Send a fax to your legislator with NYLA's Online Advocacy Center fax tool
Rebekkah Smith Aldrich
legislators.
The current letter available for you to send via the automated fax program
urges Legislature to close the funding gap for libraries.
"The New York Library Association is urging the Legislature to build upon
the investments made last year in libraries and included in the 2007-08
Executive Budget, by providing $27 million in operating aid to all libraries
and library systems across the state. In addition, we are seeking $5
million for NOVEL (New York's Online Virtual Electronic Library) and an
increase in Library Materials Aid from $6.25 as proposed by the Governor to
$15 per pupil for school libraries to buy books and other reading
materials."
Sending the letter takes just a few moments:
http://www.nyla.org/index.php?page_id=925
-Rebekkah
p.s. If you'd like to draft your own letter to send to your NYS legislators
I've pasted the text of the letter that would be automatically sent through
the NYLA Online Advocacy Center. If you'd like to use this text as a
starting point to write your own letter, feel free. Contact info for all
MHLS area legislators is available at
http://midhudson.org/funding/advocacy/legislators_adv.htm
[letter text]
I am writing first to thank you for your support last year for increased
library funding. After eight years of flat funding and budget cuts, the
additional funds were badly needed and long-overdue.
We are grateful that the Legislature took the first step on the long road to
closing the funding gap for libraries that exists today because libraries
had not received their fair share of the budget for so long. This year the
library community urges you to make permanent the increased funding and
adjust the formulas across the board so that all types of libraries and
library systems receive the funding they need to meet the growing demand for
their services.
The New York Library Association 2007 State Budget Priorities calls for
across the board increases in library aid that provides an additional $27
million in aid for all types of libraries and library systems including:
. $7.5 million in direct operating aid to public libraries
. $15.3 million in aid for library systems
. $1.9 million in direct aid to college libraries
. $5 million for NOVEL (NY's Online Virtual Electronic Library)
. Increase Library Materials Aid to $15 per pupil ($12 million)
Even though state support for libraries stood still for eight years, the
number of visits to libraries climbed by 5 million between 1998 and 2005,
the number of NOVEL users climbed by 30 million, and the cost of a school
library book increased by 30%.
State support for library services is still a tiny fraction of the overall
state Budget, yet libraries serve 75% of New York households. What other
state funded program serves so many people for so few dollars?
I urge you to make permanent the increased aid and to support closing the
funding gap for libraries. Visit www.nyla.org to find out how the libraries
in your region would benefit from the New York Library Association's funding
proposal.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rebekkah Smith Aldrich, Coordinator of Member Information
Mid-Hudson Library System
103 Market Street
Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
845.471.6060 x39
FX: 845.454.5940
http://midhudson.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rebekkah Smith Aldrich, Coordinator of Member Information
Mid-Hudson Library System
103 Market Street
Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
845.471.6060 x39
FX: 845.454.5940
http://midhudson.org