Special Recognition

• ALA Council adopted memorial resolutions for: Cynthia J. Johanson, Thomas J. Galvin, Joyce C. Parks, Charles E. Beard, June Kahler Berry, Mae Weine, and Elizabeth Morrissett.
• Tribute resolutions were adopted for: South Dakota Library Association’s 100th Anniversary, RUSA/RSS Library Service to an Aging Population Committee on its 40th Anniversary, David Cohen for Lifetime Achievement in Multiculturalism and Intellectual Freedom.

Budget

• Revenue for the Association is flat or below projections in several areas such as membership dues (despite a 2% increase in membership) and publications. ALA has reduced expenses with hiring freezes, unit expense reductions, and other budget reductions.
• ALA Council approved the FY2005 budgetary ceiling of $48,972,061. The ALA Treasurer responded to several questions related to the planned purchase of office space in Washington, D.C. near DuPont Circle which will be funded with $1 million from the ALA Endowment Fund and a $3.5 million mortgage. It is expected that this property will generate income in future years. Members of Council strongly objected to the elimination of the paper publication of the ALA Handbook of Organization from the FY2006 ALA budget.

ALA Allied Professional Association

• The ALA/APA has produced a 12-minute salary and pay equity advocacy video, “Working @ Your Library: For Love or Money,” which will soon be available for purchase.
• A new donation campaign called $5 for ’05 to generate increased revenue will be targeted to ALA members in annual membership renewal mailings.
• The cost of the online newsletter, Worklife, currently free to all ALA personal members, will increase to $35 for ALA members and $60 for non-ALA members.
• The ALA/APA Council approved an ALA/APA budgetary ceiling of $302,681 for FY05.

Advocacy

• ALA President-Elect Carol Brey-Casiano is promoting many grassroots library advocacy initiatives. A free, one-day ALA Advocacy Institute is planned for Friday, January 14, 2005 in Boston at the ALA Midwinter Meeting.
• ALA Council viewed a very good 10-minute video produced for the Campaign for America’s Libraries that will be made available soon for advocacy initiatives.

Equity of Access

• ALA President Carla Hayden has made “Equity of Access” the priority for her presidential year. The conference featured several excellent speakers, programs, and initiatives related to equity of access concerns. ALA members will find an Equity of Access pamphlet inserted in the June issue of American Libraries.

Rural School, Public and Tribal Libraries

• The concerns and challenges facing small, rural libraries were raised in many different discussions.
• ALA Council created a new Committee on Rural and Tribal Library Services to address these concerns and advocate for library services in rural areas.

Core Values
ALA Council adopted a report by the 2nd Core Values Task Force identifying 11 core values that provide the foundation of modern librarianship and define, inform, and guide professional practice. They are:

• Access
• Confidentiality/privacy
• Democracy
• Diversity
• Education and lifelong learning
• Intellectual freedom
• Preservation
• The public good
• Professionalism
• Service
• Social responsibility

LTA Programs

• ALA Council approved substantial revision to the 1979 policy on the Criteria for Programs to Prepare Library Technical Assistants. The new document drafted by the Committee on Education provides guidance for educational institutions preparing to start new two-year LTA programs leading to an Associate degree, as well as guidance for the evaluation of existing LTA programs.

Copyright

• ALA has published a 260-page handbook, Complete Copyright: An Everyday Guide for Librarians by Carrie Russell and a companion website www.ala.org/completecopyright featuring an interesting cast of library characters who encounter copyright dilemmas “on the job.”
• The ALA Office of Information Technology Policy is targeting young adults to explore their attitudes about copyright laws and design relevant educational materials such as a series of graphic novels on information policy issues.

Intellectual Freedom

• The Intellectual Freedom Committee has completed a new online toolkit available at http://www.ala.org/oif/iftoolkits/privacy.
• The Committee is also in the process of updating the ALA Intellectual Freedom Handbook. ALA Council approved revisions to eight policies in the Handbook. The text of the revised policies will be distributed early this fall. Council also passed a resolution asking the FCC to reconsider its new standards for enforcing its indecency policies.

Child Online Protection Act

• On June 29, 2004, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld an injunction against the Child Online Protection Act (COPA), a federal law that proposes restrictions on Internet content deemed “harmful to minors.” The decision sends the case back to the U.S. District Court for a trial.
• The Freedom to Read Foundation had filed an amicus curiae brief in support of First Amendment rights.* COPA is a “sending” law.
• CIPA is a “receiving” law. The court seemed to express preference for parental control (filtering) on receiving information rather than controlling providers sending information.

ALA Legislative Day

• Next year’s ALA Legislative day is scheduled for May 3 and 4, 2005. Note that this is a TUESDAY and a WEDNESDAY, which differs from previous year’s schedules.

Legislative Concerns

• ALA continues to work with a coalition of groups advocating the amendment of specific provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act that infringe on the civil liberties of the public and library users and to prevent the passage of legislation that would expand various authorities (such as administrative subpoenas) granted by the Act.*
• ALA Council adopted 5 resolutions moved by the Committee on Legislation: Resolution on Guidelines for Sensitive Information; Resolution on Securing Government Accountability through Whistleblower Protection; Resolution on Access to and Ownership of Government Information; Resolution on Superintendent of Documents Salaries, and Expenses Appropriation for FY2005; Resolution on the Administrative Conference of the United States.

Membership Meeting Quorum

• ALA Council approved a resolution to reduce the quorum for Membership Meetings from 292 to 75 members. ALA membership will be asked to approve this reduction during the 2005 ALA election.

Electronic Balloting

• ALA Council adopted a resolution ensuring that future ALA elections as well as future electronic and information technology procurement (e.g. Internet resources, telephony, captioned and audio described videos) will be accessible for people with disabilities.

Torture

• ALA Council adopted a resolution condemning the use or threat of torture by the U.S. government.

Iraq

• ALA Council defeated a resolution calling for the withdrawal of U.S. troops and the internationalization of assistance to Iraq.

Conference Attendance

• As of Tuesday, June 29, 2004 registration at the 2004 ALA Annual Conference included 13,973 members and 5,758 exhibitors for a total of 19,731 attendees. Attendance at the 2002 ALA Annual Conference in Atlanta included 14,711 members and 6,419 exhibitors for a total of 21,130 attendees.

Special Announcements

• Carol Brey-Casiano and Keith Michael Fields will attend the 2004 NCLA/SELA Conference in Charlotte, NC.

2004-2005 ALA Events

ALSC National Institute	Minneapolis	Sept. 30-Oct. 2, 2004
AASL Fall Forum	Dallas	Oct. 8-10, 2004
LITA National Forum	St. Louis	Oct. 8, 2004
ALA Executive Board	Chicago	Oct. 22-24, 2004
LAMA National Institute	Palm Springs	Nov.18-20, 2004
ACRL National Conference	Minneapolis	Apr.7-10, 2005
ALA Midwinter Meeting	Boston	Jan. 14-19, 2005
ALA Annual Conference	Chicago	June 23-29, 2005

As my term ends as NCLA/ALA Chapter Council Representative, I would like to thank the membership of NCLA for allowing me to represent you. While attending conferences throughout the four years of my term I appreciated the wonderful opportunity to experience ALA in a legislative capacity while meeting colleagues within the profession who have a strong commitment to service. Thank you again and please know that you have my continued support as a member of NCLA.

Respectfully Submitted,
Vanessa Work Ramseur
NCLA/ALA Chapter Councilor Representative