History of the Notable Documents List
The "Notable Documents List" was originally begun by the Notable Documents Panel of the American Library Association's Government Documents Round Table, with hopes that the list would promote awareness and acquisition of government publications by libraries and use by library patrons. The list also was intended to recognize the individuals and agencies involved in producing these excellent sources of information and inspiration.
The Notable Documents Panel was initiated in 1982, by a proposal from the Education Task Force to the GODORT Steering Committee. The annotated citations lead to hundreds of outstanding publications from all levels of government and in an ever expanding range of formats. Reprints are available free as a public service from LexisNexis, 7500 Old Georgetown Rd, Bethesda, MD 20814.
The "Notable Documents List" first appeared in RQ in the 1984 and 1985 spring issues. From 1986 on it has been published in the May 15 issue of Library Journal. Yearly citations cover documents from the previous two years, so "1983 Notable Documents List" published in 1984 would include items published in 1982/1983 and so on. Beginning in the early nineties, the annual feature took on distinctive titles, with the subtitle "Notable Documents" and, 1992 on, "Notable Government Documents."
Notable Documents Bibliography
1983 RQ, 23, spring 84, 283-290 (1983 Notable Documents List)
1984 RQ, 24, spring 85, 265-274 (1984 Notable Documents List)
1985 LJ, 111, 5/15/86, 38-43 (1985 Notable Documents List)
LJ, 112, 5/15/87, 41-46 (Notable Documents 1986)
LJ, 113, 5/15/88, 43-48 (Notable Documents 1987)
LJ, 114, 5/15/89, 43-48 (Notable Documents 1988)
LJ, 115, 5/15/90, 43-50 (Notable Documents 1989)
1990, LJ, 116, 5/15/91, 51-58 (Notable Documents 1990)
1991, LJ, 117, 5/15/92, 36-45 (Source of First Resort...1991)
1992, LJ, 118, 5/15/93. 38-45 (Good Government Sources: 1992...)
1993, LJ, 119, 5/15/94, 42-49 (What's Good From the Government:1993...)
1994, LJ, 120, 5/15/95, 36-42 (Good Press from Government: 1994...)
1995, LJ, 121, 5/15/96, 33-39 (Sovereign Sources:...1995)
1996, LJ, 122, 5/15/97, 40-44 (On the Record:...1996)
1997, LJ, 123, 5/15/98, 48-52 (Coverage from Culture to Cloning 1997)
1998, LJ, 124, 5/15/99, 52-56 (Opening Access...1998)
1999, LJ, 125, 5/15/2000, 54-58 (Preferred access is still paper)
2000, LJ, 126, 5/15/2001, 62-66 (Government Information at a Crossroads)
2001, LJ, 127, 5/15/2002, 60-64 (What a Difference a Year Makes)
2002, LJ, 128, 5/15/2003, 54-58 (Another Casualty)
2003, LJ, 129, 5/15/2004, 52-57 (Electronic Moves Center Stage)
2004 LJ, 130, 5/15/2005, 56-61 (All Digital)
2005 LJ, 131, 5/15/2006, 52-58 (Opportunity, Vision, Change)
2006 LJ, 132, 5/15/2007, 52-58 (Content and Access Remain Key)
2007 LJ, 133, 5/15/2008, 60-66 (Blogs, Battles, & Bees)
2008 LJ, 134, 5/15/2009, (Looking Back, Moving On)
2009 LJ, 135, 5/15/2010, (Digital Dreams and Dashboards)
2010 LJ, 136, 5/15/2011, (Digital Diamonds & Budget)
2011 LJ, 137, 5/15/2012, (Past as Prologue)
2012 LJ, 138, 6/6/2013, (Looking Back, Moving Ahead)
2013 LJ, 139, 5/22/2014 (Three Decades of Excellence)
2014 LJ, 140, 5/26/2015 (Meeting Information Challenges)
2015 LJ, 141. 5/19/2016 (Prototype of Open Access)
2016 LJ, 142, 5/15/2017 (Research At Risk?)
2017 LJ, 143, 5/15/2018 (The GPO’s Year of Change)