Scope of the PCN Program



All forthcoming monographs that will be published in the United States and that are not included in the categories listed below are eligible for the PCN program. Control numbers are preassigned to works that may be selected and cataloged by the Library of Congress for its collections. Final determination of works selected and cataloged is made by selection librarians and recommending officers in compliance with Library of Congress collection development policies upon receipt of the printed book. Please note that while a title may receive a preassigned control number, the Library of Congress is under no obligation to provide preliminary or final cataloging information within its catalog for titles that are not ultimately selected for the Library's permanent collection. The following are ineligible:
Books that are already published. Books which do not list a U.S. city as place of publication on the title page or copyright page. Books for which Cataloging in Publication data has been (or will be) requested. E-Books (i.e. books published in electronic format). Serials. Custom editions. Items under 50 pages with the exception of genealogies and children's literature and catalog exhibitions submitted by museums and art galleries. Textbooks below the college level. Items not intended for wide distribution to libraries. Religious instructional materials. Expendable educational materials. Transitory or consumable materials. Translations except Spanish. Mass market paperbacks. Single articles reprinted from periodicals and other serials. Audiovisual materials including mixed media and computer software. Music scores. Most microforms.
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Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Division PCN Help Desk ( November 18, 2009 )