Rhode Island SB 289: AN ACT RELATING TO LIBRARIES -- OFFICE OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SERVICES -- STATE AID TO LIBRARIES (Amends various sections relating to libraries to remove outdated provisions and update language to reflect current practices affecting library technology.)

Bill Text

2021 -- S 0289
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S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2021
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A N A C T
RELATING TO LIBRARIES -- OFFICE OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SERVICES --
STATE AID TO LIBRARIES
Introduced By: Senators Gallo, Goodwin, and McCaffrey
Date Introduced: February 18, 2021
Referred To: Senate Education

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 29-3.1-2.2 of the General Laws in Chapter 29-3.1 entitled "Office of 1
Library and Information Services" is hereby amended to read as follows: 2
29-3.1-2.2. Library board of Rhode Island established. 3
(a) There is hereby created the library board of Rhode Island, sometimes hereinafter 4
referred to as the "library board". The library board shall be protected from sudden changes in 5
membership and reversal of policy by having staggered terms for its public members, and is hereby 6
made successor to all powers, rights, duties, and privileges pertaining to public library services and 7
interlibrary cooperation and resource sharing. 8
(b) The library board shall consist of fifteen (15) members appointed by the governor, with 9
the advice and consent of the senate, five (5) of whom shall be representative of general library 10
users. The remainder of the governor's appointments shall be representative of the following: 11
(1) Users of the Talking Books Plus Library, the economically disadvantaged, and 12
corporate or special librarians; school library media specialists; 13
(2) Librarians serving people who are institutionalized; 14
(3) Public library trustees and statewide library advocacy group; and 15
(4) Librarians from small public libraries, librarians from large or medium public libraries, 16
and academic librarians. 17
(c) The commissioner for elementary and secondary education, or a designee, and the 18

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commissioner for higher education, or a designee, shall serve as nonvoting ex officio members. 1
(d) The governor shall appoint from the library board's public members a chairperson. The 2
board may elect from among its members such other officers as it deems necessary. 3
(d)(e) Board members shall receive no compensation for their services but shall be allowed 4
travel expenses related to attendance at board meetings. 5
(e)(f) No person shall be eligible for appointment to the board unless he or she is a resident 6
of this state. 7
(f)(g) Members of the board shall be removable by the governor pursuant to the provisions 8
of § 36-1-7 and for cause only, and removal solely for partisan or personal reasons unrelated to 9
capacity or fitness for the office shall be unlawful. 10
SECTION 2. Sections 29-6-2, 29-6-3, 29-6-6 and 29-6-9 of the General Laws in Chapter 11
29-6 entitled "State Aid to Libraries" are hereby amended to read as follows: 12
29-6-2. Public library services. 13
(a) For each city or town, the state's share to support local public library services shall be 14
equal to at least twenty-five percent (25%) of both the amount appropriated and expended in the 15
second preceding fiscal year by the city or town from local tax revenues and funds from the public 16
library's private endowment that supplement the municipal appropriation; provided, however, the 17
state in any year shall not be obligated to match any amount from the endowment that exceeds six 18
percent (6%) of the three-year (3) average market value, calculated at the end of the calendar year, 19
of the investments in the endowment. The amount of the grant payable to each municipality in any 20
year in accordance with this section shall be reduced proportionately in the event that the total of 21
those grants in any year exceeds the amount appropriated that year for the purposes of this section. 22
Provided further, however, that the reference year for the state's share of support to be paid in the 23
year ending June 30, 2008 shall be the third preceding year. 24
(b) Those public libraries that do not qualify for aid pursuant to the provisions of subsection 25
(a) of this section may apply for resource sharing grants, to be used exclusively for the purpose of 26
payment of the ocean state libraries (OSL) annual assessment charges. Eligible public libraries shall 27
apply directly to the office of library and information services for these resource sharing grants, 28
and the grants shall be awarded to the libraries individually, rather than to the city or town. Eligible 29
libraries must be or become members of the OSL upon receipt of the grant, serve municipalities 30
that meet minimum standards for Rhode Island public libraries, and meet standards for member 31
libraries of the library of Rhode Island (LORI) network. 32
(c) Provided, that notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter to the contrary, the 33
state's share to support local public library services shall also include funding to the Pontiac Free 34

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Library in the city of Warwick for said lib