Good news from Albany

The Governor and Legislature have come to an agreement on the FY2016-17 New York State budget and there is some good news for libraries!

​State Library Aid will see a $4M increase for a total of $95.6M.  This represents a 4.3% increase which is equivalent to the increase in education aid and is the most library aid included in any state budget since FY2008-09.  This gets us closer to full funding for libraries ($102.7M) which we haven't seen since 2007.

State Construction Aid for libraries was increased by $5M for a total of $19M.  This represents  a 35% increase, a first in nearly a decade.  Specifically for NCLS, this increase amounts to a total of $548,000 (up from $406,000) available for our libraries for constructions projects.  This increase will enable more of our libraries to make much needed improvements to their buildings.

These increases in State support were not possible without the advocacy efforts from NYLA our member library people.  You're letters, phone calls and visits to our local Legislators have paid off.  Thank you for all of your hard work in speaking up for our libraries!

Listening to your community (and responding)

I "like" several of NCLS member libraries on Facebook.  It's great to see what they post and how their patrons respond.  A few days ago I was scrolling through my feed and came across a status update from a particular library.  The Croghan Free Library posted that, in response to the community's request, they were extending their hours an extra 6 hours each week to include morning hours (which the library is currently lacking).  The request came as a result of a community-wide patron survey that library conducted several weeks prior. 

CFL is currently open the state required minimum of 20 hrs a week (based on their service population), which is basically all their modest budget allows.  The 30% increase in open hours represents an added cost to the library.  The library board didn't make the decision without considering this, so they are enacting the extra hours on a trial basis.  If the change needs to be made permanent, the Board will make sure they have the resources to do so.

Ultimately this is a great example of a library making a change in order to stay relevant in their community.  They library saw the need to be open more hours and isn't letting an added expense prohibit them from serving their community better.  Their community asked, and the library answered. 

Kudos to the staff and board of the Croghan Free Library for listening (and responding) to your community.

State aid for libraries - take action NOW!

Governor Cuomo's FY2016-17 Executive Budget has funding for libraries remaining flat at $91.6M.  We're asking for a 4.3% increase from last year's funding, which is the same percentage increase that he has proposed in the Education budget ($992M).  This increase would get NYS libraries closer to the full funding required by ED Law ($102.6M) which was last received in 2007.

Fill out this form to let your voice be heard.  (It takes about 30 seconds to do)

Check out the the full run-down of the NYLA's legislative priorities on their website.  The New York Library Association does an excellent job in lobbying on behalf of our libraries and letting us know what going on in Albany.  They also provide handy advocacy tools.