Budget Conference Committee Approves $5 Million For Public Libraries In Budget

Budget Conference Committee Approves $5 Million For Public Libraries In Budget

CLA-News From the Capitol: 6.04.2014 by Mike Dillon & Christina DiCaro

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This afternoon, on a unanimous vote of the members, the Budget Conference Committee approved $5 million in new funding for public libraries, followed by a series of positive comments about the great work and positive community benefit of public libraries.

~ this funding request was developed by Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles) and supported by a bi-partisan group of 13 of his legislative colleagues, to try to restore some of the major cuts that the public libraries have endured for the last few years.

~ the A Budget Subcomm on Educ-Fin had approved $10 million for public library restoration ($8 million for the California Library Services Act and $2 million for the State adult literacy program)

~ this funding would be in addition to the $1.8 baseline currently for CLSA and the $2.8 million for literacy

~ the S Budget Subcomm-Educ Fin did not approve additional money for CLSA

~ this forced the item into the Budget Conference Committee

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~ the item passed on a unanimous, bi-partisan vote

~ the issue still has a long way

~ discussions with Dept of Finance to prevent Governor from eliminating it

~ there was no discussion of the specific allocation of the $5 million in Comm

~ believe they will allocate $4 million for CLSA; $1 million for the literacy

Please Thank the legislators who assisted CLA in this effort:

Budget Conference Committee Members

Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner, Chair

Assemblyman Richard Bloom

Assemblyman Jeff Gorell

Assemblywoman Shirley Weber

Senator Mark Leno, Vice Chair

Senator Loni Hancock

Senator Ricardo Lara

Senator Jim Nielsen

And Senate President pro Tempore, Darrell Steinberg

Legislators Who Signed the Budget Request Letter

Assemblyman Mike Gatto (author of the letter)

Assemblyman Luis Alejo

Assemblyman Bill Quirk

Assemblyman Frank Bigelow

Assemblyman Ken Cooley

Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla

Assemblyman Kevin Mullin

Assemblyman Brian Jones

Assemblyman Adrin Nazarian

Assemblyman Brian Maienschein

Assemblyman Chris Holden

Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan

Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva

Assemblywoman Kristin Olsen

Assemblywoman Marie Waldron

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