Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli (D-Syracuse) announced that the Assembly passed legislation and resolutions designed to support and emphasize the importance of public libraries in New York’s schools and communities.

“Public libraries vast amount of information and resources to our children and families,” Magnarelli said. “Too often they’re taken for granted, despite the wealth of knowledge and resources they provide. The measures we passed today bring much-needed recognition to the libraries that enrich our lives.”

The measures build upon the Legislature’s 2006-2007 Budget, which includes $5.7 million to ensure library aid keeps up with local population growth and other rising costs, public libraries in Central New York will receive over $3.7 million. It also provides $14 million for capital projects, including more than $470,000 for Onondaga Public Libraries, this will help our libraries modernize facilities and invest in new educational technology.

To further ensure libraries are kept current, the Assembly passed a measure establishing a loan program to provide for construction of libraries (A.3498-B). Municipalities benefiting from the program will repay the low-interest loans over specifically determined periods.

Magnarelli said the “Friends of the Library” – a non-profit group of readers, library users, scholars, historians and others tasked with helping establish “the nation’s greatest state library” – deserves to be recognized for its hard work and contributions. That’s why the Assembly passed a bill to establish the week beginning with the third Sunday in April as “Friends of the Library” week (A.1247).

The Assembly also passed two resolutions memorializing the governor to proclaiming this week, the week of April 2-8, as Library Week and April 6th as Library Assistants Day.

“If our classrooms plant the seeds of learning for our children, our libraries are the water that helps that knowledge grow,” Magnarelli said. “As we grow into adults, libraries become community meeting places where we can research our past, participate in our present and prepare for our future. By properly recognizing and supporting our public libraries, Central New Yorkers can enjoy these vast archives of wisdom for generations to come.”