도서관정치위원회 EveryLibrary 2

In the United States, 40% of public libraries serve communities of fewer than 10,000 people. Fully 60% of public libraries service areas have 50,000 or fewer patrons. These public libraries are governed by Boards of Trustees and Commissioners who are either elected or appointed. In situations where trustees are appointed, the library is often a department of the municipal authority (e.g. city, town, county). For libraries whose trustees are elected officials, these libraries are independent of any municipal authority and are autonomous taxing authorities. Both types of libraries – departmental and district – have ballot measures like bonds, levies, parcel taxes, and millages before the voters from time to time. These ballot measures are put before the voters during primaries, state or municipal off-cycle elections, on special elections, during Presidential or Congressional general election, or at town hall meetings. In both low turnout and high visibility elections, voter awareness about the library dramatically
affects the potential success of each measure.

Across the county in calendar 2013, EveryLibrary identified 69 local library elections where voters were asked for new or renewed funding, or new authority as a district library. Over $230 million was at stake in 2013 for libraries and the communities they serve. In the November 2012 election cycle, EveryLibrary identified over $268 million dollars in appropriations that were on local ballots. No other national organization exists to support the local ballot committees or PACs running these critically important Vote Yes campaign. EveryLibrary is specifically able to act in support of those committees as they campaign for initiatives, measures, and propositions before
the public. By way of an example: a typical public library serving a community of 10,000 people is fielding a $15 million bond measure to build a new library in November 2014. If we look at the “national average” numbers for a Congressional election cycle, there will likely be about 7,000 people of voting age in that jurisdiction. Voter registration can run as high as 60% for biennial elections; however, turnout could be as low as 42% in this particular election. If the bond measure loses by 4 percent, a not unheard of margin, it will have lost by 141 votes. If the measure was on an off-cycle ballot where turnout is in the 22 percent range, it loses by just 74 votes. With 40% of libraries serving towns of under 10,000 people, voter turnout and a pro-library message are critical and relevant. EveryLibrary exists to help local communities motivate and turn out voters to secure funding for libraries.

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The citizen ballot committee is a cornerstone of our democracy. For library measures
and initiatives, a ballot committee works concurrent to the library’s own Information-Only campaign, but independently and without coordination. Each ballot committee must secure its own funding to conduct voter education and GOTV work. Each ballot committee is as talented and experienced in planning and running effective campaigns as its members are. If they identify a need for training they must locate their own source. Campaign-skills like messaging, voter data segmentation, canvassing and phone banking, and opposition research may or may not be available to them. The effectiveness of local ballot committees and PACs varies widely across the country and region-by-region.

As we noted earlier, in the last two years over a half a billion dollars was at stake for libraries at these local elections. EveryLibrary provides seed or sustaining monies to these Vote YES committees to hire additional talent, produce campaign materials, and conduct effective campaigns. We also provide campaign consultancy and training to their volunteers either directly or through our growing network of experienced political consultants. EveryLibrary is in a unique position to offer library staff and trustees training focused on planning and conducting Information-Only campaigns as well. This library campaign-specific capacity building does not otherwise exist without EveryLibrary.

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EveryLibrary was founded to address a gap in existing public outreach and advocacy for libraries. Currently, several organizations including the American Library ssociation, the Urban Libraries Council, OCLC, and the Gates Foundation spend considerable resources on federal legislative and regulatory advocacy as well as on outreach to the public about the importance of libraries. They perform this outreach under a 501c3 charitable organization designation. As 501c3s, they are regulated in their xpenditures  from exceeding specific caps on legislative advocacy as well as caps on direct electioneering. At a state level, the existing infrastructure of library associations are likewise organized as 501c3 groups. The few that are organized under the 501c6 rubric are not governed in a way that allows for political speech, however. At a local level, library Friends Groups and Foundations are also organized as 501c3 charities. Their intent is not generally to provide funding for campaigns but to fund programs, services and collections. Neither the public libraries themselves nor state library agencies can engage in direct voter action. As public entities, neither can conduct a Vote Yes campaign using public money nor allow employees to campaign on public time. 

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출처 http://everylibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/EveryLibrary_2013_Annual_Report.pdf