In addition to a Blue Wave, last night’s midterm may have also brought a Book Wave. In local and state elections all over the country, there was good news for libraries. According to analysts at EveryLibrary, a political action committee dedicated to supporting—well, you-guessed-it—America’s third space soared on 41 different ballot measures.
Mostly, this amounts to bigger budgets. Which EveryLibrary is able to track because over 90% of library funding is set by either state houses or city councils. According to a report analysts released this morning, ballot measures like “referenda, millages, levies, and parcel taxes” make the biggest difference when it comes to keeping stacks in the stacks.
So how did the library’s bottom line do last night? Pretty good, all things considered! In a nifty rhyme with their state’s significant congressional gains, readers in Michigan, Ohio, and Austin can expect larger library operating budgets in 2028.
And in Austin’s case, a new facility. In a cheeky twist considering it also plays host to a certain golf club, Palm Beach County passed a $175 million bond to build a new library. Two ballot measures to defund or close libraries failed last night, when voters in Saline County, Arkansas and Bridgeton, New Jersey refused attempts to slash city budgets.
And given that the biggest threat to the stacks these days is probably state-based censorship, it’s very exciting to see that Texas unseated Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, who had previously pledged to remove thousands of books from schools across his state. The bi-cameral congressional flip should also have broader implications for national censorship legislation.
Like H.R. 7661, the book ban bill currently floundering on the house floor. The National Archives, the IMLS, and the Library of Congress should also be breathing a bit easier today, knowing their bleeding is no longer top of a congressional agenda. Of course, it’s not all bread and roses.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
