Museum and Library Services Act Passed by House
By Michael Kelley Dec 15, 2010The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Museum and Library Services Act (MLSA) by a voice vote on December 14. MLSA will now be sent to President Obama, who is expected to sign it into law.
"The [American Library Association (ALA)] is relieved by [the] action in the House-both in that the reauthorization process was wrapped up before the end of the year and that [Library Services & Technology Act (LSTA)] funds maintained current authorization levels and were not cut by a Congress that is increasingly looking for ways to save a dollar-even at the cost of invaluable programs, such as library services," Emily Sheketoff, executive director of the ALA Washington Office, said in a press release.
The congressional reauthorization, which remains unchanged at $232 million, last occurred in 2003, and it essentially reaffirms the value of the program and sets a guideline for funding of the library community.
The measure also helps ensure that the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) can continue administering the programs in LSTA, which is wrapped in the MLSA bill.
"While the needs of libraries far exceed the funding levels this program was reauthorized under, librarians have always been masters of providing priceless services to patrons at little cost to the taxpayer," Sheketoff said. "The library community is appreciative to Congress for protecting LSTA and library programs."
The actual amount appropriated each year can be more or less than the amount in the authorizing legislation, but without authorizing legislation in place, it can be more difficult to obtain the annual appropriation.
It is possible, however, to have an appropriation without an authorization. For example, the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian program has received regular appropriations, but this bill would authorize it for the first time.
Scaled-back appropriation awaits approval
IMLS had initially sought $300 million for the FY11 LSTA appropriation, but this was scaled back to $213.5 million, Jeffrey P. Kratz, the associate director for ALA's Office of Government Relations in Washington, DC, told LJ. The LSTA money is part of the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations bill, which falls under an omnibus budget bill that has not yet been voted on.
The annual appropriation for LSTA, which is the primary source of federal support for the country's 123,000 libraries, has remained essentially flat since FY09. The programs under LSTA are Grants to State Library Agencies, the Native American and Native Hawaiian Library Services, National Leadership Grants for Libraries, and the Laura Bush program.
The Chief Officers of State Library Agencies recently conducted a survey of its members and found that 77 percent of state library administrative agencies, the entities that administer IMLS Grants to States funding, experienced budget cuts in FY10. This hampers the ability of these agencies to deliver some services that IMLS funds.
