Fund Libraries Campaign Fund Libraries

Fund Libraries Campaign

ALA has launched our annual FY2022 #FundLibraries Campaign, and we encourage you to bookmark this page and browse the provided resources below that can be shared amongst your library community. We need your help starting now until the final budget is signed in order to ensure that libraries are fully funded in the next fiscal year. Because things are a bit different this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the recent passage of the American Rescue Plan Act, the Dear Appropriator letters began circulating in both the House and Senate a few weeks later than in previous years. (The House letters closed on April 23, 2021, and the Senate letters closed on July 9, 2021). For FY2022, we are asking congressional appropriators to include funding of at least $206 million for the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) and $50 million for the Innovative Approaches to Literacy (IAL) grant program.

On Friday, May 28, 2021, President Biden released his budget proposal. Click here to view the FY2017-FY2022 comparison chart for federal funding levels for libraries. On Thursday, July 15, 2021, the House Appropriations committee approved an increase of $9 million for the LSTA, raising a total of $206.5 million in proposed funding for FY2022. The IAL saw a $3 million increase, making for a total of $31 million for the Department of Education program. This full spending package heads to the House floor in the coming weeks, and the Senate will begin taking up its funding bills later this summer. Stay tuned for more info to come!

Did your Senators sign on to support library funding for FY22?

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Check below to see if your Senators signed the LSTA and IAL letters.

Did your Representative sign on in support of library funding for FY22?

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Check below to see if your Representative signed the LSTA and IAL letters.

Want to do more?

Download a handy one-pager of your state's IMLS funding history and library facts.
Download our Appropriations pathway for advocates.
Invite members of Congress to visit your library. Check out these tips for organizing a virtual or in-person visit, and download this one-page introduction to Federal funding to share with them on the visit.
Tell your story. Write a letter to the editor or share your story with the ALA advocacy team; we will hand-deliver it to your member of Congress.
Spread the word about #FundLibraries and share the impact of IMLS funding in your library or state. You can use our sample posts, and remember to tag your story with #FundLibraries.
Not sure how IMLS funding is used in your state? Look it up in the IMLS database.
Download all of our Fund Libraries graphics here.
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