As one library advocate recently remarked, it's a mile a minute out there. But this week, there were some positive developments for library advocates in a host of ongoing issues.
In this week's Words & Money weekly newsletter, we lead with news from Connecticut, where state lawmakers have passed the nation's first library ebook bill since 2022. Our weekly media roundup, The Queue, reports on the latest reaction to the firings of Carla Hayden and Shira Perlmutter, as well as some book banning developments in Michigan. In a major court victory, a federal judge this week issued an injunction ordering the Trump Administration to restore the IMLS, including its employees and its grant funding, even as the DOJ appealed. In the ALA's parallel lawsuit, judge Richard J. Leon was briefed on the Trump Administration's motion asking him to dissolve his temporary restraining order. Who's going to lead the Library of Congress and Copyright Office after the recent firings? It's complicated. And, in case you missed our coverage, Trump followed up his firing of Carla Hayden with a weekend sacking of the Register of Copyrights, Shira Perlmutter.
Connecticut Legislature Passes Library E-Book Legislation
“The Connecticut bill essentially restores the right to negotiate, so libraries aren’t forced into take-it-or-leave-it digital deals," said Ellen Paul, executive director of the Connecticut Library Consortium.
The Queue: Library News for the Week Ending May 16, 2025
Among the week's headlines: Author and library groups urge Congress to resist Trump's Library of Congress takeover; Rhode Island advances its Freedom to Read bill; In Michigan, Patmos Library staff quit over board concerns; and IFLA is alarmed by 'fear and intimidation' facing U.S. librarians.
Andrew Richard Albanese
Andrew Richard Albanese
Andrew Richard Albanese
Andrew Richard Albanese