Hello, Last Tuesday the Department of History, Arts, and Libraries (HAL) Subcommittee of the State Senate Appropriations Committee met concerning House Bill 5647. This bill has already passed the State House of Representatives and will soon be considered by the Senate. In the bill is a line item to give the Detroit Public Library $2,877,100. This is less than the library has received in past years due to the current fiscal crises in the state. To see the bill visit http://www.michiganlegislature.org and enter the bill number. In my testimony I said that the Advocates for the Burton Historical Collection would like to see the Detroit Public Library receive funding from the state, BUT not without adequate oversight. I then mentioned the allegations of mishandled funds, the whistleblower lawsuit, the ongoing audit of the library's finances, the violations of the Burton Endowment Fund, the backlog of uncataloged items, the recent resignation of the Director, the violations of the Open Meetings Act by the Detroit Library Commission, etc. In my statement I explained that the Burton is a popular department heavily used by non-Detroiters and that we would like to see some of the state money go to the Burton. Lastly, I closed with the suggestion that the proper oversight of the spending would include the hiring of a qualified financial officer, the selection of a new Director with several years experience running a public library system, and the replacement of the current Detroit Library Commission with one containing scholars, librarians, and archivists. If you want to have input into the bill, then please write to Senator Loren Bennett and tell him your concerns about state funds going to the Detroit Public Library given the current financial mess and alleged shady dealings. The Advocates do not want to hurt the library. We would like it to be funded, but we want the money to be accounted for and spent wisely. Please consider joining our letter writing campaign and ask Lansing to get involved in the oversight of state funds used by the library. Also, please send a copy of your letter to your local State Senator as well. Here is the contact information for Senator Bennett: By Mail: Senator Loren Bennett P.O. Box 30036 Lansing, MI 48909-7536 By E-Mail: [email protected] By Telephone: (517) 373-7350 By Fax: (517) 373-9228 To contact your Michigan State Senator visit http://www.senate.state.mi.us and select "Find your Senator." If you want to testify in person, there is another subcommittee meeting next week, 3:00pm Tuesday 30 April 2002 on the third floor of the capitol in the old Supreme Court room. For more information about the Advocates for the Burton Historical Collection, please visit our web page at http://habitant.org/bhc. To subscribe to our electronic newsletter you must send the following email: To: [email protected] Subject: (leave blank) Body: Subscribe BHC John Doe Replace the John Doe with your name. If you have any trouble subscribing, then please email me at [email protected] If you want to recommend that someone be added to this ListServ, then please email me. For instructions on using our ListServ, please visit http://habitant.org/bhc/listserv.htm. Thank you, JP John P. DuLong, Ph.D. Chair of the Advocates for the Burton Historical Collection 959 Oxford Road Berkley, MI 48072-2011 (248) 541-2894 http://habitant.org/bhc