ALAWON v5n69 (September 30, 1996) URL = http://hegel.lib.ncsu.edu/stacks/serials/alawon/alawon-v5n69 ------------------- ALWN569.TXT follows -------------------- ================================================================= ALAWON Volume 5, Number 69 ISSN 1069-7799 September 30, 1996 American Library Association Washington Office Newsline In this issue: (159 lines) LSTA ADDED TO OMNIBUS APPROPRIATIONS BILL FINAL FUNDING BILL INCLUDES LIBRARY PROGRAM INCREASE RELATIONSHIP OF LSCA APPROPRIATIONS TO LSTA _________________________________________________________________ LSTA ADDED TO OMNIBUS APPROPRIATIONS BILL In final negotiations Friday night and early Saturday morning, September 27-28, congressional leaders added the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) to the conference report on H.R. 3610, the omnibus appropriations bill for fiscal year 1997. This is the version of LSTA earlier agreed to by House-Senate conferees on H.R. 1617, the "Careers" Act. It's the same version passed by voice vote by the House on September 24 in H.R. 1720 and on September 27 in S. 1972. On Saturday, September 28 the House agreed to the conference report on H.R. 3610, the mammoth bill funding several government agencies and containing many reauthorizations and other provisions, by a vote of 370-37. The Senate is expected to approve H.R. 3610 today, September 30; the President is expected to sign this measure promptly. During three days and nights of intense negotiations by a small group of congressional and White House leaders, the fate of LSTA was touch and go. It once seemed to be in the mix, then out, and finally in. In the end LSTA was apparently on a list of items approved by House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA). Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-MS) had also assured library constituents that he would do all he could to help. Other key players in the overall negotiations were the chairs of the Appropriations Committees--Sen. Mark Hatfield (R-OR) and Rep. Bob Livingston (R-LA). White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta led negotiations for the Administration. The leaders of the House Economic and Educational Opportunities Committee and of the Senate Education, Arts, and Humanities Subcommittee also deserve credit for their attempts to place LSTA in the omnibus measure or to find alternatives for final passage. The final version of H.R. 3610 is more than 2,000 pages long. We will report in more detail after Senate action and as we see the authoritative version actually enacted. Many thanks to all library advocates and especially to library constituents in key states and districts who responded on short notice to our calls for grassroots assistance. _________________________________________________________________ FINAL FUNDING BILL INCLUDES LIBRARY PROGRAM INCREASE The FY97 funding bill that would normally include education and library programs was rolled into the mammoth omnibus appropriations measure now awaiting final action by the Senate. Administration and congressional leaders agreed on figures for library programs that are higher than either the House-passed or the Senate committee approved levels. The Library Services and Construction Act (LSCA) title I would receive an increase of $8 million above current levels. It was understood that the House would agree to the higher library program levels approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee. However, late in the negotiations the Secretary of Education indicated that as part of the Administration's insistence on more funding for education, the library account should receive additional funds beyond what congressional negotiators had already agreed to provide. In a conversation with ALA President Mary Somerville, Secretary Richard Riley indicated that he had literacy and reading programs in mind for the new library funds, consistent with the President's recently announced literacy initiative aimed at improving the reading skills of children by third grade. However, the Secretary did not specify which library program or title Congress should add these funds. By adding $8 million to LSCA I for improvement of public library services, congressional negotiators placed an increase in a flexible program under which many library programs for children and for literacy efforts can be (and already are) funded. The levels approved for library programs in H.R. 3610, the omnibus appropriations bill, are as follows: PROGRAM FY 1996 ADMIN. FY97 HSE. FY97 SEN. FY97 (in thousands) APPROP. REQ.FY97 PASSED COMMITTEE HR 3610 LSCA I $ 92,636 --- $ 92,636 $ 92,636 $100,636 LSCA II 16,369 --- 0 16,369 16,369 LSCA III 18,000 --- 11,864 11,864 11,864 HEA II-B ed/tr 2,500 --- 2,500 2,500 2,500 HEA II-B R&D 3,000 1,000 5,000 5,000 Undistributed $110,000 TOTAL $132,505 $110,000 $108,000 $128,369 $136,369 The levels in the last column were passed by the House on September 28 when it approved the conference report on H.R. 3610 by a vote of 370-37. The Senate is expected to pass the measure on September 30. Many other programs of interest to libraries are included in this measure. More information will be provided once we have analyzed this bill of more than 2,000 pages. _________________________________________________________________ RELATIONSHIP OF LSCA APPROPRIATIONS TO LSTA H.R. 3610 does two things regarding library programs. First, it appropriates funds for FY97 (beginning October 1, 1996) under the Library Services and Construction Act and the Higher Education Act(LSCA) title II as they exist in FY96. Second, it also renews and reorganizes those programs as the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), to be administered by an Institute of Museum and Library Services rather than the Department of Education. The LSTA language renews and preserves a changed form of LSCA and puts the new program on the law books for six years. LSTA takes effect in FY97. However, FY97 will clearly be a year of transition from LSCA and HEA II to LSTA. Several provisions in the LSTA language enable the Department of Education and the Office of Management and Budget to transfer funds to the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and to take other steps to effect a transition to the new arrangement. Further, the specific appropriations language in H.R. 3610 provides funds for the current LSCA titles, notwithstanding the language elsewhere in the bill establishing LSTA. The appropriations language also states: ...each State or local recipient of funds under titles I, II, III, and IV of the Library Services and Construction Act may use any such funds to plan for any library program or activity authorized under...[LSTA] and conduct any other activity reasonably necessary to provide for an orderly and effective transition to the operation of library programs or activities under...[LSTA]. _________________________________________________________________ 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 . ALAWON archives gopher.ala.org; select ALA Washington Office Newsline. Visit our Web site at . ALA Washington Office 202.628.8410 (V) 1301 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, #403 202.628.8419 (F) Washington, DC 20004-1701 Lynne E. Bradley, Editor Contributors: Carol C. HendersonMary C. 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