Price Tag on Knowledge

The California Legislature is considering a measure that would help communities provide or preserve public library service through the sale of $200 million in bonds. Of that amount, $50 million is earmarked for the Los Angeles Central Library, faced with rebuilding after this spring’s disastrous fire. The bill deserves swift passage so that it can be placed on the November ballot.

Sen. Barry Keene (D-Benicia), a principal sponsor of the measure, became interested in the libraries’ problems when he saw the sorry condition of one in his district. “Eureka is in an economically depressed area, and between Proposition 13 and the federal library fund cuts it simply could not and cannot pay for an adequate public library building,” Keene said. Other districts have similar problems, or find that they cannot keep up with growth in their areas.

Sen. James W. Nielsen (R-Woodland) has joined with Keene to give the bill, SB 2493, bipartisan sponsorship. It also received bipartisan Senate support on a 33-0 vote. But that bipartisanship has in the past stopped at the Assembly door. In March, Assembly Republicans killed a similar measure for the June ballot. They argue that libraries are local responsibilities.

Libraries, like jails and parks, are everybody’s responsibility. When local communities lack the money, the state must help. This is especially true in the case of the Los Angeles Central Library, which serves an area far wider than downtown. It is a resource for the entire state.

The bill will come up Monday in the Assembly Public Investments, Finance and Bond Indebtedness Committee. This money for the Central Library’s rebuilding and for libraries around the state deserves the widest possible support. Enlightenment should know no political boundaries.