LSTA Funds Likely Frozen at FY06 Levels
-- Library Journal, 1/24/2007
The Congressional change in power has meant fiscal gridlock, and most programs, including the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) likely will be frozen at Fiscal Year 2006 level, a step back for libraries. For FY07, the president recommended and the House of Representatives concurred in directing $171.5 million in grants to state library agencies. This modest boost of nearly $8 million would have finally allowed the full implementation of a formula Congress enacted in 2003 to raise the base for small states. But that's jeopardized, however, by a budget deal that should be finalized this week, political consultant D'Arcy Philps told attendees at a Washington Office update during the American Library Association Midwinter Meeting last Saturday in Seattle. "For those programs with cuts, it's a godsend," Philps said, allowing that the freeze would hurt those programs for which increases were expected. Also, allotments for the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Initiative would have gone from $23.7 million to $25 million.
As for the new Congress, "things are getting more and more crazy this year," Philps observed, noting that the new power structure involves new committee and subcommittee configurations and many new staffers. "It's fun to be in the majority until you see what you have to play with—not a lot of money," he said. While the new configurations present opportunities for library advocates, Philps suggested that the long-term fiscal constraints imposed by growing Social Security and Medicare costs, compounded by the cost of the war in Iraq, would make it harder to pass new spending. Moreover, "there's not a lot of appetite for tax increases," he said, noting that many of the new Democratic representatives come from fiscally conservative swing districts.
