Checking in
Grijalva pushes library bill during visit here
Congressman Raul Grijalva visited the Yuma County Main Library on Monday to promote a bill that renews the Museum and Library Services Act and expands the reach of libraries and museums.
The bill maintains current authorization levels but also enhances the ability of libraries and museums to address community needs, including workforce development, literacy and accessibility for individuals with disabilities.
An avid reader and supporter of libraries, Grijalva, a U.S. representative for Arizona’s 3rd District, will be reintroducing the proposed bill in the next congressional session. He is the bill’s sponsor in the House, and Sen. Jack Reed is the sponsor in the Senate. Grijalva noted that the bill has support from both Republicans and Democrats. “There are no deep partisan divides, and there shouldn’t be.”
He explained why he believes this bill is so important. “It’s essential to keep the federal support for libraries and museums across the country. Here in Yuma, the support in the past has been very good in terms of building collections and bringing out staff and extending the services to libraries that were underserved and hadn’t been reached,” Grijalva told the Yuma Sun.
The bill was first introduced in 2017, but it went nowhere. “Nothing was done last year. We are trying to reauthorize this year. If that doesn’t happen, the act would disappear.” The bill comes with funding, but that is still being negotiated. “We are trying to go beyond the previous levels, but that is to be negotiated,” he said.
The 2018 version of the bill reauthorizes the program so that it maintains the support libraries and museums have had in the past, but also adds to it. The new bill emphasizes underserved communities, broadband and technical computer services at libraries. It also supports training for future librarians and museum curators “that we need badly now and we’re going to need in the future,” especially on Native American reservations.
“Overall I think it’s about increasing the access,” Grijalva said. “Libraries are critical community hubs. That’s where people bring their children, that’s where they come to access information if they don’t have the technology at home, this is where they come ask questions, this is where they come for both learning and pleasure in terms of reading and materials.”
The goal is to build on what’s already available at these “critical hubs” and reach more people. The bill puts more focus on border and rural communities and underserved areas, “and Yuma County has all three. And so by extending that support to areas that haven’t been there in the past, you’re essentially connecting people.”
In addition, he said, free and public libraries benefit families by acting as an equalizer and closing the “digital divide.”
“Information is the source of not only power but an ability for opportunity and learning. When there’s a divide, you leave some people behind. By extending the broadband, by extending access to computers and technology, we’re closing that digital divide and there’s no better place than the library to be that partner that helps close that,” Grijalva said.
The congressman described libraries as one of the most important institutions in the country. “They belong to everybody.” He recalled growing up as a “library rat,” spending a lot of time in them, and he’s grateful to the librarians who encouraged him to read and helped with his homework. He is still an avid reader who can finish off a book during the six-hour plane ride home from Washington, D.C.
Librarians hold a special place in his family. His wife, Ramona, is a retired librarian, his daughter is a librarian at the University of Arizona, and his son-in-law is a librarian at Pima Community College.
While in Yuma Monday and Tuesday, Grijalva said he would visit senior citizens centers in Somerton and San Luis and talk with students at Arizona Western College as well as hold individual interviews. He planned to meet with local elected officials Monday night and enjoy pizza.