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<p class="MsoNormal">Hello fellow coordinators,<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none">Yesterday our outgoing governor, Kristi Noem, released her FY26 recommended budget. The budget basically defunded the SD State Library. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none">SDSL has three divisions: Access Services, Development Services, and Accessible Library Services (ALS). ALS was the only division retained because of the potential
outcry of not serving those who are unable to access standard print materials.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none">I am the manager of Access and Development Services, and my entire staff was notified that they will no longer have jobs as of June 8, 2025. The Dept of Education,
which we are under, will also no longer accept federal LSTA funding, so our statewide databases, ILL, resource sharing ILS, statewide courier, collections, training and much more will go away. Not to mention no need for an LSTA Coordinator. Basically, there
will be no state library, only a service. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none">Our State Librarian, George, and I are being retained. In my opinion, this is just long enough for the two of us to wrap things up and disperse collections. We are
both planning to leave. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none">This plan still has to go through our legislative process, which starts in January. SD Library Association and librarians in SD will no doubt help us fight this. George,
however, does not have a lot of hope. Our DOE leadership is not friendly to SDSL, and we have many new ultra-conservative legislators that won election in November. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none">I fear this will send a message to schools, cities and counties in SD that it is okay to defund libraries. It could also have an effect outside SD.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:#222222;mso-ligatures:none">If you have advocacy ideas to help us fight this, I am all ears.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black"><img width="39" height="104" style="width:.4083in;height:1.0833in" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image001.png@01DB4623.D5F192A0"></span><span style="color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><b><span style="font-size:18.0pt;color:#990000;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;mso-ligatures:none">Brenda Hemmelman</span></b><span style="color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="color:black;mso-ligatures:none">Access & Development Services Manager<br>
</span><span style="font-size:5.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;mso-ligatures:none"> </span><span style="color:black;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;mso-ligatures:none"><br>
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE LIBRARY<br>
605.773.5075</span><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#FFC000;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;mso-ligatures:none"> </span></b><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#C00000;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;mso-ligatures:none">|</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:gray;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;mso-ligatures:none"> </span><span style="color:black;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;mso-ligatures:none">800
Governors Dr</span><span style="color:#201F1E;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;mso-ligatures:none">, </span><span style="color:black;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;mso-ligatures:none">Pierre, SD 57501</span><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:#FFC000;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;mso-ligatures:none"> </span></b><span style="color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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