[Libs-Or] Fwd: [District Dispatch] Day 5: Get Ready for Major Economic Stimulus Vote Tomorrow

[Diedre Conkling]

 Day 5: Get Ready for Major Economic Stimulus Vote Tomorrow
<http://www.wo.ala.org/districtdispatch/?p=1845>

http://www.wo.ala.org/districtdispatch/?p=1845
February 09th, 2009

As Monday comes to a close, the Senate has just finished its procedural vote
to allow a final vote tomorrow, Tuesday, February 10, on the "American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009."  If passed on Tuesday, the Senate
stimulus bill will go quickly to conference with the House version.

These are likely to be tough negotiations between the House and Senate
conferees.  In the meantime, a major library grassroots effort must continue
to maintain library-provisions in the final bill.

There are pros and cons to each version of the bill.  While the Senate
version included the $200 million for broadband funding, it also has an
amendment (titled the Nelson-Collins Amendment) that would essentially strip
all education funding from the economic stimulus package.  The House
version, on the other hand, includes funding for a host of programs
libraries benefit from including Education for the 21st Century, K-12 Repair
and Modernization, Higher Education Repair and Modernization, Rural
Community Facilities Program, State Broadband Development, Community Service
Employment for Older Americans, National Endowment for the Arts, and Head
Start/Early Head Start.

There are portions of each bill that benefit libraries and the communities
they serve.  Tomorrow, after the Senate passes its version of the economic
stimulus package and the bill goes to conference, library advocates must be
prepared to move quickly to advocate for the library related provisions
emphasizing the role that libraries play to help people find jobs, promote
small businesses and support training and skill-development for new jobs and
careers.

GRASSROOTS MESSAGES – Please continue to contact your Senators and House
members.  We will publish a list of the conferees as soon as the members are
identified.  Please call all of your Senators and Representatives and tell
them the following sections of each version must be protected:

In the Senate version:

All conferees should support the broadband funding, including the $200
million designated for libraries and community colleges to deploy
broadband.  There are other broadband projects in the Senate bill that
should help libraries in partnership with other institutions and local
governments, especially in rural areas.

In the House version conferees are asked to keep in:

-          Education for the 21st Century
-          K-12 Repair and Modernization
-          Higher Education Repair and Modernization
-          Rural Community Facilities Program
-          Community Service Employment for Older Americans
-          National Endowment for the Arts
-          Head Start/Early Head Start (House version):

Thank you for all you have been doing to get our library provisions this
far.  Because of your overwhelming grassroots efforts, we have successfully
protected the $200 million in broadband funding, but more work needs to be
done.  In the next few days, elected officials in the House and the Senate
will be working on blending the two versions of this bill, and compromises
will need to be made to ensure the economic stimulus package can pass both
houses before being sent to the President.  As library advocates, we have
our work cut out for us – let's ensure that libraries receive the funding
they need in order to continue providing the exceptional services our
communities need.

Kristin Murphy
Government Relations Specialist
American Library Association Washington Office





-- 
Diedre Conkling
diedre08 at gmail.com
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