ILA Legislative Reception & Advocacy Hotline IV

Hello--

Today's ILA Legislative Reception was very successful. The weather was gorgeous, the snacks and coffee were excellent, and the legislators were happy to see us. It's always fun to see old library friends and the legislators are very interesting people.

On the down side, we still lack a definitive answer on RIIF funds for direct state aid. It is therefore essential that we heed our lobbyists' admonition in their latest Advocacy Hotline: Keep up the pressure!

So, contact Governor Culver at his website, http://www.governor.iowa.gov/administration/contact/ and ask that state funding for libraries be restored. Then, contact your legislator via email (see http://www.legis.state.ia.us/aspx/Legislators/LegislatorInfo.aspx) and make the same request of him or her.

If you've already contacted the governor and/or your legislator, it wouldn't hurt to do so again. We're hearing reports that the governor's staff and most legislators are aware of our plight and quite sympathetic. However, this is a tough budget year, they're hearing from many other groups, and we must keep our story fresh in their minds.

Once again, thank-you for your hard work in support of libraries. We're making progress, but we still have six weeks before the end of the session, and you know the old saying, "it ain't over 'til it's over!"