Provosts Back Open Access To Public Research

An open letter signed by the provosts of 25 universities supports passage of the Federal Public Research Access Act, which would require federal agencies to publish their research findings online and free within six months of publication elsewhere. Publishers, including scholarly associations, oppose the bill, claiming that it could endanger research and threaten many journals. The provosts’ letter encourages higher education to consider changing the way research findings are disseminated while acknowledging that the bill would force publishers and scholarly societies to consider significant shifts in their publishing approach.

Inside Higher Ed, 28 July 2006