Library Legislative Day is February 14

Library Legislative Day is Tuesday, February 14, 2012. "Libraries at the heart of the community" is this year's theme, whether your community is an academic institution, a K-12 school, a municipality, or a museum, law firm or hospital. Legislators need to hear from you about important library issues.

Major issues in 2012 include gaining support for:
• A bill extending the deadline for changes to the UW System’s research functions and WiscNet
• Protection of the Common School Fund for school library use
• A bill to enable public library districts
• A bill to improve options for recovering overdue library materials

Participate in Library Legislative Day to learn what is important to public officials and, in the process, position yourself as a resource on library issues. Appointments will be made for you and others from your legislative district. Background materials and briefing provided in advance give you talking points on the issues. Professional lobbyists will provide tips on having an effective meeting.

Register at http://www.wla.lib.wi.us/legis/day/index.htm.

Library Legislative Day Attracts Nearly 200

Despite having been rescheduled on a day of rainy, cold weather, nearly 200 individuals attended Library Legislative Day on March 22 in Madison. Held in conjunction with the Wisconsin Educational Media & Technology Association (WEMTA) Conference, the event started with a legislative briefing at Monona Terrace. Prior to appointments with legislators, the group gathered on Olin Terrace and walked to the Capitol building and into the Rotunda. Ron McCabe, WLA President-elect, gave brief remarks before library supporters ventured off to meetings with legislators.

WLA thanks all library supporters who turned out for this important event.

Here is the text of Ron's remarks:
We stand here today as proud representatives of the greatest tradition of our great state, the tradition of quality education for all.  In our democracy, everyone is allowed and encouraged to take part in the political, social, and economic life of their community, their state, and their nation.  Public education is the most powerful means we have to encourage and enable that participation--and libraries play a vital role in this effort to create a more perfect union.

Education often begins in the classroom, but it doesn’t end there.  Libraries provide opportunities for lifelong learning that extend beyond the classroom and beyond graduation.  Our school, technical college, university, and community libraries offer ways to share costly educational resources that we need, but cannot afford to purchase as individuals.  Wisconsin’s extensive and highly efficient networks of library cooperation expand local sharing by providing access to libraries throughout the state.

We are here today representing the millions of Wisconsinites whose lives are enriched by library services.  Years ago a youth services librarian told me the story of a little boy who had attended one of her a programs.  When they mixed two primary colors of paint together and made a new color, the boy exclaimed, “It’s a miracle!”

For those of us who are a bit older, that “miracle” doesn’t seem so miraculous.  But we are all looking for that next discovery, that next miracle in our lives.  And those of us who work in libraries see these miracles happen every day and know that these miracles are what education is all about.  We work hard to make sure that they keep happening because we know that Wisconsin cannot go forward without them.  We ask legislators of both parties to support us in this great work.

Library Legislative Day - Register for March 22 Rescheduled Event with Rally!

Library Legislative Day has been rescheduled: It will be held Tuesday, March 22 at Monona Terrace Convention Center. Register today! (If you registered for the original event, please re-register if you plan to attend; you do not need to pay again, of course.)

It is more important than ever that the funding needs of library programs be articulated to state legislators. Please join us for the largest library advocacy event of the year. This is held in conjunction with the WEMTA annual conference, and school librarians and their school colleagues will be able to join in much larger numbers than usual.

New feature! At 9:30 a.m. gather with your fellow library supporters on Olin Terrace (an outdoor space at Monona Terrace at the entrance to Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard) and march to the State Capitol for a brief rally.

You do not need to register for Library Legislative Day (though we hope you will) to participate in the rally; please encourage all library supporters to join us on Olin Terrace at 9:30 a.m.

Please join WLA in thanking WEMTA for their generosity and flexibility as we reworked the LLD schedule within their conference.

POSTPONED: Library Legislative Day

Library Legislative Day, which had been scheduled for Tuesday, February 22, is postponed due to weather and logistical factors related to the large crowds rallying about the governor's budget repair bill. 

While the crowds protesting (and in some cases, supporting) Governor Scott Walker's budget repair bill have been very well-behaved, we knew that access to the Capitol would be a bit challenging. Initially, offices were accessible, but over the weekend, Capitol Police restricted access to just two entrances and regulated the numbers of people moving in and out of the building. 

We don't know whether those restrictions will continue or not, but we didn't want to risk your traveling to the event only to be denied access. Finally, we were concerned that our message about libraries would be lost in the hubbub surrounding the budget repair bill. Even legislative staff, as tireless as they have been working, are exhausted and may have a difficult time devoting their attention fully to your visit.

Please stay tuned about plans to reschedule Library Legislative Day.

Thank you for your patience!

Election Year Challenge: 100 Contacts with New Officials

At the WLA Conference, Paul Nelson, Chair of the Library Development & Legislation Committee (LD&L), issued a two-part challenge to librarians: make sure Governor-elect Scott Walker and U.S. Senator-elect Ron Johnson receive at least 100 letters of congratulations from library workers and supporters around the state. In addition, every librarian represented by a freshman state legislator is urged to make contact via a congratulatory letter (handwritten, please) prior to Library Legislative Day on February 22. Let's make sure that February 22 is not your first contact with these newbies. Extra credit for contacting any re-elected officials, whether part of the freshman class or not!

Contact information for state legislators, Governor-elect Scott Walker and Senator-elect Ron Johnson is provided for your convenience. Many have not yet made the transition from campaign headquarters to legislative offices, but you can still reach them at these addresses.

Paul has also started a blog containing profiles of the freshman class. Get a better picture of these legislators, their districts, their interests and start developing a Common Agenda. Engagement with your elected officials is the name of the game. Let's get started today!

Library Legislative Day Registration Now Open

With new political leadership in the Capitol, dozens of freshmen legislators to engage, and an ambitious  library agenda, your attendance at Library Legislative Day (LLD) is more important than ever! Registration is now open. Attend the event Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at the Concourse Hotel and Governor's Club, One West Dayton Street, Madison. (Note the new location.)

Your challenge now is to get to know your legislator and engage him or her before Library Legislative Day! This event should not be your first contact with your legislators. If you have a brand new senator or representative, or if your incumbent was re-elected, start by sending him or her a note of congratulations.

Make it your mission to inform your legislators about current library issues and how valuable your library is to your institution or community. Make sure that the information you provide about your library also intersects with your legislators' main interests. For instance, in 2010, WLA developed the "Common Agenda" approach to library issues, focusing on the role libraries play in jobs and economic development, information access and technology, and education. Take a look at our materials for ideas on tailoring your message.

Contact information for legislators is provided for your convenience, as newly elected individuals are still in transition from campaign headquarters to their legislative offices.

Library Legislative Day is February 22, 2011

Invite a friend, don't be late, prepare for the most important advocacy event of 2011: Library Legislative Day, Tuesday, February 22, at the Concourse Hotel in Madison. Because the new governor of Wisconsin will be introducing a budget (and facing a nearly $3 billion deficit), because local budgets are stretched tighter than ever, your voice is more essential than ever at Library Legislative Day.

Co-sponsored by the Wisconsin Library Association and the Wisconsin Educational Media & Technology Association, Library Legislative Day is our chance to make the case for state support of libraries - whether it's public library systems, the UW System's Digital Research Commons, BadgerLink, the Common School Fund, or other library-related budget items.

Registration will open in December, but make plans to attend now.