The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS), an arm of the Library of Congress, leads a highly successful national program to produce and distribute books and magazines for blind, visually impaired, and physically handicapped individuals. A fostering relationship exists between NLS and a network of 143 regional and local libraries that serve blind and handicapped readers directly. By developing and disseminating centralized policies and procedures at the national level, NLS is able to sustain a uniform quality of service throughout the library system. Each year NLS receives permission to reproduce, with no royalties charged, more than 2,000 book titles for loan. In addition, NLS has systematically developed a collection that provides access to some 220,000 recorded and embossed titles in 16 million copies for a variety of blind and handicapped users. Copyright clearance, which is vital for a program that reproduces so many titles, and cataloging are important features of the NLS approach: both cassette and flexible disc recordings can be used only with special playback equipment. NLS also has a role in the narrative reproduction or braille embossing of materials and the distribution of discs, cassettes, and playback equipment. The NLS serves as a resource for a clientele of extremely varied tastes and needs. (SLD)