LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY * GOVERNMENT RELATIONS COMMITTEE

Legislative Advocacy Index

WEBLIOGRAPHY OF ADVOCACY RESOURCES

(Prepared by Joan Allen-Hart and Laurel Moran, San Diego County Public Law Library, for the NOCALL GRC Program, “Law Library Advocacy Map on Highway 101,” presented at the Joint 2003 Institute.)

I. Professional Library Associations Advocacy Web Sites

AALL Washington Affairs Online: www.ll.georgetown.edu/aallwash

This is the premier web site for law librarians seeking information on national and federal issues affecting libraries.  Law librarians looking for authoritative information to cite in their own advocacy efforts should start here. Action alerts on the home page provide timely information about late-breaking issues. Available on the site: letters and statements in support of official AALL policy; congressional testimony and legal briefs developed by the Washington Affairs Office in consultation with the AALL Government Relations Committee, or where appropriate, the President and Executive Board; legislative and regulatory updates; reports, position papers, or guidelines that have been adopted by AALL in response to GRC policy; archives of earlier advocacy efforts; and information about Washington Affairs Representative Bob Oakley and Associate Representative Mary Alice Baish. Especially helpful are the links to a number of other organizations and coalitions who have partnered in with the law library community, such as Americans for Fair Electronic Commerce Transactions (AFFECT), Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT), Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), Freedom Forum, Public Interest Research Group (PRIG), and the Sunshine Project. AALL members can subscribe to the advocacy listserv for automatic updates.

AALL Government Relations Committee: www.aallnet.org/committee/govr/ 

Although still a work in progress, the advocacy link in the AALL's web site will eventually provide materials for chapters engaged in grassroots level advocacy. Plans are to include model letters, updates, alerts, and testimony as provided by law librarians to assist their colleagues as they advocate on similar and related issues. AALL GRC members serve as liaisons to chapter GRCs, facilitating advocacy efforts that originate at the chapter or grassroots level.  Law librarians are encouraged to submit documents created as part of their advocacy work to the GRC to be mounted on the web site.

NOCALL's Legislative Advocacy link: Northern California Association of Law Libraries

California law librarians should start here for the latest information on regional library issues. The coordinated efforts of the three California chapters (NOCALL, SCALL, SANDALL) in successfully defeating AB 2648 in 2002 is documented here, including letters submitted to the Governor and state legislators which were instrumental in this advocacy action.  Updates and summaries about library issues, including policy statements by the NOCALL Government Relations Committee, as approved by the Executive Board, are available.  Links to current legislative information, including how to contact your federal and state legislators, as well as other related advocacy sites including the AALL Washington Affairs Office are available.

ALA's Advocacy link: www.ala.org/pio/advocacy

The advocacy link from the home page of the American Library Association contains a huge amount of material for the librarian advocate, including links to the ALA Washington Office (discussed below, the ALA Office of Information Technology, Friends of Libraries USA, and Association of Library Trustees and Advocates. ALA advocacy materials can downloaded in PDF format from the site such as the Library Advocate's Handbook, Quotable Facts About Libraries, and a number of fact sheets. 

ALA Washington Office:  http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=washoff

The Washington Office is home to ALA's Office of Government Relations and Office for Information Technology. The web site has a huge amount of information available for both the experienced and new librarian-advocate: links to such handy guides as Library Advocacy Pocket Checklist,  Effective Ways to Communicate with Legislators, and How to Write a Letter to Your Legislator, all of which offer concise tips for successful advocacy efforts. Fact sheets and other materials on all major library issues are available for downloading. Librarians can subscribe to ALAWON, the Washington Office Newsline, a free, irregular online newsletter. Earlier issues of ALAWON are available at www.ala.org/washoff/alawon/.

Council of California County Law Librarians: www.cccll.org

Although not yet extensive, this site lists all the county law libraries (addresses, phone numbers, directors) in the state.  There are links to the county law libraries which have web sites, as well as to some of the larger bar associations, and other related legal sites (Findlaw, Thomas, the courts), and the NOCALL, SCALL, and SANDALL sites.

California Library Association: www.cla-net.org

Although the membership of the CLA is composed primarily of public and academic librarians, California law librarians should be aware of this site, as it provides up-to-date information on state library issues. The legislation information at www.cla-net/html/leg.html includes links to official CLA position papers, current legislative updates, and information about the Library of California Act. One of the most recent actions of the CLA was to join other library association around the nation in passing a resolution, dated February 12, 2003, in support of user privacy and freedom of information in libraries, calling for amendment of the USA Patriot Act.

II. California Advocacy Groups and Organizations (a selective list)

 Although not specifically focused on libraries, these organizations actively participate in legislative advocacy, often coordinating with librarians in advocating for issues that affect the law library community and our users.

AOC Office of Governmental Affairs: www.courtinfo.ca.gov/courtadmin/aoc/oga.htm 

The Office of Governmental Affairs is the department within the Administrative Office of the Courts that coordinates outreach and advocacy efforts for the state judiciary in order to promote positive relations with the legislative and executive branches. Projects include the Executive Legislative Action Network (ELAN), a state-wide network comprised of 84 appellate and trial-court judges and court administrators. ELAN members review and comment on proposed legislation, disseminate information among the state judiciary regarding policy issues, and coordinate advocacy on issues that affect the courts.  The OGA also coordinates a liaison program to maintain contact and work cooperatively with groups involved with the judicial system, such as the California Judges Association, the State Bar of California and local bar associations, the California District Attorneys Association, and the California State Association of Counties. A key feature of this site is a link to the Legislative Status Chart, which summarizes the status of legislation affecting the courts. This chart is updated regularly and shared with ELAN members, Judicial Council members, all presiding judges and court administrators.  Also available in PDF format are monthly issues of the Capitol Connection, published by the OGA. This publication is designed to inform users and court personnel of current legislative events. Requests to be notified by e-mail when the new issues are available can be submitted.

Advocacy Center for California Libraries: http://friendcalib.org/calad/index.htm

This site, sponsored by the Friends and Foundations of California Libraries, links to many other sites dealing with public library issues, including the California Library Association, ALA, and the summary of California library laws. A nice feature of this site is that it provides direct links to the official list of state legislators with addresses and phone numbers, which are handy for a letter writing campaign. A caution, however: Some of the other links were not current at the time this bibliography was being prepared.

California First Amendment Coalition: www.cfac.org

The California First Amendment Coalition is a nonprofit organization, initially formed by media representatives, that has been advocating for open state government since 1988. The web site has a wealth of information, including cases and attorney general opinions, on the Brown Act, the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act,  the California Public Records Act, the state Freedom of Information Act, shield laws for journalists, and other related issues. Other resources include a telephone action line which provides assistance to journalists, citizens and public officials seeking information about open government laws in the state.

Privacy Rights Clearinghouse: www.privacyrights.org

Originally established by the Center for Public Interest Law at the University of San Diego in 1992, the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse is now a program in the Utility Consumers' Action Network (UCAN).  The PRC has achieved national prominence in advocating for privacy protection in a variety of areas.  Speeches, testimony, and position papers presented at legislative hearings at both the state and federal levels are available on this site.  Also available are more than 25 fact sheets in English and Spanish.

Page last updated: November 07, 2007

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