Five files were gathered from the Public Libraries Survey (PLS) for fiscal year (FY) 1996: (1) the Public Library Data File, including data for the universe of 8,946 public libraries identified by state library agencies; (2) the Public Library State Summary/State Characteristics File, including data aggregated at the state level for the 50 states and District of Columbia and state characteristics data; (3) the Public Library Outlet File, including the universe of 16,879 public library service outlets (centrals/main, branches, bookmobiles, and books-by-mail only); (4) the Administrative Entities Only/State Library File, including data on 130 "administrative entities only" and state libraries; and (5) the State Library Outlet File, including data on 10 state library outlets. The data are collected by a network of state data coordinators appointed by the chief officers of state library agencies in the 50 States and the District of Columbia. The FY96 PLS collected data on 50 items for public libraries--38 basic items and 12 identifying items. The basic data include population of legal service area, number of full-time equivalent staff, outlets, library materials, operating income and expenditures, capital outlay, circulation, reference transactions, library visits, public service hours, interlibrary loans, circulation of children's materials, children's program attendance, and several items on electronic technology (i.e., expenditures for materials in electronic format, expenditures for electronic access, materials in electronic format, access to electronic services, access to the Internet, and type of Internet use). Identifying information includes the entity's name, address, telephone number, county, interlibrary relationship, type of governance, administrative structure, and its qualification as a Federal-State Cooperative System (FSCS) public library. The survey collected 12 items on each public library outlet and state library outlet. These items include type of outlet, metropolitan location, population of legal service area, and number of bookmobiles. The survey also collected data on 11 identifying items on state library agencies, systems, federations, and cooperatives. Four items were collected on characteristics of the state data submission (i.e., the starting and ending dates of the FY reporting period, the official state population estimate, and the total unduplicated population of legal service areas for the state). (AEF)