ALAWON v7n21 (March 6, 1998) URL = http://hegel.lib.ncsu.edu/stacks/serials/alawon/alawon-v7n21.txt ================================================================= ALAWON Volume 7, Number 21 ISSN 1069-7799 March 6, 1998 American Library Association Washington Office Newsline In this issue: (202 lines) MESSAGES TO CONGRESS THROUGH LOCAL OFFICIALS: KEY LIBRARY ISSUES _________________________________________________________________ MESSAGES TO CONGRESS THROUGH LOCAL OFFICIALS: KEY LIBRARY ISSUES Local elected officials who regularly meet with congressional representatives and senators can help bring the library message to Congress. For example, the ALA Washington Office has had calls from library supporters who are briefing their city council members who are in turn attending the National League of Cities conference this week in Washington, D.C. These council members will meet, often directly, with congressional representatives and senators. Below is a brief summary of the key library issues. We hope that you will find it useful as you consider briefing your local elected officials about federal library legislation. ALA Washington issues briefs are updated regularly and made available at ALA conferences and National Library Legislative Day as well as on the ALA web site at http://www.ala.org/washoff. For further information please contact the ALA Washington Office at 1-800-941-8478. _________________________________________________________________ KEY LIBRARY ISSUES FOR THE 105TH CONGRESS The library message to Congress should emphasize a number of important issues. Below is a an abbreviated list of those issues and the messages we hope you will share with your congressional representatives and senators (The U.S. Capitol Switchboard phone number is 202-224-3121). For more information please contact the ALA Washington Office at 1-800-941-8478. BUDGET/APPROPRIATIONS *FUND LIBRARY PROGRAMS AT $160 MILLION: In this second year of funding for the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), it is particularly important for Congress to fund library programs at $160 million in the FY99 budget. A strong investment will connect more libraries to the Internet, support literacy for young children and adults, help libraries provide job and consumer health information, serve small business, and provide information for lifelong learning. School and public libraries provide not only up-to-date materials, but library professionals to teach students information-seeking skills. *FUND ESEA TITLE VI AT LEAST AT THE FY98 LEVEL OF $350 MILLION: In the President's FY99 budget, ESEA Title VI is zeroed out. Continued funding is critical since around 40 percent of this block grant is spent on school library and other instructional materials. READING/YOUTH PROGRAMS *PASS CHILDRENS' LITERACY FUNDING BEFORE JULY 1, 1998: It is expected that the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee will consider the Reading Excellence Act soon. According to the language of the FY98 Labor HHS Education Appropriations bill, the childrens' literacy funding of $210 million that was set-aside for FY99 will be used on childrens' literacy only if authorizing legislation is passed by Congress by July 1, 1998. The House-passed bill (H.R. 2614),has been introduced by Senator Paul Coverdell (R-GA) as S. 1596. Senator Coverdell also introduced a larger bill, S. 1590, which includes education program consolidations along with the text of S. 1596. Because of the controversial nature of the education program consolidations, ALA would not support the larger bill. ALA expects to support S. 1596, especially if the Senate Committee adds school library amendments. COPYRIGHT/INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY *COSPONSOR H.R. 3048, THE DIGITAL ERA COPYRIGHT ENHANCEMENT ACT by Reps. Rick Boucher (D-VA) and Tom Campbell (R-CA), and S. 1146, THE DIGITAL COPYRIGHT CLARIFICATION AND TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION ACT by Sen. John Ashcroft (R-MO). These potentially landmark bills would update the nation's copyright laws in a way that fully protects fair use, digital preservation, library lending, distance education, and access to the technology needed to engage in such activities; * OPPOSE H.R. 2281 AND S. 1121, two flawed and incomplete proposals to protect the rights of some information owners, but which would jeopardize the future of fair use and the public's access to electronic information; and * OPPOSE H.R. 2652, THE COLLECTION OF INFORMATION ANTIPIRACY ACT, a dangerously over broad bill which would provide sweeping new protection for databases threatening access to even public domain information. TELECOMMUNICATIONS DISCOUNTS *PROTECT THE E-RATE: The telecommunications discount program for libraries, schools, and rural heath care providers--one of the most historic universal service programs mandated in the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and intended to connect rural America and low-income communities--is again threatened even before it has a chance to get off the ground. Tell Congress (phone: 202-224-3121) and the Federal Communications Commission (phone: 1-888-CALL-FCC): * DON'T CUT FUNDING FOR THESE DISCOUNTS: A $2.25 billion annual cap was put on the part of the universal service fund designated for the school-library program. Maintain this funding and promote the rural health care initiatives. * KEEP ALL ELIGIBLE AND NECESSARY SERVICES IN PLACE: Keep inside connections and related services that will make these networks reach to the end-users. * KEEP THE PROGRAM MOVING FORWARD AND PROTECT THIS AS WELL AS THE ENTIRE UNIVERSAL SERVICE PROGRAM: Don't let other policy disputes disrupt this program. It must move forward to assure every community is connected by the Year 2000. FILTERING AND THE E-RATE *NO FEDERAL MANDATE REQUIRING LOCAL FILTERING OR BLOCKING SOFTWARE NOR SHOULD IT BE TIED INTO ELIGIBILITY FOR THE E-RATE PROGRAM: The Internet School Filtering Act, S. 1619, would deny libraries and schools that do not use filtering or blocking software, eligibility to use telecommunications discounts as authorized by the Telecommunications Act of 1996. A more acceptable approach would be to require local Internet use policies but leave the details of these policies to local library boards, school boards, and other appropriate authorities. Federally mandated blocking software cannot responsibly anticipate the information and curricular needs of a community or determine the best sources of information for any particular public or school library users. While blocking and filtering products can be tools for parents to use at home, libraries serve all families and all library users in a given community with vastly differing information needs. In addition, filtering and blocking software does not protect children from all inappropriate materials and is overly broad at blocking appropriate sites used for legitimate library information services and school curricular support. LIBRARY POSTAL RATE *ADOPT ALTERNATIVE LIBRARY POSTAL RATE INCREASE: The U.S. Postal Service has proposed a 28.57% increase for the first pound of the library rate as part of its July 10, 1997 request to the Postal Rate Commission to change postal rates. Such a drastic increase inevitably would lead to cuts in library services, especially in rural areas. Write now to tell the Postal Rate Commission how library services would be affected by the steep increases in Library Rate proposed by U.S. Postal Service. Urge the Commission to adopt the alternative rates for the Library Rate as proposed by its Office of Consumer Advocate. The address is: Edward J. Gleiman, Chairman, U.S. Postal Rate Commission, 1333 H St., NW, Suite 300, Washington, D.C. 20268-0001. Urge your Senators and Representative to contact Mr. Gleiman and request that the Commission adopt the alternative rates recommended by the PRC Office of the Consumer Advocate. Emphasize that the increases proposed by the Postal Service are so large that the Library Rate would become as high as (or higher than) the commercial book rate--effectively eliminating the separate Library Rate subclass created by Congress. _________________________________________________________________ ALAWON is a free, irregular publication of the American Library Association Washington Office. To subscribe, send the message: subscribe ala-wo [your_firstname] [your_lastname] to listproc @ala.org. To unsubscribe, send the message: unsubscribe ala-wo to listproc@ala.org. ALAWON archives at http://www.ala.org/ washoff/alawon. Visit our Web site at http://www.alawash.org. ALA Washington Office 202.628.8410 (V) 1301 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, #403 202.628.8419 (F) Washington, DC 20004-1701 800.941.8478 (V) Lynne E. Bradley, Editor Deirdre Herman, Managing Editor Contributors: Carol C. Henderson All materials subject to copyright by the American Library Association may be reprinted or redistributed for noncommercial purposes with appropriate credits. =================================================================