Resources

Half of the staff at Talking Books Services for the blind and print disabled are federally funded employees. IMLS also funds the Technology Library position, which provides leadership and support to all 234 public libraries in the state. The majority of NH libraries are too small to have a dedicated IT staff person or to pay for managed services.

Since so many of the State Library’s activities are inextricably linked with IMLS funding, it’s difficult to determine which services could be sustained without any federal support. (Most IMLS grants required a 34% local match.)

For privacy reasons, we don’t know which residents are using the Talking Books service. According to the latest national Census, approximately 1.5% of Plaistow residents have a visual impairment.

Last year Plaistow patrons checked out more than 1 out of every 7 items from NH Overdrive (8,144). Since its inception in 2007, the consortium has been administered and led by staff at the New Hampshire State Library with funds provided by the IMLS. The Institute has also funded Libby, the Overdrive platform (approx. $40,000/yr). Without this support, the NH library community would have to find both the funding and volunteers to maintain the continued viability of the service.

The full House will hold its vote the following week to approve a two-year state budget to pass on to the state’s Senate. Ultimately, Governor Ayotte will have an opportunity to sign or veto the budget.

• List any relevant credentials and state that you are a constituent, voter, or resident who lives or works in their district.

• Focus on a single topic or issue, listing the specific regulation, bill, or law, if there is one.

• Provide specific rather than general information about how the topic affects you and others.

• Focus on the factual over the emotional.

• Request the action you want taken.

For those opposed to cuts to IMLS funding, a number of organizations are providing advocacy resources (EveryLibrary, BookRiot, and the American Library Association, among others). But our Congressional representatives always welcome any contacts and testimonials since these help them assess which issues are most important to their constituents.

Residents are also welcome to reach out to the Library Director, Cab Vinton, to share thoughts, ask questions, or arrange a time to meet in person. Please email or call to schedule a time at director@plaistowlibrary.com or 603-382-6011.

• Facilitate an integrated library system for the state’s smallest libraries (online catalog and back-end functions)

• Maintain a digital archive of “born-digital” state government publication

• Coordinate annual participation in the IMLS’s statistical reports that collect data on all 9,000 public libraries in the US

• Pay for annual membership in OCLC, which provides access to quality catalog records so libraries don’t have to reinvent the wheel, and,

• Provide funding for 9 employees to oversee and implement various NHSL programs.

• Enhance accountability

• Promote innovation

• Save taxpayer dollars by reducing unnecessary government spending, especially waste, fraud, and abuse

• Streamline government priorities

• Return power to local communities and state governments

• “Drain the swamp”

• End ineffective government programs that empower government without achieving measurable results, and

• End spending on duplicative programs and frivolous expenditures that fail to align with American values or address the needs of the American people.

The impact on the federal deficit is also expected to be minimal. In FY 2024, the cost for the State Library’s $1.5 million allocation worked out to $1.03 per resident per year.

A recent YouGov survey also showed strong support (81%) for maintaining, or even increasing, federal spending on libraries. 11% of respondents supported reducing federal support for libraries.

The Executive Order requires that the agency limit activities to actions required by current laws, and to the maximum extent possible. This directive means shutting down all discretionary programs. It remains to be seen which agency functions the administration will deem “statutorily required” and how it will choose to define “minimum presence and function.”

On March 14 President Trump also signed a continuing resolution that included funding for IMLS at FY 2024 levels through September, when the federal fiscal year ends. That said, the administration has been aggressive in its attempts to stop a number of other agencies and departments from making planned expenditures. If the administration attempts to withhold one or more of the remaining FY 2025 monthly distributions, this would not come as a huge surprise. Several courts are now reviewing the administration’s “impoundment” authority, i.e., to what extent it can refuse to spend funds duly appropriated by Congress.

If the act is renewed, President Trump is likely to eliminate funding for the IMLS budget in his proposed budget, as he did during his first term. Congress always added the funds back, but there’s no way to know whether they would do so again, or at what funding level.

In addition, the Executive Order also seeks to reduce to the maximum extent possible the funding and activities of the following agencies:

• the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service;

• the United States Agency for Global Media;

• the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in the Smithsonian Institution;

• the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness;

• the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund; and

• the Minority Business Development Agency.