ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


97

T he L ib rarian  as L ob b yist
Eleonor E. Pasmik 
Associate Librarian 

N Y U  Medical Center Library

O ne of th e goals of th e M edical L ibrary Associ­
a tio n ’s L e g isla tio n  C o m m itte e  is to e n c o u ra g e  
m em bers to becom e m ore involved in th e politi­
cal process and to experience th e  satisfaction it 
can bring w hen results are achieved. As librarians 
it is in our b est in te re st to b e w ell-inform ed on 
proposed and p en d in g  legislation affecting lib rar­
ies. It is also our right and responsibility to make 
our views known to our elected  rep resen tativ es.

Legislators are sensitive to th e views of th eir 
constituents and although one le tte r or one visit 
may not accom plish our goal, it does have an im ­
pact. T h e am o u n t o f mail receiv ed  on an issue 
often helps d e te rm in e  th e way a rep resen tativ e 
votes on a piece of legislation. R em em b er th at a 
great m any bills are in tro d u ced  each year and it 
is im p o ssib le  for a le g isla to r to h av e in -d e p th  
know ledge of each bill.

Some of th e inform ation which follows pertains 
to U.S. federal legislation and legislators b u t the 
general principles apply on th e state, provincial, 
or local level in th e U .S ., Canada, and o th er na­
tions. M uch of th e m aterial is d eriv ed  from th e 
pam phlets listed  below.

T h e  L e g i s l a t i v e  P r o c e s s — W h e n  t o  W r i t e

I t is im p o rta n t to u n d e rs ta n d  th e  leg islativ e 
process in o rd e r to know w hen it will be m ost 
effective to contact legislators.

A b ill m ay b e  w r itte n  by an in d iv id u a l, an 
agency or a com m ittee or subcom m ittee o f one of 
th e houses of Congress. Each bill is assigned to a 
com m ittee which studies it and decides w hat ac­
tion should b e taken. M em bers of th e com m ittee 
sh o u ld  b e  c o n ta c te d  w h e n  th e  bill is a b o u t to 
com e before th e com m ittee.

By calling th e Bill Status Office in W ashington, 
D .C ., at (202) 225-1772 and referring to it by bill 
n u m b er, it is possible to find out th e d ate a bill 
was introduced, th e nam es of its sponsors or co­
sponsors, th e  d ate of com m ittee hearings and th e 
c u rre n t status of th e  bill in th e  legislative p ro ­
cess. T he inform ation is c u rre n t to th e  previous 
tw enty-four hours. A nother way to d e term in e th e  
status of a bill is to call a m em b er of th e com m it­
tee or subcom m ittee which is handling th e bill.

After th e bill comes out of com m ittee, it is p r e ­
sen ted  to th e full H ouse or Senate. W hen th e  bill 
is about to come before th e H ouse or Senate the 
r e p r e s e n t a t i v e  s h o u ld  b e  c o n ta c te d  if it is a 
H ouse bill or both senators if it is a Senate bill.

Legislation req u irin g  federal funding m ust go 
through two processes: authorization and funding.

If Congress does no t ap propriate sufficient funds, 
or if executive agencies cut back on funds, a p ro ­
gram  can b e  seriously c u rta ile d . F o r exam ple, 
$16.5 million was authorized for th e M edical L i­
brary Assistance Act for th e  fiscal year 1980, b u t 
only $10,625 million was a p p ro p riated  in actual 
funding. T herefore, after a bill has b e e n  passed, 
it is im portant to state your views about th e n e e d  
for a d e q u a t e  f u n d in g  to  C o n g re s s  o r to  th e  
agency w riting th e  regulations to im p lem en t th e 
law.

It is im p o rtan t to lobby for appropriations b e ­
fore April 15 w hen th e B udget C om m ittees of th e 
H o u s e  a n d  S e n a te  r e p o r t  to  t h e i r  r e s p e c tiv e  
bodies th e first resolution settin g  totals for gov­
e rn m e n t spending, rev en u es, deficit and level of 
public d e b t for th e next fiscal year.

By May 15, th e  B u d g e t C o m m itte e s rev iew  
various pieces of authorization legislation and by 
S ep tem b er 15, th e second co n cu rren t resolution 
establishes spending ceilings and a rev en u e floor. 
K eep th ese dates in m ind to lobby for ap p ro p ria­
tions.

To O b t a i n  a  C o p y  o f  a  B i l l

A free single copy of a bill may b e  o b tained 
from th e Senate or H ouse D o cu m en t Room. Give 
th e bill nam e and n u m b er, if possible, and e n ­
close a self-addressed label with your req u est.

F o r a Senate bill, w rite to: Senate D ocum ent 
Room, U.S. Senate, W ashington, D C 20510.

F o r a H ouse bill, w rite to: H ouse D ocum ent 
Room , H o u se of R e p re s e n ta tiv e s , W ash in g to n , 
D C  20515.

M e e t i n g  w i t h  L e g i s l a t o r s

M ost legislators m ake fre q u e n t visits to th e ir 
hom e districts. A personal visit with your m em ­
b e r of Congress, e ith e r at th e district office or in 
W a s h in g to n , c an  e s ta b lis h  p le a s a n t r a p p o r t. 
L earn as m uch as you can about your legislators. 
W atch local new spapers for rep o rts of th e voting 
re c o rd s o f c o n g re ssm e n , re a d  th e  n e w s le tte rs  
legislators send o u t and take note of th eir com ­
m ittee assignm ents.

T he following are suggested do’s and don’ts to 
help in sure a successful m eeting:

•  Do make an ap p o in tm en t by le tte r or phone 
and be on tim e.

•  Do outline in your le tte r or phone call, the 
issues you wish to discuss at th e m eeting.

•  Do p re p a re  a concise, d ire c t p re s e n ta tio n  
which can be com plete in a fifteen-m inute m e e t­
ing.

•  Do be w ell-inform ed on all aspects of th e 
issues you plan to discuss.

•  Do b e  a good listen er and ask for th e legis­
lator’s p o in t of view.



98

•  Do have a w ritten  sta tem e n t of th e points 
you wish to make and leave it with th e legislator.

•  Do leave on good term s even if you have not 
a c h ie v e d  y o u r e n d s . You m ay jo in  fo rces on 
another issue at an o th er time.

•  D on’t b e disappointed if your legislator can­
not m eet with you. Ask to see a legislative assist­
ant who will be knowledgeable about th e legis­
lator’s point of view and will convey your m es­
sage to him.

•  D on’t be afraid to adm it that you don’t have 
some facts. Say that you will find the answers and 
rep o rt back and do so.

W r i t i n g  t o  Y o u r  C o n g r e s s m a n

W rite th e chairm an or m em bers of a com m it­
tee holding hearings on legislation if you have 
facts which you hope will influence them . H ow ­
e v e r , it is w ith  y o u r ow n r e p r e s e n t a t i v e  o r 
senators th at you as a constituent have m ore in ­
fluence. A personal le tte r in your own words is 
far b e tte r than a form letter.

Some fundam ental do’s and d on’ts to keep in 
m ind w hen w riting legislators are listed below:

•  Do address y our senator or rep re se n tativ e  
properly.

•  Do identify th e bill by n u m b er, subject, or 
popular title.

•  Do share your expert knowledge on libraries 
and information services with your congressm en.

•  Do include strong, factual, to th e point ar­
gum ents.

•  Do be brief. Lim it your le tte r to one or two
pages.

•  Do give your full nam e and address.
•  D o w rite  w h e n  you a p p ro v e , n o t ju s t to 

complain or oppose.
•  D on’t make threats or prom ises.
•  D on’t be vague.
The nam es of represen tatives and senators can 

be obtained from th e local library, Board of E lec­
tions, or the League of W om en Voters which has 
branches in every large city in th e U n ited  States.

Suggested forms of salutation for letters to con­
gressm en are:

Senator:
The H onorable D aniel Patrick M oynihan 

Senate Office Building 
W ashington, DC 20510 

(D ear Senator Moynihan:)

R epresentative:
The H onorable G eraldine A. F erraro  

H ouse Office Building 
W ashington, D C  20515 

(D ear Mrs. Ferraro:)

S u g g e s t e d  R e a d i n g

The Citizen Lobbyist: A guide to Action in the 
State Capitol (1976). League of W om en Voters of 
New York State, 817 Broadway, New York, NY 
10003, $1.35. The Citizen Lobbyist, while sp e­
cifically on th e New York State legislative p ro ­
cess, includes m aterial which has general application

Left to right: Millicent Abell, Brooke Sheldon, David Weber, Julie Virgo‚ 
at Academic Libraries Frontier Conference.



99

 such as th e  use of m em os and interview s, 
public relations, public hearings and how to plan 
and carry out a successful action campaign.

Guidelines f o r  Meeting with Legislators, Pub. 
No. 21-1640; G u id e lin e s  f o r  W r itin g  to Y o u r  
Congressman, Pub. No. 21-1641; Guidelines f o r  
Presenting T estim ony on Legislation, Pub. No. 
21-1642 (1976). National League for N ursing, Ten 
C o lu m b u s C irc le , N ew  York, NY 10019, $.25 
each, plus handling. This series of th re e  G ov­
e rn m e n t Relations P am p h lets p u b lish e d  by th e 
N ational L eague for N ursing p ro v id e excellent 
checklists of do’s and d on’ts with some elabora­
tion on each point.

The Library Lobbyist (1977). New York Library 
Association, 15 Park Row, Suite 434, New York, 
NY 10018, $.75. This booklet is designed to be a 
practical guide for librarians, tru stees and patrons 
working with th e New York State Legislature and

o th er levels of governm ent.
Tell I t to Washington: A Guide f o r  Citizen A c ­

tion Including Congressional Directory 1981-82, 
Pub. No. 349 (March 1981). League of W om en 
V o te rs o f th e  U n ite d  S ta te s , 1730 M S tr e e t, 
N .W ., W ashington, D C 20036. $1.00. Tell I t to 
Washington includes a congressional directory, a 
list of congressional com m ittees and th eir m em ­
bers, inform ation on th e legislative and b u d g e t 
processes and tips on w riting to and visiting legis­
lators.

Contact th e League of W om en Voters for th eir 
list of publications on local and national govern­
m ent.

E d ito r ’s Note: This article was originally p u b ­
lished in the November-D ecember 1981 issue o f  
the M LA News. ■ ■

Academic Libraries Frontier Conference
FROM  T H E  EX ECU TIV E DIRECTO R:

In D ecem ber, forty-nine people with major re ­
sp o n s ib ilitie s  in m a n a g e m e n t o f a ca d e m ic  r e ­
search libraries, and th e ir counterparts in library 
education, participated in th e Academic Libraries 
F ro n tie r C onference f o r  1981. F u n d e d  by th e  
C ouncil on L ib rary  R esources and p la n n e d  by 
R ob ert H ayes, dean  of th e  G rad u ate School of
L ibrary and Inform ation Science at UCLA, th e 
group m et with th e objective of identifying issues 
of m utual concern. The agenda included:

•  W hat are th e issues of im portance?
•  If th ey  re p re se n t problem s, are th e re  evi­

d en t m eans for solution of them ?
•  W hat research may be n eed e d  to provide the 

data n e ed e d  for fu tu re decisions concerning the 
issues?

•  W h a t a re  th e  r e q u ire m e n ts  for e d u c a tio n  
th at will provide upcom ing generations with the 
know ledge an d  skills n e e d e d  to deal w ith th e
issues?

Six com m issioned papers w ere p rese n te d  d u r­
ing th e m orning sessions, as a backdrop for th e 
small working groups and informal evening ses­
sions. W illiam G erberding, p resid en t of th e U ni­
versity of W ashington, spoke on th e experience of
retren ch m en t. H e cautioned th e group: “If you 
are going to get through th e next period you are 
going to have to do it alone because p resid ents
d on’t have a fu tu re view th at will be h elp fu l.”

Jerald Stevens, th e v ice-president for finance at
Yale, sp ecu lated  on th e  econom ic e n v iro n m e n t
over th e  next tw enty years. H e p red icts th at a
lower rate of growth will make th e  U.S. econom y
unable to absorb th e social program s of th e past
and that education will be unable to m aintain its

share of the economy. H e anticipates that stu d e n t 
d em an d  will govern tren d s in h ig h er education 
with a shift to vocational education. T h ere will be 
a red u ctio n  in scholarly o u tp u t, an im pulse to 
centralize educational systems and libraries, and 
libraries may becom e an entry p o in t for contrac­

 tu al services in ed u catio n al in stitu tio n s. O th e r 
papers by W illiam Schaefer, H ow ard Resnikoff, 
and John Brademas dealt with th e stu d e n t p o p u ­
lation, inform ation technologies, and th e political 
environm ent, respectively.

The concluding p ap er by Steven M uller, p resi­
d e n t of Johns H opkins U n iv ersity , p ro v id e d  a 
provocative view of th e library’s future, w herein 
th e university will have at its h e art a com m unica­
tions cen ter. The question posed was w here will 
th at com m unications c en ter be? Can th e library 
expand to be th e information cen te r of th e u n i­
v e rs ity ?  T h e  u n iv e r s ity  w ill n e e d  to h a v e  a 
com puting service th at does m ore than research 
and serve th e adm inistration. W h eth e r th e library 
o r th e  c o m p u te r  c e n t e r  w ill s e rv e  as th e  
com m unications/inform ation c e n te r will d ep en d  
on which one outperform s in service.

 T he ideas from th e work groups will b e synthe­
sized and included in th e proceedings of th e con­
ference. E d ited  by R obert Hayes, th e publication 

 will app ear this year. As Dick D ougherty said in 
sum m ing up th e  conference, “At this point we 

 don’t know how successful th e conference was— 
 w h eth er we approached th e frontiers or crossed 
 th e m .” C e rta in ly  it was a u n iq u e  g a th e rin g  of 
 lib rary  a d m in istra to rs and lib rary  e d u c a to rs .— 
 Julie Carroll Virgo. ■ ■