On September 28, Fondren Library Digital Scholarship Services hosted a session on “Understanding the New OSTP Memo on Access to Federally Funded Research.”

In August, the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy (OSTP) issued a memorandum on Ensuring Free, Immediate, and Equitable Access to Federally Funded Research that will make taxpayer-funded research immediately available for the public to freely access and fully use. This new guidance calls on all federal agencies to generate policies that eliminate the current 12-month waiting period for access to the outputs of federally funded research, including articles and data.

This brief session provided an overview of the memo and implications for researchers. The slides can be viewed here.

At the end of the presentation, we shared some things researchers (and those who support them) can do to start preparing for funder policies, including:

• Monitor funding agency developments
  • Subscribe to listservs, social media, agency blogs, etc.
  • Subscribe to Fondren Digital Scholarship Services blog
• Begin to think about data management and sharing
  • Research Data Services
  • Register for November 2 webinar: Getting Ready for the New NIH Data Management & Sharing Policy
• Make a plan for managing publications
  • Understand existing funder public access policies (e.g., NIH, NSF)
  • Read publishing agreements to ensure funding compliance
  • Keep track of article versions, especially when you have co-authors

A copy of the handout provided to participants can be found here (Rice login required).

Fondren Library will continue to monitor funding agency policy development as it evaluates existing resources and services.