Public Library Survey (PLS) provides national descriptive data on the status of public libraries in the United States & its territories.

Public Library Survey (PLS) provides national descriptive data on the status of public libraries in the United States & its territories.

Public Library Survey (PLS) provides national descriptive data on the status of public libraries in the United States & its territories.

Data Files – CSV and SAS; Documentation; Annual Report; Special Report; and Definitions.

Data Files – CSV, SAS, and SPSS; Documentation; Annual Report (Volumes 1 and 2); Research Brief; Supplementary Tables; State Profiles; and News Releases.

Data Files – CSV and SAS; Documentation; and Annual Report.

Data Files – CSV and SAS; Documentation; and Annual Report.

Data Files – CSV and SAS; Documentation; Annual Report; and Definitions.

Data Files – CSV and SAS; Documentation; Annual Report; and Research Brief.

The Public Libraries Survey, Fiscal Year 2005 (PLS FY2005), is a study that is part of the Library Statistics program. PLS FY2005 (https://www.imls.gov/research/public_libraries_in_the_united_states_survey.aspx) is a cross-sectional study that includes information on population of legal service area, service outlets, public service hours, library materials, total circulation, circulation of children's materials, reference transactions, library visits, children's program attendance, interlibrary loans, electronic services and information, full-time-equivalent staff, operating revenue and expenditures, and capital expenditures. The study was conducted using paper surveys, web-based surveys, and email. The key respondents in this study were state library agencies. The study's response rate was 97.7 percent. The key statistics produced from PLS FY2005 were about service measures such as access to the Internet, number of users of electronic resources, number of internet terminals used by the general public, reference transactions, public service hours, interlibrary loans, circulation, library visits, children's program attendance, and circulation of children's materials. It also includes information about size of collection, staffing, operating revenue and expenditures, type of geographic service area, type of legal basis, type of administrative structure, number and type of public library service outlets, and square footage of outlets.