Governor Signs Bond Bill
October 2004
On September 22nd Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Senate Bill 1161, the Library Construction and Renovation Bond Bill. The passage of the legislation places the largest library construction bond measure in state history on the ballot in June, 2006. The measure will require the standard 50% majority plus 1 for approval. The voters will decide upon 600 million dollars in expenditures for construction and renovation of the state's local libraries, which will make application through the State Library.
The bill, authored by Senator Deirdre Alpert of Coronado, passed the State Senate 28-9 and the Assembly 57-15. A previous bond measure provided $350 million in bond funding but has largely been expended; seventy-two applicant libraries are currently competing for a portion of the seventy-seven million dollars remaining on the earlier bond.
The Governor's signing of SB 1161 is a huge victory for the library community. Special thanks to Senator Alpert for her extraordinary efforts on this bill. We also want to thank Governor Schwarzenegger, who despite the State's current fiscal dilemma, recognized the important role libraries play in our communities. And finally, thanks are due to the CLA Legislative Committee, ably chaired by Anne Cain, Contra Costa County Library Director, and CLA lobbyists Mike and Christina Dillon who all worked so hard on this bill. Without their effort, and the wonderful support from the library community, this would not have been possible.