00                       CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 119(RLS)                                                                   
01 "An Act relating to grant programs to support libraries."                                                               
02 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                                
03    * Section 1. AS 14.56.300 is amended to read:                                                                      
04            Sec. 14.56.300. Library assistance grant program [FUND]. There is                                        
05       established in the department a library assistance grant program [FUND]. From                                 
06       legislative appropriations [TO THE FUND], the department shall make grants to                                     
07       eligible libraries for public library operations, for interlibrary cooperation, or for                            
08       regional library services.                                                                                        
09    * Sec. 2. AS 14.56 is amended by adding new sections to article 5 to read:                                         
10            Sec. 14.56.355. Library construction and major expansion matching grant                                    
11       program. (a) There is established in the Department of Commerce, Community, and                                 
12       Economic Development a matching grant program for library construction and major                                  
13       expansion.                                                                                                        
14            (b)  A person in charge of construction or major expansion of an eligible                                    
15       library may apply to the department for a matching grant under regulations adopted by                             
01       the department.                                                                                                   
02            (c)  Subject to appropriation, the department shall award not more than 50                                   
03       percent of the total proposed grant project costs to an eligible applicant.                                       
04            (d)  In this section,                                                                                        
05                 (1)  "department" means the Department of Commerce, Community,                                          
06       and Economic Development;                                                                                         
07                 (2)  "major expansion" means an expansion of an existing library to                                     
08       increase the square footage of the structure by not less than 30 percent.                                         
09            Sec. 14.56.356. Eligibility. (a) A library eligible for a grant under                                      
10       AS 14.56.355 must                                                                                                 
11                 (1)  be publicly owned and operated; and                                                                
12                 (2)  be located in a community with a population of less than 10,000                                    
13       persons.                                                                                                          
14            (b)  An applicant for a grant under AS 14.56.355 must provide matching funds                                 
15       from                                                                                                              
16                 (1)  the local government entity in an amount not less than 20 percent                                  
17       of the total proposed grant project costs; and                                                                    
18                 (2)  private donors in an amount not less than the amount remaining of                                  
19       the total proposed grant project costs after the state and local contributions are made                           
20       toward the project.                                                                                               
21    * Sec. 3. AS 14.56 is amended by adding new sections to read:                                                      
22          Article 5A. Public School Library Collection Development Grants.                                             
23            Sec. 14.56.360. Public school library collection development grants. (a)                                   
24       There is established in the department a public school library collection development                             
25       grant program.                                                                                                    
26            (b)  The person or division in charge of the state library shall award and                                   
27       administer grants of not more than $3,000 for a fiscal year for use by a public school                            
28       library eligible under AS 14.56.365 to expand and improve the library collection to                               
29       include relevant and current reading materials.                                                                   
30            (c)  If money appropriated for the program is insufficient to fund all eligible                              
31       grant requests submitted under AS 14.56.365, the available funding shall be awarded                               
01       to the highest ranked applicants, according to criteria established by the department in                          
02       regulation.                                                                                                       
03            Sec. 14.56.365. Eligibility. (a) A library eligible for a grant under                                      
04       AS 14.56.360 must be a public school library established and supported by a school                                
05       district that                                                                                                     
06                 (1)  provides physical space or, if a correspondence school operated by                                 
07       a school district, resources for use as a library;                                                                
08                 (2)  provides regularly scheduled library hours for all students enrolled                               
09       in the school;                                                                                                    
10                 (3)  provides designated library personnel to staff the library;                                        
11                 (4)  provides acceptable evidence of the promotion of library and                                       
12       information literacy standards;                                                                                   
13                 (5)  maintains an annual library budget that includes library staffing and                              
14       materials; and                                                                                                    
15                 (6)  contributes, from the school district's budget, an amount that is not                              
16       less than the grant award that is paid for library collection materials or contributes in-                        
17       kind value of services.                                                                                           
18            (b)  The department may establish by regulation an application and review                                    
19       procedure, including requirements for submission of adequate documentation to prove                               
20       eligibility under this section. Documentation must include submission of library class                            
21       schedules, job descriptions for library staff, and a copy of an annual budget for the                             
22       library.                                                                                                          
23            Sec. 14.56.370. Eligible expenditures. (a) A library collection development                              
24       grant may be used only to purchase library collection materials by a public school or                             
25       by a school district if the district operates a correspondence program with an eligible                           
26       school library. In this subsection, "library collection materials" means books,                                   
27       magazines, reference and audio-visual materials, and electronic subscriptions that                                
28       support school curriculum and student reading activities.                                                         
29            (b)  A library collection development grant may not be used to supplant school                               
30       district expenditures for the library or to purchase classroom materials, textbooks,                              
31       testing software, library automation software, computer hardware, operating software,                             
01       or technology support.                                                                                            
02            Sec. 14.56.375. Report. A recipient of a grant awarded under AS 14.56.360                                  
03       shall prepare a brief annual report to the department describing the effects of the grant                         
04       and whether all conditions of the grant were met or exceeded.