What is Government Publications Deposit (Legal Deposit)?

Legal Deposit is a legal requirement for Government of Saskatchewan bodies to deposit copies of their publications with the Legislative Library. It ensures Government of Saskatchewan publications are permanently preserved and available to present and future generations via the Legislative Library. This important goal can only be achieved with the cooperation and compliance of all Saskatchewan ministries, boards, commissions, agencies of the Government of Saskatchewan, Crown corporations, Legislative Assembly, and Officers of the Legislative Assembly.

The Legislative Assembly Act, 2007, Section 81, (hereafter referred to as "the Act"), is a provincial statute that mandates and legally empowers the Legislative Library to require the deposit of publications of ministries, boards, commissions, agencies of the Government of Saskatchewan, Crown corporations, Legislative Assembly, and Officers of the Legislative Assembly. Section 81 of the Act sets out in detail the responsibilities of publishing bodies and those of the Legislative Library with respect to deposit of publications. The law applies to publications in any format including print and electronic formats.

Who Must Deposit?

Any ministry, board, commission, agency of the Government of Saskatchewan, Crown corporations, Legislative Assembly, and Officers of the Legislative Assembly must deposit.

Note that the onus is on the issuing body to deposit their material, not on the Library to seek it out.

What to Deposit

Pursuant to section 81 of the Act, every publication issued for general or limited distribution to the public by a ministry, board, commission, agency of the Government of Saskatchewan, Crown corporation, Legislative Assembly, and Officers of the Legislative Assembly must be deposited at no charge with the Legislative Library. This requirement applies to both free and priced publications, and also to those issued by the body in collaboration with a commercial publisher. 

Please note that producing print copies for distribution to members of the press is a form of limited public distribution, and in these instances print copies must also be deposited with the Library.

Number of copies to be Deposited

The number of copies to be deposited is determined by the Legislative Librarian. The chart below is a guide. For clarification contact Gina Abel at 306-787-1855.

Electronic Publications and CDs

1

Environmental Impact Statements

1

Electoral and Other Maps

2

Loose-leaf Statutes - Chapters

3

Loose-leaf Tables

4

Monographs

3

Serials

3

Loose-leaf Regulations

4

Annual Reports and Financial Statements

If tabled in Legislature see “Tabled Reports and Statements” below. If not tabled, send 4 copies.

Legislative Papers

6

Bound Statutes

6

Gazettes

4

 

Tabled Reports and Statements

For print publications that are required to be sent to the Office of the Clerk for tabling in the Legislative Assembly, the number of copies required for the tabling process includes the Library’s copies. The issuing body does not need to send additional copies to the Library. 

For a list of reports and statements which are required to be tabled, see the Tabling of Documents list issued by the Clerk.

However, if print publications tabled in the Legislative Assembly have an electronic equivalent, the issuing body must deposit one complimentary electronic copy with the Library within 24 hours of posting it on the internet.

What not to Deposit

  • Internal documents not intended for general or limited public distribution like staff newsletters, manuals, etc. 
  • Electronic materials posted only on internal intranets
  • Forms
  • Databases
  • Pre-publication drafts circulated for comment in either print or electronic format
  • Publications of other levels of government (federal, regional, municipal, etc.) or private sector bodies that appear on ministry, board, commission, agency of the Government of Saskatchewan, Crown corporation, Legislative Assembly, and Officer of the Legislative assembly web sites unless those publications were commissioned by the body or issued pursuant to their authority. If the publication was tabled in the legislature, it does not need to be deposited, as the tabling process includes the Library's copies.

When to Deposit

The Act specifies that publications issued in print are to be deposited within 10 days of their release to the public. Electronic publications are to be deposited within 24 hours of their being posted on the internet.

How to Deposit

        Printed Publications

          Ship to:

          Legal Deposit, Support Services
          Legislative Library
          211-3085 Albert St.
          Regina, SK  S4S 0B1

        Electronic Publications

          Email to: deposit@legassembly.sk.ca

Emails with attachments being sent to deposit@legassembly.sk.ca should be 100 MB or less in size. Publications too big to email may be put on a memory stick and mailed to Support Services at the Legislative Library. 


Questions about Library operations/procedures related to legal deposit:

G. Abel, Technical Services Coordinator
306-787-1855
gabel@legassembly.sk.ca
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Questions about Library policy related to legal deposit:

G. Salmers, Director, Support Services
306-787-2278
gsalmers@legassembly.sk.ca
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The Checklist

The Checklist features Government of Saskatchewan publications acquired by the Saskatchewan Legislative Library as mandated by The Legislative Assembly Act, 2007, section 81.