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Dear CLC members,
It's budget season, and the Governor's proposed budget for FY18 - FY19 contains
significant cuts to State Library services. The Governor has proposed:
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Eliminate funding for borrowIT CT (Connecticard) - $781,820 in cuts each year
- Annualize last year's "holdbacks" across other State Library programs, including CLC, researchIT CT, and deliverIT CT - $318,886 in cuts each year
- In addition, Governor's House Bill no. 7051, a budget implementation bill, proposes changes to state statutes that could effectively eliminate the borrowIT CT program permanently.
Whether your library is directly affected by the borrowIT CT cuts or not,
any cut to any State Library service impacts Connecticut libraries in critical ways. It is vitally important that the library community show their support for all state funded library services NOW, before we get further along in the budget process. We cannot be complacent.
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WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Put Tuesday, February 21 on your calendar in red.
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This Tuesday, February 21 from 4:00 pm onward is the first public hearing about the proposed budget cuts to state library programs.
The hearing will take place at the Legislative Office Building (LOB) in Hartford. Here is how you can help on and before Tuesday:
- Show up. A large and visible number of library supporters in the audience will make a strong statement.
- Submit written testimony. Can't be there? This is how to be heard.
- Testify. We need your voice.
- Connect with legislators by filling out CLA's political contacts questionnaire.
Scroll down for for more information about all of these actions.
Tuesday is just the first step in this long budget process. The State Library, CLA and CLC will be reaching out to you throughout the upcoming weeks with news and ways you can help. If you have questions, ideas or concerns, please don't hesitate to contact CLC Advocacy Committee co-chairs Randi Ashton-Pritting (pritting@hartford.edu) and Lynn Barker Steinmayer (director@goshenpublib.org). And of course, reach out to me any time.
Thank you for your support. See you Tuesday.
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Best wishes,
Jennifer
Jennifer Keohane, Executive Director
Connecticut Library Consortium
860.344.8777 x103 office, 203.915.2465 cell
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ACTION STEPS
All the details you need
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1. Show up, wear red, and put on a "Save CT Library Funding" sticker!
You don't have to stay the entire time, but we need people from about 4 pm through the late hours when testimony ends.
Location:
Room 2C of the Legislative Office Building, 300 Capitol Avenue, Hartford (parking and directions
here
). Bring your constituents! Library supporter stickers will be provided. Bring reading material - you may be there a while.
2. Submit written testimony. Please email written testimony in Word or PDF format to
APPtestimony@cga.ct.gov. Encourage your library users to do the same. Here are some ideas:
- "Tell the library story" of what the elimination of State Library supported programs would mean to your users. What will happen to equal access if the delivery system ends? When local budgets have already had to deal with the "surprise" CEN costs, how could you replace the benefits of reciprocal borrowing?
- If possible, describe one library user or family that would be severely affected by the loss of funding.
- Appeal to those who favor regionalism by mentioning that Connecticut libraries have successfully operated a de facto regional system for forty years, leveraging state, federal, and local dollars. The proposed cuts would disassemble the system and disqualify the State Library from federal funds.
- Quantify the value of CLC by sharing your library's savings figures. By how much did CLC help you stretch your budget dollar last year?
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Kate Byroade & Beth Crowley
testifying in 2015
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3. Testify at the hearing.
Are you especially passionate about libraries? Are you a good public speaker? Do you have a compelling story? Consider testifying yourself. Contact CLA Legislative Committee Co-Chairs Carl Antonucci (
antonucci@ccsu.edu
) and/or Mary Etter (
metter@libraryconnection.info
) by Monday at noon
. Carl and/or Mary will arrange for you to be included in the speaker lottery, which determines the order of speakers. Contact them with your questions.
Here is a guide to testifying.
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