Here’s a huge win for libraries, museums and the communities they serve nationwide.  

Members of American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME) have succeeded in protecting funding from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). 

That’s a Federal Agency the Trump Administration tried to dismantle over a year ago. 

AFSCME’s victory comes a little over a year after President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order to decimate the IMLS. 

In response, AFSCME sued to stop IMLS from being dismantled.  

To AFSCME Members who work in public libraries and museums, the IMLS is vitally important.

A Non-Partisan and Independent Agency created by Congress in 1996, the Agency provides grants to library and museum programs across the country, especially in smaller and rural institutions that rely on Federal funding for a greater share of their budgets.  

IMLS grants support the essential services these AFSCME Members provide, which help pay for Summer reading programs, infrastructure and technology upgrades, and more. 

The Executive Order, which led to almost the entire IMLS Staff being placed on administrative leave, was yet another example of the Trump Administration’s efforts to target essential public services that AFSCME Members provide.

These efforts are supported by Anti-Union extremists and their billionaire friends, but they are harming communities and the Workers who provide the public services these communities need. 

AFSCME Members fought hard to reinstate funding for the IMLS. 

As the Nation’s largest Union of Cultural Workers, AFSCME will continue fighting to protect cultural institutions around the country, as well as essential public services.  

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