Prepared statements, etc.-Continued Price, Paxton P., State librarian, Missouri State Library, letter to Page 164 Ribicoff, Hon. Abraham, Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, 160 Richardson, Ransom L., president, Michigan Library Association, 221 Riggs, Dean E., chairman, Legislative Committee, Kansas Association 163 222 Roosevelt, Hon. James, a Representative in Congress from the State of California, statement of___ Schwab, Bernard, cochairman, Library Legislation and Development Committee, Wisconsin Library Association, letter to Chairman Shipman, Richard, assistant director, legislative services, National Squire, James R., executive secretary, the National Council of "The Library Shortage Is Shocking," article by Mrs. Eleanor Roose- Trimble, Hon. James W., a Representative in Congress from the State Ullman, Hon. Al, a Representative in Congress from the State of Ebert, Eloise, State librarian, Oregon State Library, letter from.. Vainstein, Rose, public library specialist, Library Services Branch, U.S. Office of Education, "Science and Technology, Their Current 225 234 169 208 Williams, Majorie G., Steering Committee Sort Staff, Organization 64 Zander, Arnold S., international president, AFSCME, AFL-CIO, tele- 163 LIBRARY SERVICES ACT TUESDAY, JUNE 26, 1962 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, GENERAL SUBCOMMITTEE ON EDUCATION OF THE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND LABOR, Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met at 10:15 a.m., pursuant to call, in room 304, Old House Office Building, Hon. Cleveland M. Bailey (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives Bailey, Scott, and Frelinghuysen. Present also: Robert E. McCord, staff director. Mr. BAILEY. The subcommittee will be in order. We are convened this morning for the purpose of hearing testimony on H.R. 11823, the general purpose library legislation. The Chair would like to make a brief statement. In the 82d Congress I joined in cosponsoring the library services bill. The bill that a number of my colleagues and I introduced in 1951 had been developed by improving and perfecting a library demonstration bill that had been under consideration in each of the two preceding Congresses. The library services bill was not to be successful until the 84th Congress when the House passed a bill bearing the name of our distinguished colleague, the gentlewoman from Oregon, Mrs. Green. The Library Services Act authorizes grants to the States to develop library programs in rural areas and small towns. It has been highly successful. The Congress has extended its life. A noted writer, Hawthorne Daniel, calls it "the perfect administration of public funds.' Last session your chairman was personally hopeful of providing similar support for school libraries through the National Defense Education Act amendments and extension. We remember that we settled for a straight 2-year extension of NDEA, without amendment. In the other body, the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare reported a bill with a number of amendments. One created a new title providing for assistance for library services in public elementary and secondary schools, colleges, and universities, and establishing institutes for training librarians. This new title was approved as acceptable to the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. Earlier this year, reviewing testimony before the appropriations subcommittee I noted that Secretary Ribicoff and Commissioner McMurrin favored expansion of the Library Services Act to all areas, rather than small towns and rural areas. 1 I began drafting legislation and found that a number of my colleagues were also interested in the same idea. Accordingly I have introduced H.R. 11823, which is built upon the foundation of the successful Library Services Act. A number of my colleagues from both sides of the aisle have introduced identical bills. They are Mr. George P. Miller, Mr. Keogh, Mr. Mills, Mr. Tollefson, Mr. Roosevelt, Mr. Moulder, Mr. Multer, Mr. Trimble, Mr. Perkins, Mr. Scott, Mr. Merrow, Mr. Giaimo, Mrs. Griffiths, Mr. Fogarty, Mr. Gonzalez, Mr. Steed, Mr. Elliott, Mr. Clem Miller, Mr. Slack, Mr. Mathias, Mr. Johnson of Maryland, Mr. Rodino, and Mr. Macdonald. (Text of H.R. 11823 follows:) [H.R. 11823, 87th Cong., 2d sess.] A BILL To amend the Library Services Act in order to make areas lacking public libraries or with inadequate public libraries, public elementary and secondary school libraries, and certain college and university libraries, eligible for benefits under that Act, and for other purposes Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Library Services Act (20 U.S.C. 351-358) is amended to read as follows: "SHORT TITLE "SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the 'Library Services Act'. "DECLARATION OF POLICY "SEC. 2. The Congress hereby finds and declares that the growing need for information and education for all our people and the rapidly expanding body of knowledge make good libraries essential at all levels of education from elementary school through adult education in order to provide maximum opportunity for study and research and to produce well-informed citizens who are capable of exercising sound judgment and engaging in profitable employment. The present deficiencies of public libraries, school libraries, and college and university libraries are critical. Therefore, a coordinated program of library development is needed in order to bring about maximum availability and utilization of library resources and services. "DEFINITIONS "SEC. 3. For the purposes of this Act "(1) The term 'State' means a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, or the Canal Zone; except that, as used in section 202(a), such term does not include the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, or the Canal Zone. "(2) The term 'State library administrative agency' means the official State agency charged by State law with the extension and devolepment of public library services throughout the State, or, if there is no such agency in a State, the agency or officer designated by the Governor of such State or by State law for purposes of this paragraph. "(3) The term 'public library' means any library that serves free all residents of a community, district, or region, and receives its financial support in whole or in part from public funds. "(4) The term 'Secretary' means the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. "(5) The term 'Commissioner' means the (United States) Commissioner of Education. "(6) The term 'institution of higher education' means an educational institution in any State which (A) admits as regular students only persons having a certificate of graduation from a school providing secondary education, or the recognized equivalent of such a certificate, (B) is legally authorized within such State to provide a program of education beyond secondary education, (C) provides an educational program for which it awards a bachelor's degree or provides not less than a two-year program which is acceptable for full credit to ward such a degree, (D) is a public or other nonprofit institution, and (E) is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association or, if not so accredited, is an institution whose credits are accepted, on transfer, by not less than three institutions which are so accredited, for credit on the same basis as if transferred from an institution so accredited. "(7) The term 'State educational agency' means the State board of education or other agency or officer primarily responsible for the State supervision of public elementary and secondary schools, or, if there is no such officer or agency in a State, the officer or agency designated by the Governor of such State or by State law for purposes of this paragraph. "(8) The term 'school-age population' means that part of the population which is between the ages of five and seventeen, both inclusive, and such schoolage population for the several States shall be determined by the Commissioner on the basis of the population between such ages for the most recent year for which satisfactory data are available from the Department of Commerce. "(9) The term 'elementary school' means a school which provides elementary education, as determined under State law. "(10) The term 'secondary school' means a school which provides secondary education, as determined under State law. "(11) The term 'public', as applied to any school, library, or institution, includes a school, library, or institution of any agency of the United States, except that no such school, library, or institution shall be eligible to receive any grant or other payment under the provisions of this Act. "(12) The term 'nonprofit', as applied to a school, library, or institution, means a school, library, or institution owned and operated by one or more nonprofit corporations or associations no part of the net earnings of which inures, or may lawfully inure, to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual. "ADMINISTRATION "SEC. 4. (a) The Commissioner shall administer this Act under the supervision and direction of the Secretary, and shall, with the approval of the Secretary, prescribe such regulations as may be necessary for the administration of this Act. "(b) The Commissioner is also authorized to make such studies, investigations, and reports as may be necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes of this Act, including periodic reports for public distribution as to the values, methods, and results of various State demonstrations of public library services undertaken under title I of this Act. "(c) There are hereby authorized to be appropriated for expenses of administration such sums as may be necessary to carry out the functions of the Secretary and the Commissioner under this Act. "(d) Nothing contained in this Act shall be deemed to authorize any department, agency, officer, or employee of the United States to exercise any direction, supervision, or control over (1) any public library, school library, or the library of any institution of higher education, which is not a library administered by a department or agency of the United States; (2) the personnel of any such library; or (3) the selection of books and other materials for any such library. "TITLE I-PUBLIC LIBRARIES "AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS "SEC. 101. There is hereby authorized to be appropriated for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1963, and for each of the four succeeding fiscal years the sum of $20,000,000, which shall be used for making payments to States which have submitted and have had approved by the Commissioner State plans for the further extension of public library services to areas without such services, or with inadequate services. "ALLOTMENTS TO STATES "SEC. 102. From the sums appropriated pursuant to section 101 for each fiscal year, the Commissioner shall allot $20,000 to the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Canal Zone, and $80,000 to each of the other States, and shall allot to each State such part of the remainder of such sums as the population of the State bears to the population of the United States, according to the most recent decennial census. "STATE PLANS "SEC. 103. (a) To be approved under this section, a State plan for the further extension of public library services must "(1) provide for the administration, or supervision of the administration, of the plan by the State library administrative agency, and provide that such agency will have adequate authority under State law to administer the plan in accordance with its provisions and the provisions of this title; "(2) provide for the receipt by the State treasurer (or, if there be no State treasurer, the officer exercising similar functions for the State) of all funds paid to the State pursuant to this title and for the proper safeguarding of such funds by such officer, provide that such funds shall be expended solely for the purposes for which paid, and provide for the repayment by the State to the United States of any such funds lost or diverted from the purposes for which paid; "(3) provide policies and methods of administration to be followed in using any funds made available for expenditure under the State plan, which policies and methods the State library administrative agency certifies will in its judgment assure use of such funds to maximum advantage in the further extension of public library services to areas without such services or with inadequate services; "(4) provide that the State library administrative agency will make such reports as to categories of expenditures made under this title, as the Commissioner may from time to time reasonably require; and "(5) provide that any library services furnished under the plan shall be made available free of charge under regulations prescribed by the State library administrative agency. "(b) The Commissioner shall approve any plan which fulfills the conditions specified in subsection (a) of this section. "(c) The determination of whether library services are inadequate in any area within any State shall be made by the State library administrative agency of such State. "PAYMENTS TO STATES "SEC. 104. (a) From the allotments available therefor under section 102, the Secretary of the Treasury shall from time to time pay to each State which has a plan approved under section 103 an amount computed as provided in subsection (b) of this section, equal to the Federal share of the total sums expended by the State and its political subdivisions under such plan during the period for which such payment was made, except that no payments shall be made to any State from its allotment for any fiscal year unless and until the Commissioner finds that (1) there will be available for expenditure under the plan from State or local sources during the fiscal year for which the allotment is made (A) sums sufficient to enable the State to receive under this section payments in an amount not less than $20,000 in the case of the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Canal Zone, and $80,000 in the case of any other State, and (B) not less than the total amount actually expended, in the areas covered by the plan for such year, for public library services from such sources in the fiscal year ending June 30, 1962, and (2) there will be available for expenditure for public library services from State sources during the fiscal year for which the allotment is made not less than the total amount actually expended for public library services from such sources in the fiscal year ending June 30, 1962. "(b) The Commissioner shall from time to time, but not less often than semiannually, and prior to the period for which a payment is to be made, estimate the amount, within the balance of the allotments for each State, which may be necessary to pay the Federal share of the total expenditures for carrying out the approved State plan for such period. The Commissioner shall certify to the Secretary of the Treasury the amount so determined, reduced or increased as the case may be by the amount by which he finds that his estimate for any prior period was greater or less than the amount which should have been paid to the State for such period. The Secretary of the Treasury shall thereupon, prior to audit or settlement by the General Accounting Office, pay to the State, at the time or times fixed by the Commissioner, the amount so certified. "(c) The amount of any State's allotment for any fiscal year which the Commissioner determines will not be required for such fiscal year for carrying out the State plan approved under this title for which such allotment is available |