Serviços de informação para o Poder Legislativo: estudo comparativo entre os Estados Unidos, Grã-Bretanha e Canadá

Abstract

Detection of general characteristics that could indicate a Standard parliamentary library based on the analysis of the Congressional Research Servise (United States), the House of Commons Library (Great Britain and the Library of Parliament (Canada). Using the comparative method and an organizational and systemic approach, a detaiÌed analysis of the three libraries was developed. The study also explores some characteristics of the legislative Power and the action of parliaments, as well as some other supporting bodies for the parÌiaments of the three countries. Conclusions suggest that a standard parliamentary Library would present the following characteristics: a) a special and heterogeneous clientele with as many diversified interests as those of the whole society; b) a structure based on two points: research and reference/Ínformation; c) scarce resources relating to finance; d) deficient physical areas; e) a relatively high number of personnel; f) a multidisciplinary collection in a variety of supports, concentrated on up-to-date information but also aiming to preserve the parIiamentary history; g) a wide variety of products - these classÍfied into three main categories: intermediate (activities in form of technical services);end/intermediate (goods such as catalogs, data bases, indexes, and publications), and end products (goods and services like written and oral research, as well as translations, copies, and others); h) an lncreasing use of automation techniques that allow the immediate retrieval of information, registered in formats ready to be used; i) current use of personnel exchange with other similar organizations in order to improve trainning; j) continuing stimulation for the personnel toward specialization in broad subject areas and toward up-to-dateness with the important questions being debated in parliament. Finally it was found that the present parliamentary library acts under a philosophicaÌ approach of information transference rather than the one of information storage and protection, It was also observed that a parliamentary library tends to adopt a dynamic and catalyst attitude according to which it will increasingly create new lnformation in the parliamentary environment.