The American Library Association (ALA) Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP) will immediately begin work on a national public policy agenda and action plan for U.S. libraries with support from a new grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Nearly $1 million in funding over three years will enable the ALA to increase library visibility and build capacity for sustained action on the national level.
The telecommunications, information technology, and content industry interest groups in Washington, D.C., are large and influential in federal policymaking. Advancing library and information policy objectives in this crowded and competitive field has been the founding purpose and driving force behind OITP. In recent years, ALA OITP has led library efforts to sustain and expand federal E-rate support for libraries, coordinated successful engagement with publishing stakeholders to expand library e-book lending, advocated for fair use, coordinated national digital literacy efforts with federal agencies, and worked to maximise library participation in the Broadband Technology Opportunities Programme.
The three-year initiative includes three major components which includes establishing policy priorities; engaging decision makers and influencers to advance policy goals; and upgrading ALA policy advocacy practice and capabilities for long-term sustainability. An important activity under this capacity-building umbrella is training a cadre of library policy advocates to supplement ALA staff capacity.
Alan Fishel, a partner at the D.C.-based law firm Arent Fox, and others at the firm, will provide strategic advice and capacity, along with other policy and communications consultants.
ALA will coordinate closely on all of the major activities with the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA), which includes seeking federal-state policy linkages. An advisory committee will provide advice from the library community broadly. Close communication and collaboration will be a priority to ensure that the U.S. library community speaks with a unified voice as much as possible.
