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August 21, 2008
GOVERNOR HOLDS PRESS CONFERENCE ON BUDGET STALEMATE AND ISSUES COMPROMISE PLAN:
"Pain will Become Even Worse If We Delay"
Yesterday afternoon Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger held a quickly called press conference to express his frustration with the Budget stalemate and his perception of the lack of progress during the so-called "Big 5" negotiations. The "Big 5" consists of the Governor, Senate President pro Tem Don Perata, Senate Republican Leader Dave Cogdill, Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, and Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines. Opening the press conference, the Governor quipped, "I hope you all had lunch, because I didn't." The Governor noted that the prolonged Budget stalemate has "caused difficulty in the State and the pain will become even worse if we delay." He added, "It is time for everyone to compromise. The Republicans must step out of their ideological corner and the Democrats must step out of their ideological corner."
The Governor, stated that "California's Budget problem has reached crisis proportions" and then went on to roll out the terms of the compromise proposal entitled "August 2008-2009 Update Proposed Compromise." Key provisions of the compromise include:
1. An Additional $2 billion in cuts beyond the $9.3 billion in reductions adopted by the Budget Conference Committee.
2. An increase in the sales tax of one-cent for three years, after which time the current sales tax would be reduced by 1/4 cent. A requirement that 3% of General Fund revenues would be transferred into the "Budget Stabilization Account" (BSA) until this so-called "rainy day fund" reaches 12.5%. Transfers from the BSA to the General Fund would only be allowed when revenues are insufficient to cover baseline spending increases.
3. Provisions to allow future Governors to make mid-year State Budget cuts.
A proposal to place a ballot measure before the voters to "securitize" the Lottery, which is estimated to provide $5 billion in 2009-10 to pay down General Fund debts or to augment the State's "rainy day fund."
During his press conference the Governor emphasized that his plan did not borrow money from local government and transportation, that it was not a "get out of town Budget," and that it "puts the state on its way to fiscal sanity." When a reporter asked: "You don't like borrowing, but would you do it?" The Governor responded: "We have already borrowed and next year we will have the same (Budget) problem and would have to raise taxes." The reporter pursued: "Is that a 'no I won't do it'?" After a pause, the Governor responded, "I don't like it, no I won't do it."
Subsequent to the release of the Governor's plan, Senate Republican Leader Dave Cogdill, and Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines, expressed their opposition to the proposed sales tax increase. As of today, there is little agreement on a Budget compromise and several Democrats have told us the have cancelled their plans to attend next week's Democratic National Convention. Stay tuned.
Submitted by Mike and Christina Dillon, CLA Lobbyists
Posted by claadmin at 1:55 PM
August 19, 2008
Sallie Riley
Sallie Riley, Senior Librarian at the John Muir Branch of Los Angeles Public Library, died on August 14 due to complications following knee surgery.
Sallie had been an active member of CLA since she joined in 2002. This past year, she chaired the Scholarship Committee, which is responsible for selecting the recipients of the CLA Scholarship For Minority Students in Memory of Edna Yelland. She planned to follow that up by serving on the Reference Service Press Fellowship Committee next year.
Please check back for information on her memorial services.
Posted by claadmin at 2:58 PM
August 15, 2008
CARNEGIE CORPORATION OF NEW YORK/NEW YORK TIMES - I LOVE MY LIBRARIAN AWARD ANNOUNCED
Nominations for public librarians open August 15
Carnegie Corporation of New York has awarded the American Library Association $489,000 to support the new Carnegie Corporation of New York/New York Times I Love My Librarian Award.
Administered by the ALA's Public Information Office and Campaign for America's Libraries, the award will launch this year and will continue annually through 2013. The award encourages library users to recognize the accomplishments of librarians in public, school, college, community college and university libraries for their efforts to improve the lives of people in their community.
Nominations for public librarians run from August 15 through October 1. Nominations for school and academic librarians begin September 2 and continue through October 15.
"In our democratic society, the library stands for hope, for learning, for progress, for literacy, for self-improvement and for civic engagement. The library is a symbol of opportunity, citizenship, equality, freedom of speech and freedom of thought, and hence, is a symbol for democracy itself," said Vartan Gregorian, president of Carnegie Corporation of New York.
"We're thrilled to be working with the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the American Library Association to honor librarians who play such a vital role in our communities," said Scott Heekin-Canedy, president of The New York Times. "What began as a local Times initiative in New York City seven years ago has grown to a national awards program and now we are proud to be co-presenting the award with the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the ALA."
"This award will continue to raise awareness of the valuable contributions of today's librarians and the ways they make a difference in people's lives and their communities, schools and campuses," said ALA President Jim Rettig.
Up to 10 librarians in public, school and academic libraries will be selected each year and each will be honored at a ceremony and reception in New York at TheTimesCenter, hosted by The New York Times. Each winner also will receive a $5,000 cash award, a plaque and a $500 travel stipend to attend the awards reception. In addition, a plaque will be given to each award winner's library.
Nominees will be judged by a selection committee based on quality of service to library users, demonstrated knowledge of the library and its resources and commitment shown in helping library users.
Each nominee must be a librarian with a master's degree from a program accredited by the ALA in library and information studies or a master's degree with a specialty in school library media from an educational unit accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education. Nominees must be currently working in the United States in a public library, a library at an accredited two- or four-year college or university or at an accredited K-12 school.
For more information, visit www.ilovelibraries.org/ilovemylibrarian.
The Carnegie Corp. of New York was created by Andrew Carnegie in 1911 to promote "the advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding." For more than 95 years, the corporation has carried out Carnegie's vision of philanthropy by building on his two major concerns: international peace and advancing education and knowledge. As a private grant-making foundation, the corporation will invest more than $100 million this year in nonprofits to fulfill Carnegie's mission, "to do real and permanent good in this world." The corporation's capital fund, originally donated at a value of about $135 million, had a market value of $3 billion on Sept. 30, 2007.
The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), a leading media company with 2007 revenues of $3.2 billion, includes The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 16 other daily newspapers, WQXR-FM and more than 50 Web sites, including NYTimes.com, Boston.com and About.com. The Company’s core purpose is to enhance society by creating, collecting and distributing high-quality news, information and entertainment.
The American Library Association is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 65,000 members. Its mission is to promote the highest quality library and information services and public access to information.
Posted by claadmin at 12:20 PM
August 1, 2008
It's Time to Register for CLA's Annual Conference!
CLA has just launched the Extra Early Bird Registration for our Annual Conference online!
Our 110th Annual Conference will be held in San Jose, from November 14-17. As the premiere continuing education event of the year, the conference will offer dozens of workshops. Notable speakers at this year's conference include authors Michael Chabon, Ayelet Waldman and Jeannette Walls. To add to your fun, we are offering several interesting tours throughout the region. You will also have among nine pre-conference institutes to choose from! Descriptions and costs of this year's special events and institutes are in the Preliminary Program on CLA's conference page.
To receive the CLA member discount, you must be a current member of CLA. To join or renew online, visit http://www.regonline.com/CLA_Membership. To join by mail, please use the form on our website at http://cla-net.org/included/docs/membership_invitation.pdf.
If you have any questions regarding membership or the conference, please contact the CLA office at info@cla-net.org or 916-447-8541.
REGISTER TODAY! Extra Early Bird Online Registration ends August 31. Beginning September 1, you will be able to register at the Advance rate by mail or online. To see the registration rates, visit the CLA conference webpage.
P.S. Hotel registration has also begun. Call 800-831-4004 between 6:00 am and 11:00 pm to make your registration. Or, if you prefer, make your hotel reservation online. Availability is limited, so don't delay!
Posted by claadmin at 10:23 AM
July 29, 2008
2009 ALA Election: NOMINATING COMMITTEE SEEKS CANDIDATES
The ALA 2009 Nominating Committee is soliciting nominees to run on the 2009 spring ballot for the offices of ALA President-elect and Councilor-at-large.
The Nominating Committee will select two candidates to run for President-elect and no fewer than 50 candidates for the 33 at-large Council seats to be filled in the 2009 spring election.
The President-elect will serve a three-year term: as President-elect in 2009-2010, as President in 2010-2011, and as Immediate Past President in 2011-2012.
The Councilors-at-large will serve three-year terms, beginning after the 2009 ALA Annual Conference and ending at the adjournment of the 2012 Annual Conference.
The ALA President and Councilors also serve in corresponding roles in the ALA-Allied Professional Association [ALA-APA]. Individuals considering ALA-APA office are encouraged to consult with their employer regarding any restrictions regarding lobbying activities or service on the governing body of a 501(c)6 organization.
Members who wish to make nominations should submit the following information: nominee name; present position; institution; address; telephone; fax; and e-mail address. Self-nominations are encouraged. All potential nominees must complete the Potential Candidate Biographical Form available at https://cs.ala.org/potentialcandidates/. The database will be available June 2, 2008. Nominations and forms must be received no later than September 1, 2008.
Nominations may be sent to any member of the 2009 Nominating Committee. Committee members are: Susan S. DiMattia, Chair, Consultant, DiMattia Associates, Stamford, CT, sdimattia@optonline.net; Rose T. Dawson, Acting Director, Alexandria (VA) Library, rdawson@alexandria.lib.va.us; Timothy P. Grimes, Manager, Community Relations and Marketing, Ann Arbor (MI) District Library, grimest@aadl.org; Susan Hildreth, State Librarian, California State Library, Sacramento, shhildreth@comcast.net; Corinne M. Hill, Collection Development Manager, Denton (TX) Public Library; cmhill@cityofdenton.com; Pamela Spencer Holley. Writer, Consultant, Hallwood, VA; pamsholley@aol.com; Jo Ellen Priest Misakian, Interim Dean/School of Education, Fresno Pacific University, Fresno, CA; jmisakian@fresno.edu; Daniel O. O'Connor, Professor, Rutgers University School of Communication Information & Library Studies, New Brunswick, NJ; oconnor@scils.rutgers.edu; and Thomas C. Wilson, Associate Dean, Library Technology, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, tcwilson@ua.edu.
To encourage diversity and leadership development, the Committee will refrain from nominating any current Councilors for election to another term. However, the Committee encourages all current Councilors who wish to continue their service to the Association to file as petition candidates. Petitions will be available from Lois Ann Gregory-Wood, Council Secretariat, ALA, 50 E. Huron, Chicago, IL 60611, Email: lgregory@ala.org, or during the 2008 Annual Conference or 2009 Midwinter Meeting. Petitions require 25 signatures for names to be included on the 2009 ballot.
Posted by claadmin at 7:30 AM