Canadian Library Association meets with MPs on Library Book Rate

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Ottawa, April 8, 2008) - The Canadian Library Association (CLA) today met with Conservative Members of Parliament to educate them on Canada Post’s Library Book Rate and to ask for their support to make the Rate more sustainable.

The Library Book Rate is one of CLA’s major advocacy files, and the Association lobbies diligently for its continuation and expansion.

The MPs were from the Conservative Party’s Rural Caucus. The Book Rate is especially important to Canada’s rural and remote libraries by allowing them to provide much greater access to the books their users want to read.

Special guest at the event was MP Merv Tweed (Brandon-Souris), who has put forward private member’s Bill C-458 that would allow the federal government to compensate Canada Post for Library Rate costs. The postage rates are below Canada Post’s costs to ship library books, and Canada Post currently receives no financial support from the Government of Canada for them.

Bill C-458 would also extend the list of eligible materials to include CDs, DVDs and other audio-visual materials that are currently ineligible for the reduced rate.

Attending were MPs Harold Albrecht (Kitchener—Conestoga), Leon Benoit (Vegreville—Wainwright), James Bezan (Selkirk—Interlake), Garry Breitkreuz (Yorkton—Melville), Larry Miller (Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound), Kevin Sorenson (Crowfoot), Brian Storseth (Westlock—St. Paul), and Lynne Yelich (Blackstrap).

"CLA has been working extremely hard to ensure that Canadians have equal access to library and information services, regardless of where they live, and the Library Book Rate is a key component of this," says CLA President Alvin Schrader. “For years, CLA has urged the federal government to enter into an agreement with Canada Post to ensure the sustainability of the Rate.”

With over 2,100 libraries actively using the Library Book Rate and an estimated one million Canadians benefiting from it annually, the Library Book Rate is an indispensable part of the service delivered by the public, academic, school and special libraries. Since 2005, Canada Post has been renewing the Rate on a year-by-year basis, rather than making a sustained commitment, and librarians are concerned that the Rate is at risk.

"The proposed extension of the Rate to audio-visual materials has been an issue for the library community since the late 1960s," says CLA Executive Director Don Butcher. "The addition of audio-visual materials as eligible library materials would recognize that people need access to information on a whole host of audio-visual media."

The Canadian Library Association is the largest national library group in Canada, encompassing public, academic, school and special libraries.

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To see Bill C-458, visit the Parliament of Canada Website:
http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?DocId=3040262&Language=e&Mode=1&File=24

For further information, contact CLA Executive Director Don Butcher at 613-232-9625 ext. 306 or dbutcher@cla.ca.

Executive Director's Remarks (Adobe PDF File)