Yesterday afternoon Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger held a quickly called press conference to express his frustration with the Budget stalemate and his perception of the lack of progress during the so-called "Big 5" negotiations. The "Big 5" consists of the Governor, Senate President pro Tem Don Perata, Senate Republican Leader Dave Cogdill, Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, and Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines. Opening the press conference, the Governor quipped, "I hope you all had lunch, because I didn't." The Governor noted that the prolonged Budget stalemate has "caused difficulty in the State and the pain will become even worse if we delay." He added, "It is time for everyone to compromise. The Republicans must step out of their ideological corner and the Democrats must step out of their ideological corner."

The Governor, stated that "California's Budget problem has reached crisis proportions" and then went on to roll out the terms of the compromise proposal entitled "August 2008-2009 Update Proposed Compromise." Key provisions of the compromise include:

1. An Additional $2 billion in cuts beyond the $9.3 billion in reductions adopted by the Budget Conference Committee.

2. An increase in the sales tax of one-cent for three years, after which time the current sales tax would be reduced by 1/4 cent. A requirement that 3% of General Fund revenues would be transferred into the "Budget Stabilization Account" (BSA) until this so-called "rainy day fund" reaches 12.5%. Transfers from the BSA to the General Fund would only be allowed when revenues are insufficient to cover baseline spending increases.

3. Provisions to allow future Governors to make mid-year State Budget cuts.
A proposal to place a ballot measure before the voters to "securitize" the Lottery, which is estimated to provide $5 billion in 2009-10 to pay down General Fund debts or to augment the State's "rainy day fund."

During his press conference the Governor emphasized that his plan did not borrow money from local government and transportation, that it was not a "get out of town Budget," and that it "puts the state on its way to fiscal sanity." When a reporter asked: "You don't like borrowing, but would you do it?" The Governor responded: "We have already borrowed and next year we will have the same (Budget) problem and would have to raise taxes." The reporter pursued: "Is that a 'no I won't do it'?" After a pause, the Governor responded, "I don't like it, no I won't do it."

Subsequent to the release of the Governor's plan, Senate Republican Leader Dave Cogdill, and Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines, expressed their opposition to the proposed sales tax increase. As of today, there is little agreement on a Budget compromise and several Democrats have told us the have cancelled their plans to attend next week's Democratic National Convention. Stay tuned.

Submitted by Mike and Christina Dillon, CLA Lobbyists

Sallie Riley, Senior Librarian at the John Muir Branch of Los Angeles Public Library, died on August 14 due to complications following knee surgery.

Sallie had been an active member of CLA since she joined in 2002. This past year, she chaired the Scholarship Committee, which is responsible for selecting the recipients of the CLA Scholarship For Minority Students in Memory of Edna Yelland. She planned to follow that up by serving on the Reference Service Press Fellowship Committee next year.

Please check back for information on her memorial services.

Carnegie Corporation of New York has awarded the American Library Association $489,000 to support the new Carnegie Corporation of New York/New York Times I Love My Librarian Award.

Administered by the ALA's Public Information Office and Campaign for America's Libraries, the award will launch this year and will continue annually through 2013. The award encourages library users to recognize the accomplishments of librarians in public, school, college, community college and university libraries for their efforts to improve the lives of people in their community.

Nominations for public librarians run from August 15 through October 1. Nominations for school and academic librarians begin September 2 and continue through October 15.

"In our democratic society, the library stands for hope, for learning, for progress, for literacy, for self-improvement and for civic engagement. The library is a symbol of opportunity, citizenship, equality, freedom of speech and freedom of thought, and hence, is a symbol for democracy itself," said Vartan Gregorian, president of Carnegie Corporation of New York.

"We're thrilled to be working with the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the American Library Association to honor librarians who play such a vital role in our communities," said Scott Heekin-Canedy, president of The New York Times. "What began as a local Times initiative in New York City seven years ago has grown to a national awards program and now we are proud to be co-presenting the award with the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the ALA."

"This award will continue to raise awareness of the valuable contributions of today's librarians and the ways they make a difference in people's lives and their communities, schools and campuses," said ALA President Jim Rettig.

Up to 10 librarians in public, school and academic libraries will be selected each year and each will be honored at a ceremony and reception in New York at TheTimesCenter, hosted by The New York Times. Each winner also will receive a $5,000 cash award, a plaque and a $500 travel stipend to attend the awards reception. In addition, a plaque will be given to each award winner's library.

Nominees will be judged by a selection committee based on quality of service to library users, demonstrated knowledge of the library and its resources and commitment shown in helping library users.

Each nominee must be a librarian with a master's degree from a program accredited by the ALA in library and information studies or a master's degree with a specialty in school library media from an educational unit accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education. Nominees must be currently working in the United States in a public library, a library at an accredited two- or four-year college or university or at an accredited K-12 school.

For more information, visit www.ilovelibraries.org/ilovemylibrarian.

The Carnegie Corp. of New York was created by Andrew Carnegie in 1911 to promote "the advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding." For more than 95 years, the corporation has carried out Carnegie's vision of philanthropy by building on his two major concerns: international peace and advancing education and knowledge. As a private grant-making foundation, the corporation will invest more than $100 million this year in nonprofits to fulfill Carnegie's mission, "to do real and permanent good in this world." The corporation's capital fund, originally donated at a value of about $135 million, had a market value of $3 billion on Sept. 30, 2007.

The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), a leading media company with 2007 revenues of $3.2 billion, includes The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 16 other daily newspapers, WQXR-FM and more than 50 Web sites, including NYTimes.com, Boston.com and About.com. The Company’s core purpose is to enhance society by creating, collecting and distributing high-quality news, information and entertainment.

The American Library Association is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 65,000 members. Its mission is to promote the highest quality library and information services and public access to information.

Our 110th Annual Conference will be held in San Jose, from November 14-17. As the premiere continuing education event of the year, the conference will offer dozens of workshops. Notable speakers at this year's conference include authors Michael Chabon, Ayelet Waldman and Jeannette Walls. To add to your fun, we are offering several interesting tours throughout the region. You will also have among nine pre-conference institutes to choose from! Descriptions and costs of this year's special events and institutes are in the Preliminary Program on CLA's conference page.

To receive the CLA member discount, you must be a current member of CLA. To join or renew online, visit http://www.regonline.com/CLA_Membership. To join by mail, please use the form on our website at http://cla-net.org/included/docs/membership_invitation.pdf.

If you have any questions regarding membership or the conference, please contact the CLA office at info@cla-net.org or 916-447-8541.

REGISTER TODAY! Extra Early Bird Online Registration ends August 31. Beginning September 1, you will be able to register at the Advance rate by mail or online. To see the registration rates, visit the CLA conference webpage.

P.S. Hotel registration has also begun. Call 800-831-4004 between 6:00 am and 11:00 pm to make your registration. Or, if you prefer, make your hotel reservation online. Availability is limited, so don't delay!

The Nominating Committee will select two candidates to run for President-elect and no fewer than 50 candidates for the 33 at-large Council seats to be filled in the 2009 spring election.

The President-elect will serve a three-year term: as President-elect in 2009-2010, as President in 2010-2011, and as Immediate Past President in 2011-2012.

The Councilors-at-large will serve three-year terms, beginning after the 2009 ALA Annual Conference and ending at the adjournment of the 2012 Annual Conference.

The ALA President and Councilors also serve in corresponding roles in the ALA-Allied Professional Association [ALA-APA]. Individuals considering ALA-APA office are encouraged to consult with their employer regarding any restrictions regarding lobbying activities or service on the governing body of a 501(c)6 organization.

Members who wish to make nominations should submit the following information: nominee name; present position; institution; address; telephone; fax; and e-mail address. Self-nominations are encouraged. All potential nominees must complete the Potential Candidate Biographical Form available at https://cs.ala.org/potentialcandidates/. The database will be available June 2, 2008. Nominations and forms must be received no later than September 1, 2008.

Nominations may be sent to any member of the 2009 Nominating Committee. Committee members are: Susan S. DiMattia, Chair, Consultant, DiMattia Associates, Stamford, CT, sdimattia@optonline.net; Rose T. Dawson, Acting Director, Alexandria (VA) Library, rdawson@alexandria.lib.va.us; Timothy P. Grimes, Manager, Community Relations and Marketing, Ann Arbor (MI) District Library, grimest@aadl.org; Susan Hildreth, State Librarian, California State Library, Sacramento, shhildreth@comcast.net; Corinne M. Hill, Collection Development Manager, Denton (TX) Public Library; cmhill@cityofdenton.com; Pamela Spencer Holley. Writer, Consultant, Hallwood, VA; pamsholley@aol.com; Jo Ellen Priest Misakian, Interim Dean/School of Education, Fresno Pacific University, Fresno, CA; jmisakian@fresno.edu; Daniel O. O'Connor, Professor, Rutgers University School of Communication Information & Library Studies, New Brunswick, NJ; oconnor@scils.rutgers.edu; and Thomas C. Wilson, Associate Dean, Library Technology, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, tcwilson@ua.edu.

To encourage diversity and leadership development, the Committee will refrain from nominating any current Councilors for election to another term. However, the Committee encourages all current Councilors who wish to continue their service to the Association to file as petition candidates. Petitions will be available from Lois Ann Gregory-Wood, Council Secretariat, ALA, 50 E. Huron, Chicago, IL 60611, Email: lgregory@ala.org, or during the 2008 Annual Conference or 2009 Midwinter Meeting. Petitions require 25 signatures for names to be included on the 2009 ballot.

• ALA Council Job Description (59k)

Recently, you may have read in your local paper, rumors regarding the potential borrowing of property taxes under Proposition 1A, which was passed by the voters in 2004. You will recall that we previously worked very hard to secure the exemption in 2004 for independent special district libraries and so called "ERAF Orphan" (or county dependent) Libraries.

As of this writing, the Democratic leaders in the Senate and the Assembly say that they have no plans for borrowing property taxes, as allowed under Proposition 1A to help balance the state budget. Instead Democrats point to the Budget, as adopted by the Budget Conference Committee, which calls for additional revenues in excess of $8 billion dollars. A portion of the funds would be used to provide a modest 2.4% cost of living adjustment for schools and restore some health and human services reductions made by the Governor. The remainder of the new revenues would replace the Governor's so-called lottery "securitization" fund proposal and the accrual of August and September 2009 tax receipts that would be counted in the 2008-09 budget year ending June 30th. The latter approach by the Governor is being referred by some as a "gimmick."

However, Republicans in both houses have generally objected to any tax increases, and therein lies the dilemma. Both parties have expressed their desire to wrap up the legislative session by August 22 in order for the Democrats to attend the National Democratic Convention, and the Republican Convention follows shortly thereafter. A likely scenario is that the Legislature will resort to a number of compromises, one of which could involve borrowing property taxes under Proposition 1A, even though it is only a short-term budget fix, as the money must be repaid to local governments, with interest, within three years.

II. Where Can You Find $8 or $9 Billion Dollars?

As mentioned above, the Budget Conference Committee proposal, adopted on a 4 to 2 vote, with Republican conferees, Senator Bob Dutton, and Assemblyman Roger Niello voting "no," relies on $8.2 billion in revenues for the 2008-09 revenue year, which include reinstating the 10% and 11% income tax brackets. Democrats also propose suspending the net operating loss carryover for businesses for three years, suspending the indexing of income taxes for one year, etc. If an agreement cannot be reached on these tax increases or "revenue enhancements," where might the legislature find some alternatives?

One proposal that has been floated around, that could be permanent, would be the Legislative Analyst's alternative to "securitizing" the lottery based on current lottery sales which could generate approximately $2.6 billion, and "securitizing" a portion of redevelopment agency funds generating about $2 billion. (Short explanation: In exchange for extending current RDA laws about to expire, RDA's would shift a certain portion of property taxes to schools, thereby relieving the State General Fund of this obligation, and the funds would then be "securitized," i.e. a lump sum payment from Wall Street to be paid back over a number of years). The Governor's accrual method, mentioned above, of counting August and September revenues in June would raise another $2.1 billion. Then, there is borrowing from various sources. Proposition 1A only allows the state to borrow up to 8% of total property taxes, which would be in the neighborhood of $1.8-$1.9 billion. Borrowing from Proposition 42, the gas tax initiative passed by the voters in 2006, could generate another $1 billion or so. One of the considerations for the above options is that the funds generated would not be considered "proceeds of taxes," which unlike the tax increases under the Conference Committee proposal, would not require close to 50% of all new revenues being dedicated to K-14 education under the requirements of Prop 98, the school funding guarantee. As one policy wonk mused, some or all of these options could be used for a "get out of town budget."

III. Contact Your Legislators, Urge an Exemption For Public Libraries

On the possibility that the Legislature may ultimately opt to borrow property taxes, we have been meeting with key legislative staff, explaining that the impact that any sort of borrowing from libraries, particularly libraries largely dependent upon property taxes, would produce significant adverse consequences. We have also provided them with the language that exempted police, fire and property tax dependent libraries from the so called "take away" in 2004.

We need your help to ensure that libraries are exempted if the legislature elects to borrow property taxes via Proposition 1A. We urge you to take a moment and write to your individual Legislators as well as the "Big Four" leaders listed below and request an exemption for libraries from any Proposition 1A shift. It is important to mention in your letters the impact any borrowing would have on your library, especially if you have limited options for replacing the lost revenues, i.e. difficulty borrowing etc. Also, we recommend that you mention the Budget reductions your library has suffered as a result of the cuts to the PLF and TBR in recent years.

The leaders are:

The Honorable Don Perata
Senate President Pro Tem
State Capitol, Room 205
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Dave Cogdill
Senate Minority Leader
State Capitol, Room 3048
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Karen Bass
Speaker of the Assembly
State Capitol, Room 219
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Mike Villines
Assembly Minority Leader
State Capitol, Room 3104
Sacramento, CA 95814

Submitted by Mike and Christina Dillon, Lobbyists

A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, August 2, at 11:00 am at the Unitarian Church of San Jose, 160 N. 3rd Street, San Jose. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the following organizations. Please note Don Fuller’s name and your contact information if you would like to receive an acknowledgement.

The PlaneTree Health Library
15891 Los Gatos-Almaden Road
Los Gatos, CA 95032

Kaiser Santa Clara Hospice
Attn. Ken Watkins
10080 N. Wolf Road, Suite SW-160
Cupertino, CA 95014

The election will begin in mid-August, and members will have 30 days to vote. Members eligible to vote were informed about the possibility of requesting a paper ballot through a postcard that went out in the last few weeks.

Please let the office know if you have any questions about these bylaw changes, or the election.

• Proposed Bylaws (92k)
• Bylaws Q&A (19k)

Individuals may be added to the ballot by petition. Properly completed petitions must be submitted to the Executive Director, Sue Negreen, CAE, within 25 days of publication of this report. Nominations for vice president/president elect require the signature of 2 percent of the voting members of CLA (54 signatures are needed). Nominations by petition for Assembly-at-large positions require 25 signatures of voting members of the association.

This year's ballot will also include proposed revisions to the CLA Bylaws. Your voice in the association is important. Watch for your ballot, and vote!

Preliminary Election Slate 2008-09

Candidates for Vice President/President Elect
Susan R. Gallinger, Director of Library Services, Livermore Public Library
Dr Ken Haycock, Director, San Jose School of Library and Information Science, San Jose State University

Candidates for ALA Chapter Councilor
Xiaoli Li, Head of Serials Department, Shield Library, UC Davis
Les Kong, Head, Public Services, CSU San Bernardino

Candidates for Assembly Members-at-Large
(Six positions to be filled)
Sigrid Hudson, Children's Services Supervisor, City of Commerce Public Library
Heather Pizzuto, Director, Carlsbad City Library
WenWen Zhang, Community Library Manager, Hacienda Heights Library, County of Los Angeles Public Library
Loretta McKinney, Director of Library Services, Murrieta Public Library
Laura Einstadter, Amador County Librarian, Amador County Library
Gail Haar, Director of County Library Services, Marin County Free Library
Darla Gunning, Technical Services Manager, California State Library
Hillary Theyer, Senior Librarian, Torrance Public Library
Fannie Love, Assistant Regional Administrator, North Region-County of Los Angeles Public Library
Greg Mullen, Director, Santa Monica Public Library
Donna Corbeil, Director of Library Services, Berkeley Public Library

Section Elections
Academic Section
Candidates for Vice President/President Elect
Sandy Vella, Head Library Instruction Services, UC Davis
Candidate needed

Candidate for Secretary
Roxane BenVau, Media Librarian, Grossmont College

Candidates for Assembly Representative
Virginia (Ginny) Evans-Perry, Public Services Librarian, San Bernardino Valley College
Candidate needed

Access, Collections & Technical Services Section
Candidates for Vice President/President Elect
Mary Cohen, Technical Services Dept. Head, Palo Verdes Library District
Peter Nguyen, Librarian, Daly City Library

Candidate for Secretary
Bie-Hwa Chen Ma, Chinese Language Electronic Resources Cataloging Librarian, Shared Cataloging Program Unit, University of California, San Diego

Children & Young Adult Services Section
Candidate for President (to fill unexpired term)
Pat Downs, Youth Services Manager, San Diego County Library
Marisa Perley, Young Readers Assistant Manager, Palos Verdes Library District

Candidates for Vice President/President Elect
Candidate needed
Candidate needed

Candidate for Secretary
Allyson Goodwin, Library Assistant, Children's Services, Carlsbad City Library

Information Technology Section
Candidates for Vice President/President Elect
Monica M. Schultz, IT Director, Peninsula Library System
Candidate needed

Candidate for Secretary
Mark Lager, Library Technology Manager, Ventura County Library
B.J. Combs, Families First

Literacy Services Section
Candidates for Vice President/President Elect
Alan Archer, Literacy Coordinator, Nevada County Library
Candidate needed

Candidate for Secretary
Valerie Hardie, Literacy Program Administrator, San Diego Public Library-READ/San Diego

Management Services Section
Candidates for Vice President/President Elect
Hilary Keith, Library Director, Santa Fe Springs Public Library
Paula Weiner, City Librarian, Torrance Public Library

Candidate for Secretary
Kathleen M. Wade, Regional Services Manager, North Region, Orange County Public Libraries

Candidates for Assembly Representative
Stephanie Beverage, Regional Services Manager, Orange County Public Library
Candidate needed

Public Library Section
Candidates for Vice President/President Elect
Cornelia van Aken, Assistant Director, Palo Alto City Library
Candidate needed

Candidate for Secretary
Candidate needed

Candidates for Assembly Representative
Barbara Flynn, Deputy Director, San Diego County Library
Candidate needed

Reference Services Section
Candidates for Vice President/President Elect
Candidate needed
Candidate needed

Candidate for Secretary
Candidate needed

What happens next is anyone's guess. Earlier today, Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata and Speaker of the Assembly Karen Bass held a press conference to talk about the Conference Committee's actions and the tax increase package. Senator Perata said that the Democratic leaders would work hard during the next seven to ten days with their Republican colleagues with the hope of developing a proposal that could be brought up for a vote before August 1st. Senator Perata stated that if an agreement could not be reached "one way or another a vote would be taken by August 1st." He challenged the Republicans, as did Conference Committee Member Assemblyman John Laird last evening, that if the Republicans were to insist on cuts only, they would need to put the cuts on the table to show where they would be made. Stated Senator Perata: "Saying no is not an option, we are elected to do a job." In the meantime, representatives from the state Controller's office informed a group of us lobbyists at a meeting yesterday that the state was quickly running out of cash and would soon need to resort to borrowing, likely at high rates, because of California's terrible credit rating. In fact, California ranks 49th out of the 50 states in terms of it's credit rating, second only to Louisiana.

Library Construction Bond Bill Sent to Assembly Appropriations "Suspense File" Due To Cost.
This morning Senator Joe Simitian presented his SB 1516, a $4 billion library construction and renovation General Obligation Bond, before the members of the Assembly Appropriations Committee. As you will recall from our previous memos, the Assembly Appropriations Committee evaluates all bills with fiscal implications, and places any bill with a dollar amount in excess of $150,000 on its so-called "suspense file." In early August, the Assembly Appropriations Committee, along with legislative leadership, will prioritize the bills on "suspense" and will choose to send them forward to the Floor for a vote, or hold them in committee - rendering them dead for the year. Due to its $4 billion price tag, SB 1516 was sent to the Assembly Appropriations suspense file this morning.

During his presentation before the committee, Senator Simitian noted that SB 1516 calls for placing a library bond on the November 2010 ballot, which would allow for the state's finances to improve and would give the library community sufficient time to mount a corresponding campaign. The Senator was responding to the committee's fiscal analysis of the bill which stated, "Assuming the $4 billion in bonds are sold at an average interest rate of 5.25% and retired over 30 years, debt service costs for principal and interest would total about $8 billion or $267.7 million annually." The analysis further goes on to ask: "Should the legislature authorize a G.O. bond to be placed on the ballot in 2010 given the state's current fiscal crisis?" The consultant then delineates the financial commitment that the state has made in authorizing $85 billion in bonds since 2000. She adds, "The increase in bond financing has led to a sharp increase in the amount of spending on infrastructure debt service. Specifically, total infrastructure debt service has doubled over the past decade, from $2.5 billion in 1998-99 to $5.2 billion in 2008-09. These costs will continue to rise as additional bonds are sold to fund the November 2006 G.O. bond package and the AB 900 (Solorio) lease-revenue prison construction bond package."

CLA argued that while the bond measure is slated for the November 2010 ballot, if it were passed by the voters, it would also require that library bond board members be appointed, and regulations be developed before any bonds can be sold. In addition, we added that, as was the case with past agreements between the Department of Finance and previous bond authors, the bonds would likely be sold in phases, so as to minimize the impact on the General Fund.

Also present in support of the measure were the lobbyists for the city of Burbank, cities in Marin County, and the California Federation of Teachers. Assemblyman Mark Leno, Chairman of the Appropriations Committee then asked the representative from the Department of Finance to comment. The Governor's representative stated, "We have nothing but respect for libraries. But given the state's fiscal condition...the bill would cost $230 million a year in General Fund debt service." Chairman Leno then asked, "Is the Governor planning any more bonds?" to which Finance responded, "I don't know at this time."

With SB 1516-Simitian currently in suspense, we have been making necessary contacts with legislative leadership. The only chance the bond will have of being released from suspense and sent to the Assembly Floor for a vote at this point in the session, is if there is agreement from legislative leaders and the Governor regarding an overall bond package. In our letter to the Governor, CLA highlights the fact that not only will SB 1516 provide much needed library infrastructure to communities, but it will also stimulate the economy by placing numerous construction jobs into the pipeline throughout the state.

You are encouraged to continue writing the legislative leaders (see July 7 memo for instructions) to ask for their support of SB 1516.

You may recall from our memo last week, that the Governor, in his January version of the State Budget, suggested a ten percent across-the-board cut to several State Library programs. Specifically, these programs proposed for reduction are the: 1) Public Library Foundation, 2) Transaction Based Reimbursement, 3) Civil Liberties Education, 4) California Newspaper Project, and 5) English Acquisition/Literacy Program. The Conference Committee has been attempting to reconcile whether they should adopt the so-called "Senate Version" of the Budget, which recommends adoption of the ten percent cut to the library programs or the "Assembly Version" which rejects the ten percent reductions. The first time the Budget conferees discussed the library items several weeks ago, they decided to leave the issues "open" as there was not any agreement between the two houses.

However, on Thursday afternoon, the Conference Committee decided on a compromise. Senator Denise Ducheny presented the open library issues and said, "There has been some talk about restoring [the 10% cut to the PLF and TBR.] This is so hard. My thought is a restoration of each at 5%." Assemblyman Laird said, "I would agree to the 5%." Senator Ducheny concurred, "Let's do 5% for all." The action taken by the Conference Committee will reduce the proposed $3,450,000 cuts to the 5 aforementioned programs, including the PLF and TBR, by half or approximately $1,725,000. Thus, instead of the Conferees agreeing to a 10 percent across-the-board reduction (totaling $3,450,000), they have approved a modest restoration, and will suggest cutting the programs by 5 percent or ($1,725,000). The motion passed on a vote of 4 "ayes" to 2 "noes." with the two Republicans (Niello and Dutton) voting against the partial restoration.

You will recall that the Governor's January Budget suggested that the PLF be reduced 10 percent or $1.4 million and the TBR be reduced 10 percent or $1.4 million. As a result of the action of the conferees, these two programs are proposed to be reduced by the Conference Committee by approximately $700,000 each.

While Thursday's action was certainly encouraging for public libraries, during this difficult and unprecedented Budget year, it should be noted that Budget negotiations are far from over. Even if the 5% reduction to the library programs holds, the Governor would still have the authority to "blue pencil," or make further reductions to, the library programs when he signs the Budget.

The Conference Committee has not convened since last Thursday, and they remain "on call of the Chair."

Submitted by Mike and Christina Dillon, CLA Lobbyists

Two weeks ago the Assembly Education Committee took testimony, but no actual vote, on SB 1516 by Senator Joe Simitian. SB 1516 is a $4 billion library construction and renovation bond measure sponsored by the California Library Association. If passed by the legislature and signed by the Governor, SB 1516 would appear on the November 2010 ballot. During the hearing on the measure, several of the committee members made positive comments about public libraries, with Chairman Assemblyman Gene Mullin noting that the state was not keeping pace with the overall infrastructure needs of libraries. CLA testified as the bill's sponsor, and joining in support was the California Federation of Teachers. CLA's testimony highlighted the concept of libraries being "the great equalizer" wherein all patrons, from all walks of life have access to important library services and programs. Assembly Education Committee member Assemblywoman Karnette said, "I am so glad you mentioned that. During these difficult financial times, libraries are an important place for people [when resources are limited]." Assemblyman Joe Coto, a member of the Assembly Education Committee, said, "I would like to compliment the author for bringing this bill forward." Four members of the committee asked to be added to the measure as co-authors: Assemblywoman Julia Brownley, Assemblyman Joe Coto, Assemblywoman Betty Karnette, and Assemblyman Jose Solorio.

The measure was then sent to the Assembly Education Committee's so-called "suspense file." You may recall that the fiscal committees in each house - the Assembly Appropriations Committee and the Senate Appropriations Committee - are the committees that typically institute a "suspense file." The "suspense file" is a way in which the committee can prioritize measures with cost estimates of $150,000 or higher and then decide, weeks later, to pass the measure on to their respective Floors, or to hold the bill in committee, rendering it dead for the year. This year the Assembly and Senate Education Committees have also created their own version of the "suspense file." Last week, during a hearing lasting well past 8 p.m., the Assembly Education Committee passed SB 1516-Simitian off of suspense on a straight party-line vote of 8 "ayes" to 3 "noes." (Democrats voting "aye" were Chair Gene Mullin, Julia Brownley, Joe Coto, Mike Eng, Loni Hancock, Betty Karnette, Curren Price, and Jose Solorio. Republicans voting "no" were Vice Chair Martin Garrick, Bob Huff, and Dr. Alan Nakanishi). SB 1516 will now head to the Assembly Appropriations Committee for consideration. No date has been set for the hearing as of this writing.

It is important to note that if a single bond or a comprehensive General Obligation bond package is to go forward this year, an agreement will need to be reached by legislative leadership. Thus, it is critical that CLA members contact the Chair and Vice Chair of the Assembly Appropriations Committee and the four legislative leaders and the Governor. (In a June 22 article regarding bonds in the Sacramento Bee, the piece notes: "The governor said he is working on an economic stimulus package, that, among other things, would expedite infrastructure bond funding ‘so that we can get those billions of dollars pumped into the economy.'")

Please take a moment today to contact the following individuals and request their support of SB 1516 by Senator Joe Simitian.

The Honorable Mark Leno
Chair, Assembly Appropriations Committee
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA. 95814

The Honorable Mimi Walters
Vice Chair, Assembly Appropriations Committee
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Arnold Schwarzenegger
Governor, State of California
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Don Perata
Senate President pro Tempore
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Karen Bass
Speaker of the California Assembly
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Dave Cogdill
Senate Republican Leader
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814

The Honorable Mike Villines
Assembly Republican Leader
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814

Since the early part of June, the powerful Budget Conference Committee, consisting of three legislators from the Senate and three representatives from the Assembly, has been working sporadically at the Capitol to attempt to reconcile major divisions regarding this year's Budget. Members of the Conference Committee include Senator Denise Ducheny (Co-Chair), Senator Bob Dutton, Senator Mike Machado, Assemblyman John Laird (Co-Chair), Assemblyman Mark Leno, and Assemblyman Roger Niello. The Conference Committee has been charged with reconciling the differences between the Governor's Budget, and the Assembly and Senate versions of the Budget. The book of action items that must be considered and acted on by the six members, totals 500 pages.

Contained in the Budget Conference Committee binders is consideration of the Governor's ten percent across the board cut to State Library operations, as well as a ten percent reduction to the Public Library Foundation (PLF) and Transaction Based Reimbursement (TBR). The Senate is recommending adoption of the Governor's proposed ten percent across-the-board cut to these items, while the Assembly rejected the Governor's proposed cuts, hoping that additional revenues might be found in order to stave off the reductions to library operations, as well as other programs important to Democrats such as health and human services, transportation, and education.

As the Conference Committee did their so-called "first pass" over each item in the binder, when they arrived at the library issues, Senator Ducheny said, "My favorite has always been the Public Library Foundation...but I don't know how to get it back." The Senator was referencing the history of cuts to the program. The sentiment was echoed by her colleague Assemblyman Laird who said, "There have been a lot of cuts to the PLF over the last 5 to 6 years." He went on to compliment libraries for trying to stay open on the weekends, despite Budget challenges. (Assemblyman Laird is an active user of the Sutro library.) The Conference Committee then decided to postpone action on all State Library issues as there was no agreement between the two houses. While the Conference Committee met last Friday afternoon for a couple of hours, to close out a few non-controversial open items, they have not met since that time, and they remain "on call of the Chair."

The "Big 4" legislative leaders have been meeting regularly behind closed doors, without inviting the Governor to participate, in an attempt to negotiate an overall solution to the Budget. At a business luncheon that we attended yesterday, at which the Governor spoke, the Governor said that he did not care if he was not invited to the "Big 4" meetings, "as long as they get the job done." The Legislature will shorten its month-long summer recess scheduled for tomorrow. The Senate released an updated schedule yesterday, indicating that members of the Senate Appropriations Committee should plan on participating in several hearings in early July in order for the committee to get on top of their agendas. The Assembly Appropriations Committee has announced it will also meet. (The motivation: The Legislature would like to adjourn a week early - provided a Budget has passed - in order to allow Democrats to attend the Democratic National Convention at the end of August.)

We will continue to keep you updated as details emerge.

Submitted by Mike Dillon and Christina Dillon, CLA Lobbyists

No RSVP needed - we'll see you there. And because this is not an "official" event, if you are in the Anaheim area, please drop in...even if it's after work!

In the meantime, if you have questions about the election, please feel free to contact Margaret Todd, Chair of the Committee at mdtodd@library.lacounty.gov, or contact Sue Negreen, CLA Executive Director at snegreen@cla-net.org.

CCLPEP received 66 grant proposals totaling almost $2.8 million, with $500,000 available for distribution. Thirty proposals were selected for grant awards. Winning grant projects include a study that will provide recommendations to the California Department of Education Curriculum Commission for their upcoming history-social science curriculum revision, as well as documentary films, an original musical recording, books and research, web sites, oral histories, art and photography exhibits, and a variety of educational projects.

CCLPEP is the outgrowth of the 1998 California Civil Liberties Public Education Act, an initiative Assembly Member Mike Honda sponsored. The purpose of the Act was to provide funding for public education activities and educational materials surrounding the internment of Japanese Americans and permanent resident aliens of Japanese ancestry, with the intent being to illuminate and create understanding of the causes and circumstances of the internment and similar events. Susan Hildreth said, "Each year's CCLPEP projects have fulfilled the original purpose of the Act very well, and the 2007-2008 projects add much to that body of work."

The FY 2007-2008 CCLPEP grantees and their projects are available online at http://cla-net.org/included/docs/2008GrantRecipients.pdf.

For more information about the California Civil Liberties Public Education Program, please contact Linda Springer or Christopher Berger at (916) 653-5217 or cclpep@library.ca.gov.