[Tn-talk] FW: Legislative Alert - Urgent Action Needed toProtect Talking Books Program

Fri Jun 8 07:12:05 CDT 2007

Warren:

	I am not aware of a number associated with this appropriations
request.  For each session, the Appropriations Committee entertains
requests made by various entities.  The NLS has recently made this $76.4
million request & it seems that Congress has fallen well short of the
mark in meeting this fiscal need.  It is vitally important that we reach
Rep. Wamp as well as our senators as soon as possible to gain their
support.

Thanks,

Mike  --

-----Original Message-----
From: tn-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:tn-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of wbragg4 at comcast.net
Sent: Friday, June 08, 2007 12:01 AM
To: Tennessee Talk (NFB of Tennessee Discussion)
Subject: Re: [Tn-talk] FW: Legislative Alert - Urgent Action Needed
toProtect Talking Books Program

Is there a house bill or senate bill number; amendment number? mark-up
number?  

Warren Bragg 

-------------- Original message -------------- 
From: "Seay, Michael" <Michael.Seay at ssa.gov> 

> _______________________________________________ 
> Tn-talk mailing list 
> Tn-talk at nfbnet.org 
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/tn-talk 
> FW: Legislative Alert - Urgent Action Needed to Protect Talking Books
Program 
> Heather & friends, 
> 
> I got the earlier information sent to me by you (Heather) but I wasn't
certain 
> of some of the thoughts shared. Here is the scoop from the Hill! 
> Mike -- 
> 
> -----Original Message----- 
> From: Hartle, Jesse [ mailto:JHartle at NFB.ORG mailto:JHartle at NFB.ORG 
> ] 
> Sent: Thursday, June 07, 2007 3:55 PM 
> To: undisclosed-recipients 
> Subject: Legislative Alert - Urgent Action Needed to Protect Talking
Books 
> Program 
> 
> 
> 
> Fellow Federationists: 
> 
> Urgent action is needed to respond to the House's Legislative Branch 
> Subcommittee's proposed appropriations bill relating to the fiscal
year 
> 2008 budget request of the Library of Congress. As you all know the
National 
> Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS) has
been working 
> on a plan to convert the Talking Books program to a digital format.
The cost of 
> this needed transition from analog cassette to digital technology is
$76.4 
> million over a four-year period ($19.1 million for each of the next
four years). 
> The House Legislative Branch Subcommittee has only included $7.5
million for 
> this project in the bill, which passed the subcommittee yesterday. The

> subcommittee also voted against an amendment raised by Congressman Ray
LaHood of 
> Illinois that sought to include full funding for the NLS upgrade. Not
only is 
> this amount just a third of what was requested by the Library of
Congress, but 
> the subcommittee further gave the Librarian of Congress the power to
transfer 
> all or part of the funds from the Books for the Blind program to other
upgrades 
> for the Library. Essentially, if the Librarian of Congress chooses to
transfer 
> funds from the $7.5 million allotted for the digital conversion
program, the 
> Talking Books program will be killed due to a lack of equipment to
repair broken 
> tape players and the simple fact that all aspects of cassette
technology will 
> become obsolete in the next four years. 
> 
> The Legislative Branch Appropriations bill will now be presented to
the full 
> Committee on Appropriations on Tuesday, July 12. It is imperative that
we flood 
> the offices of Committee members and the office of Subcommittee Chair
Debbie 
> Wasserman Schultz before July 12th to urge them to include the full
funding for 
> the digital upgrade and to protect these funds from being shifted
within the 
> Library of Congress to meet other needs. The Talking Books program is
the 
> largest and most essential available source of information for blind
people as a 
> whole, and we need to protect this information source with our
greatest effort. 
> Included below is a list of the members on the Appropriations
Committee and 
> their office numbers. Please contact their offices, and let them know
how 
> important the Talking Books program is to the blind. I will update you
with 
> further information on this initiative, but your calls should start
immediately. 
> 
> Thanks in advance for all of your hard work. 
> 
> Jesse Hartle 
> Government Program Specialist 
> NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND 
> 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore, MD 21230 
> (410) 659-9314, ext. 2233 
> jhartle at nfb.org < mailto:jhartle at nfb.org mailto:jhartle at nfb.org 
> > 
> 
> 
> 
> House Committee on Appropriations 
> Full Committee - June 7, 2007 
> 
> FL D, Schultz, Rep Debbie Wasserman, 202-225-7931 
> 
> (alphabetical by state) 
> AL D, Cramer, Rep Robert E. Bud, Jr., 202-225-4801 
> AL R, Aderholt, Rep Robert B., 202-225-4876 
> AR D, Berry, Rep Marion, 202-225-4076 
> AZ D, Pastor, Rep Ed, 202-225-4065 
> CA D, Farr, Rep Sam, 202-225-2861 
> CA D, Honda, Rep Mike, 202-225-2631 
> CA D, Lee, Rep Barbara, 202-225-2661 
> CA D, Roybal-Allard, Rep Lucille, 202-225-1766 
> CA D, Schiff, Rep Adam, 202-225-4176 
> CA R, Calvert, Rep Ken, 202-225-1986 
> CA R, Lewis, Rep Jerry, 202-225-5861 
> CT D, DeLauro, Rep Rosa L., 202-225-3661 
> FL D, Boyd, Rep F. Allen, 202-225-5235 
> FL R, Crenshaw, Rep Ander, 202-225-2501 
> FL R, Weldon, Rep Dave, 202-225-3671 
> FL R, Young, Rep C. W. Bill, 202-225-5961 
> GA D, Bishop, Rep Sanford D., Jr., 202-225-3631 
> GA R, Kingston, Rep Jack, 202-225-5831 
> IA R, Latham, Rep Tom, 202-225-5476 
> ID R, Simpson, Rep Mike, 202-225-5531 
> IL D, Jackson, Rep Jesse L., Jr., 202-225-0773 
> IL R, Kirk, Rep Mark Steven, 202-225-4835 
> IL R, LaHood, Rep Ray, 202-225-6201 
> IN D, Visclosky, Rep Peter J., 202-225-2461 
> KS R, Tiahrt, Rep Todd, 202-225-6216 
> KY D, Chandler, Rep Ben, 202-225-4706 
> KY R, Rogers, Rep Hal, 202-225-4601 
> LA R, Alexander, Rep Rodney, 202-225-8490 
> MA D, Olver, Rep John W., 202-225-5335 
> MD D, Ruppersberger, Rep C. A. Dutch, 202-225-3061 
> MI D, Kilpatrick, Rep Carolyn Cheeks, 202-225-2261 
> MI R, Knollenberg, Rep Joe, 202-225-5802 
> MN D, McCollum, Rep Betty, 202-225-6631 
> MO R, Emerson, Rep Jo Ann, 202-225-4404 
> MS R, Wicker, Rep Roger F., 202-225-4306 
> MT R, Rehberg, Rep Dennis, 202-225-3211 
> NC D, Price, Rep David E., 202-225-1784 
> NJ D, Rothman, Rep Steve, 202-225-5061 
> NJ R, Frelinghuysen, Rep Rodney P., 202-225-5034 
> NM D, Udall, Rep Tom, 202-225-6190 
> NY D, Hinchey, Rep Maurice D., 202-225-6335 
> NY D, Israel, Rep Steve, 202-225-3335 
> NY D, Lowey, Rep Nita M., 202-225-6506 
> NY D, Serrano, Rep Jose E., 202-225-4361 
> NY R, Walsh, Rep James T., 202-225-3701 
> OH D, Kaptur, Rep Marcy, 202-225-4146 
> OH D, Ryan, Rep Tim, 202-225-5261 
> OH R, Hobson, Rep David L., 202-225-4324 
> OH R, Regula, Rep Ralph, 202-225-3876 
> PA D, Fattah, Rep Chaka, 202-225-4001 
> PA D, Murtha, Rep John P., 202-225-2065 
> PA R, Peterson, Rep John E., 202-225-5121 
> RI D, Kennedy, Rep Patrick J., 202-225-4911 
> TN R, Wamp, Rep Zach, 202-225-3271 
> TX D, Edwards, Rep Chet, 202-225-6105 
> TX D, Rodriguez, Rep Ciro D., 202-225-4511 
> TX R, Carter, Rep John R., 202-225-3864 
> TX R, Culberson, Rep John, 202-225-2571 
> TX R, Granger, Rep Kay, 202-225-5071 
> VA D, Moran, Rep Jim, 202-225-4376 
> VA R, Goode, Rep Virgil H., Jr., 202-225-4711 
> VA R, Wolf, Rep Frank R., 202-225-5136 
> WA D, Dicks, Rep Norm, 202-225-5916 
> WI D, Obey, Rep David R., Chair, 202-225-3365 
> WV D, Mollohan, Rep Alan B., 202-225-4172 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 