[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 39 (Tuesday, March 2, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E192]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





 HAPPY 90TH ANNIVERSARY TO THE NATIONAL LIBRARY SERVICE FOR THE BLIND 
                           AND PRINT DISABLED

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                            HON. ZOE LOFGREN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, March 2, 2021

  Ms. LOFGREN. Madam Speaker, I rise to acknowledge the 90th 
anniversary of the National Library Service for the Blind and Print 
Disabled (``NLS''). Established by a 1931 Act of Congress, the NLS 
administers a free national library program that provides braille and 
recorded materials to people who cannot see or handle traditional print 
materials through a national network of cooperating libraries. Since 
its establishment, the NLS has remained a leading force in the national 
effort to increase the access of those with low vision, blindness, or 
other print disabilities to reading materials and a shining example for 
similar programs around the world.
  Initially established as a program to serve only blind adults, the 
NLS was expanded in 1952 to include children, in 1966 to include 
individuals with other physical disabilities that prevent reading 
traditional print materials, and in 2016 to permit NLS to provide 
refreshable braille displays. Under a special provision of the U.S. 
Copyright Law, and with the permission of authors and publishers of 
works not covered by that provision, NLS selects books and magazines 
for full-length publication in braille, e-braille, and digital audio 
format. These materials (along with free playback equipment needed to 
ready audiobooks and magazines) are circulated to patrons within the 
United States and its territories and to American citizens living 
abroad. The program continues to expand in both its reach and 
capabilities, now allowing for instantly downloadable digital audio and 
e-braille materials via the NLS mobile applications and allowing 
patrons to request accessible materials in a wide range of languages 
from libraries around the world.
  The banner atop the NLS webpage announces the service's noble 
mission: ``That All May Read.'' Over the past 90 years, the NLS, which 
updated its name from the National Library Service for the Blind and 
Physically Handicapped in 2019, has been steadfast in its efforts to 
accomplish this mission, ensuring that no person be denied the joy of 
literature and reading because of blindness or disability. The impact 
of the NLS over the past 90 years has been vast and far-reaching and I 
look forward to witnessing what the NLS will accomplish with another 90 
years. On behalf of all of us in this House, congratulations to the 
National Library Service and to those who work tirelessly to make the 
NLS's outstanding mission a reality. Many thanks for all their good 
work.

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