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New York Archivists --Our Cultural Education Infrastructure is under attack
-THE TIME TO ACT IS
NOW--
My name is Richard Strassberg. I have been a professional archivist
and records manager working in the State of New York for thirty
five years .
During the last ten years, the citizens of the State of New York have
benefited greatly from a grant program funded by a five dollar filing tax
collected by county clerks on certain documents ( such as mortgage
filings) that the law requires to be filed. These revenues go into
a statewide fund know as the Local Government Records Management
Improvement fund (LGRMIF). The LGRMIF was created to finance the
regional records management technical services provided to local
governments and is administered by the State Archives.
Most of the progress in
making local public records in New York more easily available and in
funding the preservation older historical records in local
repositories the last decade is due to LGRMIF, a widely popular,
well-known and trusted program of regionally based technical services and
grants for local governments. This program consistently rates in the
top tenth percentile in customer satisfaction surveys. This is also the
fund that pays for the roughly 500 local government records management
grants awarded every year. It also provides $500,000 out of its
revenues to support the State's Documentary Heritage grant funding
project.
Governor Pataki's 2002-03 budget proposes to remove the Office of
Cultural Education (OCE), which includes the State Archives, Museum,
Library, and Public Broadcasting, from the State Education Department and
incorporate them into a Public Benefit Corporation named the New York
Institute for Cultural Education (NYICE).NYICE would be funded entirely
by the LGRMIF.
In order to finance NYICE the
Governor's Budget proposes to quadruple the current $5 LGRMIF fee to
$20. Not only would this not add one penny to grants available for
local governments or to private archival repositories through the
Documentary Heritage Program, this proposal would remove $600,000
currently available for grants in order to cover administrative and
overhead expenses currently provided by non-LGRMIF monies of the SED.
.
Reasons for opposing the removal of OCE from the State Education
Department are explained below, followed by a sample resolution and
contact information for pertinent government
officials
The Governor's proposal would
have a profoundly negative affect on the grants program. For
instance, the loss of that $600,000 would mean that somewhere between 35
and 75 annually awarded grants possible under the present structure would
be unavailable every year hereafter. All local governments, including
large and small towns, villages, cities, fire districts and school
districts would feel the pinch of this loss.
Besides the loss of grant
dollars, there are two other critical concerns:
First, the governing board of NYICE would serve at the pleasure of
elected officials in both the executive and legislative branches of the
State government. There is no definition of the roles of the State
Historical Records Advisory Board nor of Local Government Records
Advisory Council (LGRAC) as they might relate to the NYICE. These are
currently appointed boards, the former by the Governor, the latter by the
Commissioner of Education. The LGRAC has had a strong and participatory
part in the development of State Archives grants and services for local
governments and mainly is composed of leadership persons from local and
state government and from key local government associations. It is
unclear if the programs of grants and regionally based technical services
would operate as they do now.
Second, the current sunset provision for the LGRMIF would not be
eliminated under this proposal, meaning that the entire State
Archives, Museum, and Library would be on the chopping block every five
years. In all this would affect some 400 employees and the valuable
collections that they manage, the considerable array of consultative,
expert services that they offer state and local government, and the
educational programs that they offer to the public at large.
Given the uncertainties of budget as related to the sunset provision, the
varying revenue paid into the LGRMIF, and the potential inconsistency of
the proposed board, any long-range planning for the provision of better
services, for institutional development or to realize long-range
efficiencies and economies are out the window. The planning cycle would
be at best five years and more likely from election to
election.
SED is opposing this proposal along with many other organizations
including the New York State Association of Counties, the Association of
County Clerks, and the New York State School Board Association.
The opposition to the proposal has been EXTREMELY BIPARTISAN.
This is not so much a political issue as an issue of protecting a widely
popular program, staffed by non-partisan civil service professionals who
serve the local governments and the residents of New York State fairly
and effectively.
SO WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?
New York historians and archivists should encourage their
local governments to pass resolutions against this proposal and send
copies to key members of the Legislature as well as writing themselves to
these individuals. Below is a sample resolution for your local
government's use with the names and addresses of key officials and
leaders in the Assembly and Senate. Also, individual letters to
your local State Senator and Assembly Member voicing your concern would
be helpful. WE NEED TO MOVE AS QUICKLY AS WE CAN IN THIS
MATTER
RESOLUTION AGAINST THE PROPOSED INCREASE IN THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT RECORDS
MANAGEMENT IMPROVEMENT FUND
WHEREAS, The Governor has proposed to remove certain offices overseeing
Cultural Education from the New York State Education Department,
incorporating these in an entirely new Institute for Cultural Education;
and
WHEREAS, in order to fund this Institute; including the State Archives,
State Library, State Museum and State Office for Public Broadcasting, New
York State will need to raise millions of dollars in capital investment
and plans to do this by quadrupling the present five dollars collected by
all County Clerks and the Register of the City of New York on all
recorded, indexed and entered documents to twenty dollars, effective July
1, 2002; and
WHEREAS, the Local Government Records Management Improvement Fund was
created in 1989 to support grants and technical assistance to local
governments to improve and enhance the management of their records and
information, and
WHEREAS, said fee increase would provide no improvement in service for
the taxpayers paying the fee, nor any additional benefits to the local
governments that must collect said fee increase; and
WHEREAS, no demonstrated benefit has been identified in the relocation of
these functions to the proposed Institute, in contrast to the highly
effective and beneficial relationship that local governments now enjoy
with the New York State Education Department; now be it hereby
RESOLVED, by the (name of association, local government or other entity),
that this body stands firmly opposed to this proposal; and be it
further
RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution be delivered to the Governor,
the New York State Legislature and all others deemed necessary and
proper, and we urge them to likewise oppose this proposal.
##############################################################################
PLEASE CONTACT THESE KEY OFFICIALS AND REGISTER YOUR PROTEST TO THIS
INITIATIVE
Honorable George Pataki
Governor
New York State
The Executive Chamber
State Capital
Albany, NY 12224
http://www.state.ny.us/governor/
Hon . Sheldon Silver
Speaker of the House
250 Broadway
Suite 2307
New York, NY 10007
212-312-1420
ALBANY OFFICE
LOB 932
Albany, NY 12248
518-455-3791
speaker@
assembly.state.ny.us
Senator Joseph L. Bruno
NY Senate Majority Leader
909 Legislative Office Building
Albany, NY 12247
bruno@senate.state.ny.us
Hon. Ronald B.
Stafford
Chair, Senate Finance Committee
New York State Senate
501 State Capitol Building
Albany, NY 12248
Hon. John R. Kuhl, Jr.
Chair, Senate Education Committee
New York State Senate
310 Legislative Office Building
Albany, NY 12248
Hon. Steven Sanders
Chair, Assembly Education Committee
New York State Assembly
LOB 836
Albany, NY 12248
Hon. Herman D. Farrell Jr.
Chair, Assembly Ways and Means Committee
New York State Assembly
LOB 923
Albany, NY 12248
Thank you for your interest