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With federal funding for libraries up in the air, the Alabama Senate added a provision to its education budget that would replace up to $3 million in lost federal funds.
President Donald Trump ordered the elimination of the Institute of Museum and Library Services, which provides about $3 million each year to the Alabama Public Library Service. Despite grant funding for this year being required by federal law, the dismantling of the agency has led to no grant money being made available.
APLS Chairman John Wahl, who also chairs ALGOP, announced Monday that he had worked with state lawmakers to secure funding to ensure plans already made with federal funding don’t fall by the wayside.
“This is a major win for Alabama families and our local libraries,” Wahl said. “We’ve not only taken steps to ensure that our libraries reflect the values of our communities—we’ve also made sure they’re financially secure. No matter what happens at the federal level, our libraries will continue to have the resources they need to serve the public.”
If the extra $3 million in funding is needed, it would be a stark turnaround from last year when the APLS budget was cut by $750,000. The Legislature has so far voted to level-fund the agency, except for the conditional $3 million.
An additional $3 million allocation from the state would represent a 20 percent increase overall, with the agency operating on a state budget of about $15 million.
The chaos at the federal level has shaken library directors who have already gotten matching funds from local governments to carry out projects with the money.
Rex Bain, director of the Lawrence County Public Library, said the library won a $40,000 grant this year to replace computers at the end of their service life and to subsidize its copying services.
In other years, Bain said the grants have been critical for putting books on the shelves.
“The grants are our single largest source for massive collection development,” Bain said.
The competitive grants can bring in $15,000 for the library to add books to its collection compared to its regular $2,000 budget for collection development.
Some libraries use the grant funds for special programs, while some rely on the federal money to offer services such as digital libraries.
The federal money also funds the state’s Library for the Deaf and Blind and its Homework Alabama program.
