The National Commission on Libraries and Information Science's (NCLIS) nationwide information program is based in part on the sharing of resources. The United States Book Exchange (USBE) and its existing services may have a role in this program, since the USBE's major function is the preservation and maximum utilization of publications through maintaining and servicing a cooperatively developed clearinghouse for surplus library materials. Established in 1948, the USBE is a membership organization of U.S. and Canadian libraries, with services to foreign libraries provided by grants or fees. The exchange has also begun an interlibrary loan program, and has experimented with microform supply of certain kinds of materials and with brokerage of materials for libraries. Given its cooperative structure and the large scope of materials with which it deals, USBE may serve as a model for NCLIS program components, as a network component itself, or as a resource for several components. Special areas of expertise which might be useful to NCLIS are contact with foreign libraries, disaster aid to libraries, copyright problems, handling fee patterns, and interlibrary loan services. (LS)