​There are now two (2) bills moving through the state legislature that will affect libraries if passed - House HSB678 and Senate SSB3168.  Things continue to unfold very quickly with state legislation.

House Study Bill 678 passed out of subcommittee on 2/8/24 with a 2:1 vote. A date has not been set for the full committee discussion of this bill, so there is still time to make your feelings known about it. Here is the contact information for the full Iowa House Local Government Committee.

Here’s a recap of what HSB 678 would change:

• Remove representation for rural library users by allowing cities to take over library boards
• Allow city councils to remove or revise library boards for any reason
• Allow city councils to change library policies, including policies related to collection development, programming, and access to resources. 
• Remove the dual layer of financial oversight currently provided by library boards and city councils
• Add additional work to already strained city managers and city councils without additional funding.

In current law, these things can happen already – they just require voters to approve it. The revised law removes your ability to participate in these decisions by allowing cities to make unilateral decisions about the governance of your library without your input.
 
Yesterday, a subcommittee of the Senate Local Government Committee introduced SSB 3168 that would change Iowa law to allow city councils to oversee and change the hiring practice for library directors. Currently that process is overseen and managed by Library Boards, who have intimate knowledge and expertise about what it takes to serve as a library director. This bill would also allow city councils to “utilize library tax moneys” without needing voter’s approval. The meeting to discuss this bill is Monday, February 12 at 10:30. 
 
If you would like to leave a public comment on SSB 3168, you can do so here. You can also contact the members of the subcommittee:

• Jesse Green
• Janice Weiner
• Mike Klimesh

Here is the contact information for the full Senate Local Government Committee.
  
Media coverage is emerging about Iowa legislation impacting libraries. Here are a couple examples published yesterday:

• Des Moines Register
• Iowa Starting Line
• Axios Des Moines​

​We’ll continue to keep you up-to-date on things as they progress at the state level.  Thank you to the Decorah Public Library for sharing and summarizing this information.
 
THANK YOU for being amazing library supporters!