President Trump’s initial budget proposal eliminates all funding for federal cultural agencies, including the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Why are these funds important to you? -the Orland Free Library has been a recipient of these funds that have helped our community in many ways, including increased public computer access, literacy, job help services, and children’s and adult programming.
The President’s budget proposal is the beginning of negotiations between the House, the Senate and the executive branch. Below, you will find a link to help you contact your representative in the House to ask them to sign two important letters, addressed to the Appropriations Committee, that are now making the rounds. The more members of Congress who sign these “Dear Appropriator” letters, the less likely the funds are to be eliminated or cut. But they won’t sign unless you, their constituent, demands it.
Click here to help save library funding: http://cqrcengage.com/ala/
From Greg Lucas, California State Librarian:
A buck spent on a library comes back ten-fold, as any number of studies show.
But it’s not just an economic benefit – the dividends libraries pay are also in human capital.
“Libraries are an essential part of the nation’s education system and spur economic growth in numerous ways, improving reading skills being the most obvious. A stronger reader secures a better paying job, reducing the need for government support of that reader and their family. A stronger reader is better able to retool and adapt in the wake of increased workplace automation. A stronger reader is more productive and more collaborative.
“The bottom line is that stronger readers improve the bottom line.”
We all know libraries do all kinds of amazing things but their role as economic engines might be unfamiliar to some…
From the American Library Association:
“Libraries leverage the tiny amount of federal funds they receive through their states into an incredible range of services for virtually all Americans everywhere to produce what could well be the highest economic and social “ROI” in the entire federal budget.
America’s more than 120,000 public, school, college and university and many other libraries aren’t piles of archived books. They’re trusted centers for technology, job counseling, retraining, veterans services, entrepreneurship, education, teaching and learning and free inquiry at the core of communities in every state in the country – and in every Congressional district. And they’re staffed by the original search engines: skilled and engaged librarians.”