[PL-Directors] Governor's Balanced Budget for 2011-13

[Jim Scheppke]

Dear Directors: I am pleased to report that the Governor's Balanced Budget released today preserves all of the programs and staffing of the State Library. The Governor's budget includes 44 positions and 42.26 FTE, the same as our current staffing this biennium.

An important change in the Governor's Budget is to take the grant funds from the Ready to Read Grant Program and transfer them to a new Early Learning Council that will design a more seamless early childhood education delivery program in the state. The Early Learning Council budget totals nearly $800 million and is comprised of all the money that in the past has funded programs like Oregon Pre-kindergarten and Healthy Start.

The Governor's budget indicates that in the first year of the biennium, the early childhood programs, including Ready to Read grants, will be administered as they have in the past, while the new Early Learning Council designs the new program that will begin in the second year of the biennium. I see a real opportunity here to potentially increase funding for the Ready to Read Grant program, based on the excellent work that you all are doing for children in your communities.

We haven’t seen the details of the Governor’s Balanced Budget yet, but I did want to inform you that the Ready to Read Grant program seems to have survived, at least for now. I hope you will continue to educate your Legislators about the importance of this program in supporting early learning programs and summer reading programs in your library.

You will be hearing more as we get more details. Please let me know if you have questions about this.

Jim Scheppke, State Librarian
Oregon State Library
250 Winter St. NE
Salem, OR 97301
503-378-4367
(fax) 503-585-8059
jim.b.scheppke at state.or.us

[cid:3379408592_1087332]Go Green, Keep it on screen - think before you print.
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