dec06c.indd


Andy Bridges W a s h i n g t o n  H o t l i n e  

FY 2007 budget endangers EPA libraries 
In recent weeks, the possible closure of sev­
eral libraries in the Environmental Protection 
Agency (EPA) has gained much attention from 
the library community and the press at large. 
The $2 million budget cut that could bring 
about these closures (initially proposed by 
EPA and included in President Bush’s budget 
proposals for fiscal year [FY] 2007) would 
reduce the 35­year­old EPA Library Network’s 
budget by 80 percent and force closure of 
several regional libraries. EPA administrators 
have argued that these closings will not affect 
access to the important environmental and 
scientific collections and data sets, since online 
functions will meet the needs of the EPA staff, 
researchers, and the public. 

However, many scientists, EPA staff, and 
librarians continue to dispute this contention. 
ALA and other critics have argued that the EPA 
library online services are not fully in place 
and are not adequate to meet the current as 
well as future demands of users. Further, few 
advances were made in the online resources 
before the announcement about the library 
closings was made. 

It has been reported that the President’s 
Budget for FY 2008 could make even deeper 
cutbacks to the entire EPA budget in what 
some suggest is a move to close down the 
entire agency. Until the American public—and 
especially the library, research, and science 
communities—puts political pressure on Con­
gress to preserve EPA and its important func­
tions as a whole, the likelihood of reopening 
the EPA libraries and stabilizing the modest 
library services still available is extremely low. 
The library closings are a symptom of the even 
larger threat to the entire agency. 

As of the writing of this article, the following 
libraries have been affected. Closed: Region 5, 
which served Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Min­
nesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin; Region 6, which 

Andy Bridges is communications specialist at ALA’s 
Washington Offi  ce, e-mail: abridges@alawash.org 

served Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Okla­
homa, and Texas; Region 7, which served Iowa, 
Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska. 

Closed to the public with reduced hours 
to EPA staff: Region 2, which served New 
York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin 
Islands; and the Office of Prevention, Pollution 
and Toxic Substances (OPPTS) Library. 

Reduced access to EPA staff and the public: 
Region 1, which serves Connecticut, Mas­
sachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode 
Island, and Vermont; Region 9, which serves 
Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, the Pacifi c 
Islands, and Tribal Nations; Region 10, which 
serves Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, 
and Native Tribes; and headquarters. 

At this time, the best option appears to be 
of the grassroots variety. Urge members of 
Congress to seek language on FY 2007 ap­
propriations, currently being reviewed in the 
lame­duck session, that would a) prohibit the 
EPA from closing any more EPA libraries and 
b) restore funding for those libraries that EPA 
closed. Senators can be asked to add their 
names to the Friday, November 3 letter sent 
by 18 Senators to Senate Appropriators asking 
that EPA be directed to maintain physical access 
to its libraries, while the public is given an 
opportunity to comment on planned library 
closures. 

Fact!

The term lame-duck session refers to the 
period of time between an election and the 
end of a Congressional session. 

In the United States, for a bill to become 
a law it must be passed by both Chambers 
of Congress and signed by the President. If 
any of these three steps aren’t completed 
before a legislative session ends, a bill dies, 
and the new Congress starts from scratch 
in January.The current lame-duck session— 
essentially, the end of the second session of 
the 109th Congress—will most likely end 
in mid-December.The 110th Congress will 
convene in the early days of January. 

C&RL News December 2006  734 

mailto:abridges@alawash.org