The Freedom of the Press Act (1766) is a constitutional law, which regulates the principle of openness in government administration, and guarantees freedom of speech in written media, including books and newspapers. It is the oldest existing law on freedom of speech in the world, and in some ways the first.
Originators of literary works (authors, translators, and illustrators) are compensated for lending in public libraries in accordance with the Government Statute on The Swedish Authors’ Fund (1962:652). A portion of this compensation is given to the individual Originator in direct proportion to the number of public loans of his / her work, while another portion is transferred to the Swedish Authors’ Fund, which awards grants and scholarships in support of authors, translators, playwrights, and journalists in the field of arts. Since 1985, the size of government funds allocated to the Swedish Authors’ Fund, i.e., the Library Fee, is decided in agreements between, on the one hand, the government and, on the other hand, the Swedish Writers ‘Association, the Swedish Illustrators, and the Swedish Photographers’ Association.
The Library Act (Bibliotekslagen, Swedish Code of Statutes 2013:801) obligates municipalities to maintain at least one public library, and to refrain from levying direct fees for its loans to members of the public. Municipalities and regions are also obligated to have politically decided library plans, covering the coordination of public libraries, including school libraries, in their territories. The law further establishes that “Libraries in the public library system shall work for the development of a democratic society by contributing to the dissemination of knowledge and the free formation of opinions. Libraries in the public library system shall promote the position of literature and the interest in education, enlightenment, education and research, as well as cultural activities in general. Library activities must be available to everyone” (Swedish Code of Statutes 2013:801, §2). Other than municipal libraries, this legislation also covers school libraries, university libraries, regional libraries, and all other publicly financed libraries.
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