Michigan Votes Forum

Introduced in the House on June 13, 2001, to amend the Library of Michigan Act, to transfer the library from the legislature to a new Department of Arts, History, and Libraries, created earlier in 2001 by executive order. The bill also transfers the appointment of the Librarian of Michigan from the legislature to the governor. The legislation is part of a multi-bill package which is necessary before the new department can become fully operational

The vote was 60 in favor, 45 opposed and 4 not voting

(House Roll Call 364 at House Journal 57)

Click here to view bill details.

I, too, stand in opposition to House Bill No. 4940 for all of the same reasons that Senator Cherry has just articulated. When we take a look at what we are really doing, you have to ask yourself a couple of questions. First of all, we need to start with why the rush and why are we doing it right now? It probably would be very prudent if we would stand back and take a longer look at this before we rush to our judgement. But it also occurred to me as much as we want to support the history in the arts—and those are all wonderful programs in Michigan that enrich our souls, and we are all very supportive of highlighting their profile—but when it comes to the state library, we also have to be honest and understand the only reason the state library is part of this package is because they need the infrastructure, the administrative structure, within the state library in order to create this new department. The end result is that we are placing it in an executive branch, and we always run the risk of it becoming a more partisan control of information. Controlling information is controlling power and in a term-limited legislature, I think we need to be very concerned about that. Our power has been significantly diminished because of term limits, because of the lack of institutional memory. We run the risk by making this transfer of only increasing our diminished powers. From a policy standpoint, I just believe in my heart that it’s the wrong thing to do. We should not be doing this, and I would urge my colleagues to vote “no.”

I rise in opposition to House Bill No. 4940. Obviously, I think there’s a great deal of value in what the Governor is trying to do in bringing emphasis to culture and the arts by the creation of this department. I think we ought to pause a moment and remember why the state library is under the jurisdiction of the Legislature. It’s because for a number of years when the state library was under a department, it languished. It was not funded appropriately. Its facilities were less than adequate. It really was a poor example of a state library. A state Senator that I have a great deal of personal respect for, Senator Bill Faust, attempted to rectify that situation by bringing the state Library of Michigan under the jurisdiction of the Legislature, and over the years the state library did a complete turnaround. It’s now an institution that we can be extremely proud of. It is the flagship of a network of libraries throughout the state. It is an institution that has had a renaissance. That has been because of the foresight that Senator Faust had when he introduced and got adopted legislation that brought the library under the jurisdiction of the Legislature. Today to take the state library out of the jurisdiction of the Legislature I think ignores the historical lessons that we’ve learned and did learn when the library was under the jurisdiction of a state department. It’s ironic that we would choose to ignore that history by putting the library under the Department of History. I would ask members to pause a moment and ask themselves why Bill Faust knew the State Library had to be under the jurisdiction of the Legislature, and if you think about that and understand what he did, I think you’ll understand why it would be a great mistake to now move the library from the jurisdiction of the Legislature to a state department. I would urge a “no” vote on the bill.