LLNE President Melinda Kent quoted in Boston Globe article on public access to court records

Melinda Kent, LLNE’s president, recently testified in the recent June 15th public hearing before the Trial Court Public Access to Court Records Committee to provide comment concerning the public’s access to publicly available court case records. You may read her written comments submitted to the committee here. She was also quoted in Boston Globe article about the proposed changes. Mindy argued that allowing greater access would help librarians as we aid various users of the court system.  You can read the whole article here:

Mass. courts hear pleas for Web access: Data is available on federal system http://bit.ly/1Lfpnal

Bob DeFabrizio, LLNE member and Co-Director of Education also testified in his capacity as President of the Association of Boston Law Librarians (ABLL). AALL also submitted testimony which is available on the AALL website. A list of people registered to speak at the hearing and a list of the members of the Trial Court Public Access to Court Records Committee also appear on our website.

Government Relations Committee Update

By Anne McDonald, Co-Chair, LLNE Government Relations Committee, and Emilie Benoit, Co-Chair, LLNE Government Relations Committee

The Vermont legislature passed H 490, the state budget bill on May 16, 2015 without restoring cuts to the Vermont Department of Libraries’ budget.  Vermont State Law Librarian Paul Donovan thanked LLNE for its support, saying “LLNE’s done all it can, and we’re very, very grateful.”   We have no definite word yet as to what will happen next, far as the state law library is concerned, but we will keep LLNE members posted.  LLNE’s letter to Vermont legislators is posted on the Vermont Library Association’s website.

A recent article in Library Journal discussed the impact of the proposed budget cuts on Vermont and Connecticut libraries, stating that the common problem in both states is that policymakers have a different view of the modern day role of libraries and that it is important for library supporters to speak out.

The AALL Government Relations Office sponsored a very informative Online Advocacy Training session on May 13th entitled: Progress Report: UELMA Advocacy in 2015 and Beyond.   The webinar highlighted the most common challenges advocates face in trying to move UELMA in their respective state legislatures and lays out a roadmap towards overcoming these challenges. A link to the recorded program is here.

The Massachusetts UELMA bill H 43 is currently in the Senate Judiciary Committee. A hearing is scheduled for May 27th at 1 pm in room A-2.

Here is an update from the group’s Chair, Barbara Morgan.

“The UELMA subgroup is continuing to reach out to our legislators re: H43.

We anticipate requesting LLNE members in specific districts to help us move this bill forward in the near future.

Stay tuned to hear about ways you can ensure that legal material deemed official will be preserved and will be permanently available to the public in unaltered form.”

The LLNE Government Relations Committee is providing this information to you to further its committee charge to keep you apprised of legislation which may be of interest to you as an informed law librarian.

UELMA Online Advocacy Training to be Held May 13

The LLNE Government Relations committee encourages us all to participate in the UELMA online training described below.

UELMA Online Advocacy  Training to be Held May 13 

Registration is open for AALL’s next online advocacy training, “Progress  Report: UELMA Advocacy in 2015 and Beyond,”on Wednesday, May 13 at noon EDT. Since it was approved by the Uniform Law Commission in July 2011, the  Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act  ( UELMA ) has been introduced in 20 legislatures and become law in 12 states. In this 30-minute training,  we’ll assess progress made on UELMA , including common advocacy challenges and strategies for success from the AALL members and chapters who have played an instrumental role in advancing the Act. Register  today to learn more about shepherding UELMA through the legislative process and to identify opportunities to help enact UELMA in your state. This training is complimentary for AALL and chapter members.

New UELMA Bill Filed in MA House

HB43 – An Act relative to the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act has been filed in the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

A one page summary of the bill and why we need to pass this legislation is linked to the LLNE webpage and lots of background information, documentation and tips for advocacy can be found on the AALL UELMA Resources page.

Thanks in advance for your support and assistance!

Barbara Morgan, Michelle Pearse, Barbara Schneider, Marnie Warner, Anne McDonald, Joan Shear
LLNE Massachusetts Government Relations Committee
Sub-committee working on the passage of UELMA in Massachusetts

Rhode Island UELMA Update

By Anne McDonald and Emilie Benoit, Co-Chairs, Government Relations Committee

Several LLNE members have asked why the Rhode Island UELMA bill (H-5415) was withdrawn so early in the session.  Emily Feltren, Director of AALL’s Government Relations Office, informs us that, as with each of the past three introductions (2012, 2013, and 2014), the bill was introduced with Lexis as the official publisher, which is a violation of UELMA as approved by the ULC and ABA.  As in 2013 and 2014, the bill was withdrawn on February 26, 2015, after these concerns were raised.  Emily further informs us that the RI Uniform Law Commissioners have been working with the sponsor to resolve this and also to determine why the bill keeps getting introduced with Lexis as the official publisher.

When/if we learn of any further developments, including plans for reintroduction, we will let you know.

The LLNE Government Relations Committee is providing this information to you to further its Committee charge to keep you apprised of pending legislation which may be of interest to you as an informed law librarian.  We will continue to keep the LLNE membership updated on this bill and any others that impact law libraries and information policy in the New England states.

 

Rhode Island files UELMA Legislation

By Anne McDonald and Emilie Benoit, Co-Chairs, LLNE Government Relations Committee

H 5415, An Act Relating to State Affairs and Government – Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act, was introduced in the Rhode Island General Assembly House of Representatives on February 12, 2015 by Representative Joy Hearn (D-Dist. 66, Barrington, East Providence) and Representative Michael Marcello (D-Dist. 41, Scituate, Cranston.)  It was referred to the House Judiciary Committee.

The Act, if passed, would be the first in Rhode Island to regulate the official publication of legal material in an electronic format.  It designates Lexis Nexis as the official publisher of all Rhode Island legal materials (Constitution, Public Laws, Acts and Resolves, the General Laws) except for those published by state administrative agencies.

This bill is similar to the one that was introduced last year and later withdrawn.  Here is a link to the current bill:  http://webserver.rilin.state.ri.us/BillText15/HouseText15/H5415.htm

The LLNE Government Relations Committee is providing this information to you to further its committee charge to keep you apprised of pending legislation which may be of interest to you as an informed law librarian.  We will continue to keep the LLNE membership updated on this bill and any others filed in the New England states that impact law libraries and information policy.

Government Relations Committee

By Anne McDonald, Co-Chair, LLNE GRC, & Emilie Benoit, Co-Chair, LLNE GRC

This month’s blog will focus on the activities of the AALL Government Relations Committee and how law librarians, including LLNE members, can influence their members of Congress.

The Government Relations Committee (GRO) works closely with the staff of AALL’s Government Relations Office: Director Emily Feltren and Public Policy Associate Elizabeth Holland, who work diligently with members of Congress and other good government advocacy groups on information issues according to our priorities.  The Public Policy Priorities for the 114th Congress, outlines the Association’s policy goals for the next two years.  Once pertinent bills are introduced, the office staff will create a bill tracking chart and update several one-pagers.

In December 2014, the GRC sponsored a fascinating look into the makeup of the 2014th Congress, made some predictions and offered some tips for advocacy in this new political landscape.  Here are some excerpts:

Republicans won majority in both chambers in the November 2014 midterm elections; this is the largest Republican majority since 1928 and it is also a new Congress. Many members have served less than 6 years. With new challenges come new opportunities.

  • Since many Republican members of Congress hold a high regard for transparency in government, this should make it easier to advocate for greater access to government information, such as Congressional Reports, Executive Branch memos and more access to PACER.
  • Republicans emphasize smaller government, targeting ‘redundant’ programs for elimination and turning over to private sector. We need to educate Members of Congress about the Importance of Permanent Public Access to reliable government information in print and online.
  • Money talks: we need to show how law libraries and agencies like the GPO, and Library of Congress save money for the government and for the Taxpayers. The Federal Depository Library Project, as we all know, provides no fee public access and potentially saves Congress staff time by answering questions on law and policy that would otherwise go to the library user’s Members of Congress to research.
  • Show real world examples. Educate law makers about issues facing law libraries and how the work you do as a law librarian would be affected by a certain bill, such as elimination of the print index for the Federal Register.

Adapted from: AALL Government Relations Office. (2014). Look into our crystal ball: law librarian advocacy in the new Congress [PowerPoint slides]. http://www.aallnet.org/Documents/Government-Relations/Presentations/2014/crystalball121014.pdf

Fortunately for LLNE, there are just two new faces in Congress from any of the 6 New England states:  Frank Guinta, Republican representing New Hampshire’s second Congressional District and Representative Seth Moulton (D) from Massachusetts’s 6th Congressional District. The rest are all incumbents, which should make our task easier.

Want to get the latest scoop on the legislation we are tracking and GRC training opportunities?

Be sure to subscribe to the Advocacy listserv and the Washington Blawg.

There will be two upcoming training opportunities: online advocacy training on Feb. 11 titled “Understanding the Federal Budget Process” (register here) and the third annual Local Advocate Lobby Day on March 18 in Washington, DC (register here).  Both events are free for LLNE members, although Lobby Day participants must make their own travel and lodging arrangements.

Slides from past trainings are available on the Presentations page: http://www.aallnet.org/Documents/Government-Relations/Presentations/2014.

Although the Government Relations Office primarily focuses on federal information policy issues, in recent years the office has been involved in some state issues, particularly UELMA and is available to assist chapters with UELMA and related state issues.

AALL’s Director of Government Relations Emily Feltren reports that the Uniform Laws Commissioners in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont and Maine have put UELMA legislation on their enactment plans, which does not in itself guarantee that legislation will be introduced and followed through, but this does give some weight to the importance of UELMA.

The legislatures in New England states are in the first weeks of a new session and have not had much action to date. LLNE GRC will be tracking legislation related to information policy and libraries in all of our member states and keep our members up to date in the coming months. Here is the link to AALL’s state issues pages. http://www.aallnet.org/mm/Advocacy/aallwash/stateissues