Federal cuts threaten Iowa libraries

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is a federal office, as its name suggests, providing grants and other supports to libraries and museums. Iowa libraries receive IMLS funding. With a local match, it adds up to $3.5 million annually.

For libraries, especially in small towns, the funding is critical.

But in March, Keith E. Sonderling, appointed deputy secretary of labor by President Donald Trump, became the institute’s acting director. Trump signed an executive order naming the institute as an agency that should be eliminated.

According to the New York Times, Sonderling and a team, including at least one staffer from the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, came to the agency, set up offices and gained access to the Institute’s computer system.

On March 31, the institute’s 70 or so employees were placed on administrative leave. So, another agency, created and funded by congressional action, looks to be wiped out by executive edict.

But why?

“We will revitalize IMLS. and restore focus on patriotism, ensuring we preserve our country’s core values, promote American exceptionalism and cultivate love of country in future generations,” Sonderling said in a statement, according to the Times.

So, apparently, our public libraries aren’t patriotic enough. They’re not yet MAGA-approved repositories of propaganda masquerading as history.

Where is our congressional delegation? Are they lobbying against these cuts?

In Iowa, there is considerable anxiety for people who work for libraries or who simply care about them as important community resources.

“I’ve really been thinking about all this, and I’m honestly not exactly sure what we’d do if it came down to it,” Ely Public Library Director Sarah Sellon told The Gazette’s Grace Nieland. “Our budget is small, … and we can’t do it all (by ourselves).”

If the agency disappears, or is stripped of its mission, libraries in Iowa will lose more than funding. The dollars help the State Library of Iowa pay for library development initiatives across Iowa and IA Shares Delivery Service, which allows libraries to borrow material them from other libraries.

The Bridges eLibrary program, a consortium of libraries that make digital materials available and affordable, would also lose funding.

This is a thoughtless action by federal officials who don’t seem to care if libraries close. Project 2025, the Heritage Fund blueprint for Trump’s administration, recommends the elimination of the institute. And, of course, the authors tangle public libraries up in their obsession with targeting transgender Americans.

Public libraries have long been supported by Republicans and Democrats. They’ve been called a cornerstone of democracy. With Elon Musk and Trump calling out their demolition crews, the whole building is in the danger of collapsing.

(319) 398-8363; editorial@thegazette.com