ALAWON: American Library Association Washington Office Newsline Volume 8, Number 34 April 12, 1999 In this issue: [1] Budget Resolution on Congress's Agenda [2] Henderson Retires as ALA Washington Office Director [3] ALA E-rate Task Force Members Appointed [1] Budget Resolution on Congress's Agenda Before the spring recess began March 27, both the House and Senate passed a Budget Resolution. This resolution dictates the overall guidelines for spending for the next fiscal year (FY2000) and is approved by House and Senate but does not require the President's signature. Last year (FY99) a budget resolution was not achieved. This year's House and Senate Budget Resolutions differ in how funding would be allocated, but are equally bound by overall budget caps -- agreed to as part of the Budget Enforcement Act of 1997. The overall cap for discretionary spending is $536.3 billion. The House proposal would allocate $22 billion for K-12 and vocational education, while the Senate calls for $24.1 billion. The President's budget request for the entire Education budget was $34.7 billion, a $1.2 billion increase over FY99. The Committee for Education Funding, the coalition of more than 90 organizations of which ALA is a member, held a press conference on April 9 to oppose the House Budget Resolution and express concern that although the Senate Budget Resolution would boost some education programs, because of the overall caps the resolution could mean deep cuts and freezes in other education and child related programs. If the Administration and Congress intend to increase defense spending, any increases would produce cuts in discretionary programs unless the caps are adjusted. CEF is asking for at least a 15 percent increase in education funding. When Congress returns this week, a conference committee will meet on the Budget Resolution. Once the resolution passes both the House and the Senate, the allocations will be divided among appropriations subcommittees which will begin work on the 13 appropriations bills. In an April 6 Washington Post article, "The Straitjacket of Strict Spending Limits," (by Guy Gugliotta and George Hager, p. A04, available at http://www.washingtonpost.com) various appropriators express dismay about the funding straitjacket that will be imposed because of the spending caps. Library supporters will need to strongly press the case for adequate funding for library programs as the tight budget situation continues. The House Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee has been conducting hearings on FY2000 appropriations. ALA Washington Office Executive Director Carol Henderson is scheduled to testify before the Subcommittee on April 15. [2] Henderson Retires as ALA Washington Office Director Note: The following is an April 9 ALA Public Information Office news release. For more information contact Joyce Kelly, press officer or Linda Wallace, director at e-mail: pio@ala.org or 312-280-5043 or 5042. Carol Henderson, executive director of the American Library Association's (ALA) Washington Office and an associate executive director of ALA, will retire on August 13 after nearly 24 years of service. Henderson became ALA's Washington Office executive director in 1994. Until then, she was the ALA Washington Office deputy director for 15 years. "Carol Henderson has been a driving force in ALA's successes in the legislative arena," said ALA Executive Director William Gordon. "She is a dedicated professional who thoroughly understands Washington, D.C., and is able to maintain the strength of our non-partisan stance on issues from e-rate, to copyright to all aspects of funding for libraries. "Carol is firm, thoughtful and thorough. She represents ALA and libraries with style and class. Librarians across the nation have applauded her efforts. As she leaves ALA, Carol Henderson leaves a notable legacy." Henderson said she felt fortunate to be able to guide ALA's expansion of its Washington office under the ALA Goal 2000 5-Year Plan, including a move to a larger and technologically upgraded facility, a doubling of staff and the establishment of an Office for Information Technology Policy. Recent accomplishments, of which she is proudest, include enactment of the Library Services and Technology Act in 1996, an increase in funding for library programs, enactment of telecommunications discounts for libraries and schools as part of universal service in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, revisions to cyberspace copyright legislation to help balance the interests of proprietors and users of copyrighted works, an increased presence on information and technology policy issues and increased advocacy activities. "These accomplishments owe much to a dedicated and talented staff and to the help of wonderful library advocates throughout the country, as well as to the many Congressional champions of libraries," said Henderson. Henderson has chaired the Federal Networking Council Advisory Committee, which was charged with providing technical and strategic advice for the development of the advanced networking for research and education. A native of Columbus, Ohio, she holds a bachelor's degree from Ohio State University and a master's degree in library science from the Catholic University of America, in Washington, D.C. She was awarded a fellowship under the Higher Education Act title II-B for graduate work in library science. The Catholic University of America honored her in 1998 with an alumni award for outstanding achievement. [3] ALA E-rate Task Force Members Appointed ALA President Ann Symons has appointed the following individuals to the ALA E-rate Task Force: - Nancy Bolt, deputy state librarian, Colorado State Library (Chair) - Jose Aponte, library director, Oceanside Public Library, CA - James B. Casey, director, Oak Lawn Public Library, IL - Pamela B. Chesky, supervisor, Media Center Strategic Planning, Woodbridge Township School District, NJ - Charles Ray Ewick, director, Indiana State Library - Mark W. Flynn, library consultant, State Library of Florida - Richard R. Greenfield, technology coordinator, Alaska State Library - Wayne M. Hay, application technology specialist, Westchester Library System, NY - J. Gary Nichols, state librarian, Maine State Library - John Noran, grants and contracts manager, Colorado State Library - Charles Estes Parker, consultant, State Library of Florida - Barbara G. Smith, chief library tech operations, Montgomery County Public Libraries, MD and - John A Wening, program director, University of Missouri In February 1999 ALA Council passed a Resolution reaffirming support of the universal service and the E-rate discounts for libraries and schools and establishing an ALA presidentially- appointed task force to work with the Schools and Libraries Division of the Universal Service Administrative Company (CD 20.1). The task force will be staffed by the Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP) and will work closely with the Committee on Legislation and the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA). For additional information about the charge of the task force and its activities visit OITP's Web site at www.ala.org/oitp/taskforce.html. ****** ALAWON (ISSN 1069-7799) is a free, irregular publication of the American Library Association Washington Office. All materials subject to copyright by the American Library Association may be reprinted or redistributed for noncommercial purposes with appropriate credits. To subscribe to ALAWON, send the message: subscribe ala-wo [your_firstname] [your_lastname] to listproc@ala.org or go to http://www.ala.org/washoff/alawon. To unsubscribe to ALAWON, send the message: unsubscribe ala-wo to listproc@ala.org or go to http://www.ala.org/washoff/alawon. ALAWON archives at http://www.ala.org/washoff/alawon. ALA Washington Office, 1301 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Suite 403, Washington, D.C. 20004-1701; phone: 202.628.8410 or 800.941.8478 toll-free; fax: 202.628.8419; e-mail: alawash@alawash.org; Web site: http://www.ala.org/washoff. Editor: Lynne E. Bradley; Managing Editor: Deirdre Herman; Contributors: Phyllis Albritton, Mary Costabile, Carol Henderson, Peter Kaplan, Claudette Tennant and Rick Weingarten.