librarian of Congress. This is an historic moment, as 
Dr. Hayden becomes the first woman and the first African American to 
serve in this important capacity. I congratulate Dr. Hayden and look 
forward to working with her to help the Library of Congress continue 
building its legacy as a great American institution.
  As she assumes her new office, Dr. Hayden will be able to draw on her 
years of experience leading the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore. 
Through her leadership, the library has become more accessible to 
members of the community through expanded after school programs and 
career mentoring. As she powerfully testified during her confirmation 
hearing before the Rules Committee, the Enoch Pratt Free Library also 
served as a safe haven last summer when the city of Baltimore 
experienced painful unrest following the death of Freddie Gray. Her 
leadership has shown the transformative power of libraries, and I am 
optimistic that she will use that knowledge and expertise at the 
Library of Congress to the benefit of all Americans.
  Since I received my first library card at the Kellogg-Hubbard Library 
in Montpelier, VT, I have loved libraries. A library is a place where 
everyone fits in and the possibilities are limitless. The Library of 
Congress occupies a special place within our country. It is our 
Nation's treasured repository for millions of books, photos, movies, 
oral histories, and music. But it should also lead by example, working 
to ensure that libraries keep their important place in our society and 
help Americans of all ages and backgrounds access information in 
engaging ways.
  Dr. Hayden faces numerous challenges as she begins her tenure as 
Librarian of Congress. She must find ways to improve the Library's 
efforts to digitize its materials and preserve digital content. And she 
must find ways to improve the public's access to the Library's 
incredible collection through effective and responsible changes. I am 
committed to helping her achieve those goals.
  I also encourage Dr. Hayden to work with me to promote access to 
government-funded research and information prepared by the 
Congressional Research Service, CRS. I have introduced bipartisan 
legislation to make CRS reports available online while respecting the 
important advisory role that CRS provides to Congress. The status quo--
where the public can only access these reports by paying hefty 
subscription fees to third parties--is bad policy, and I look forward 
to working with Dr. Hayden to find solutions to make this meaningful 
resource available more broadly to schools and individual citizens.
  The Library also needs Congress's assistance to reauthorize its film 
and sound recording preservation programs, which preserve important 
materials that would otherwise disappear or be destroyed through the 
passage of time. I have introduced bipartisan legislation to 
reauthorize these programs that I hope members of the Rules Committee 
and the Congress will strongly support. The Library's work on 
digitization and preservation can and should be a model for the world.
  Finally, during her confirmation hearing and in follow-up questions 
asked of Dr. Hayden, much attention has been paid to the relationship 
between the Library of Congress and the Copyright Office, which has 
long been housed within the Library. Diverse stakeholders have called 
to modernize the functioning of the Copyright Office, to ensure that 
it, much like the Library, can best serve the public in the digital 
age. I hope that Dr. Hayden will serve as a helpful collaborator as I 
and other Members of Congress consider how to accomplish that goal. 
Among the most pressing issues is how best the Library's and Copyright 
Office's information technology, IT, systems can be improved to address 
widely recognized shortcomings. As Dr. Hayden takes office, I encourage 
her to carefully consider how to solve these problems, knowing that the 
two entities' IT needs may be vastly different and a solution that 
works for the Library's collection management may be ill-suited for the 
particular issues facing the Copyright Office. It is far more important 
that these IT issues be resolved correctly, particularly in light of 
the

[[Page S5070]]

fast-changing nature of technology, than that they be resolved quickly.
  Dr. Hayden will serve as the Librarian for a 10-year term, and I am 
optimistic that she can accomplish great things during that time. I 
look forward to working together with her and once again congratulate 
her on this historic accomplishment.

                          ____________________