News Releases 2022
December 01, 2022 - Future-Focused Construction Regulations Approved
At its December meeting the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) approved new regulations for the Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program (MPLCP) which works with local communities to plan, build, renovate and expand their public libraries....
December 01, 2022 - State Aid is Largest in Program’s History
At its December board meeting the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) approved 186 municipalities that met all requirements for certification in the FY2023 State Aid to Public Libraries Program. These libraries join the 96 that were approved in November. To date more than $6.6 million has been awarded i...
October 06, 2022 - MBLC Funds Statewide eContent
At its October board meeting, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) approved $500,000 in grants to Automated Networks to purchase eContent for the Library eBook and Audiobook (LEA) program. LEA gives Massachusetts residents access to eBooks, audiobooks, and more from 380 participating libraries from a...
September 28, 2022 - Board Votes on FY2024 Legislative Agenda
MBLC Begins creating FY2024 Legislative Agenda...
August 01, 2022 - Governor Signs Budget with Increases to Library Funding
On July 28, 2022, Governor Charlie Baker signed the FY2023 budget. Included in the bill is increased funding to library line items at or above what was requested in the FY23 Legislative Agenda....
July 07, 2022 - MBLC Elects New Officers for FY2023
The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) elected new officers to serve for FY2023 at its Board Meeting on July 7, 2022....
July 07, 2022 - MBLC Awards Federal LSTA Grants
The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) awarded Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) direct grants to public libraries at its July 7, 2022, board meeting. Federal LSTA grants are funded through the Institute of Museum and Library Services....
July 07, 2022 - Over $50 million in Awarded in Library Construction Grants
At its July 7 board meeting, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) awarded seven communities Provisional Construction Grants through the state-funded Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program (MPLCP). The grants provide crucial funding to local libraries enabling them to meet the growing deman...
June 09, 2022 - Bloomberg Celebrates Library Honoring His Parents
Medford native, former mayor of New York City and a Democratic candidate for president in the 2020 campaign Michael Bloomberg was joined by family, friends, and local, state, and national figures to celebrate the new Charlotte and William Bloomberg Medford Public Library named in honor of his parents who lived in Medfo...
May 24, 2022 - MBLC and MLS Increase Funding for Reliable Online Content
The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) and the Massachusetts Library System (MLS) recently wrapped up a yearlong process to select statewide databases that provide every Massachusetts resident with trustworthy online content covering topics such as science, health, history, biographies and more. The ag...
May 17, 2022 - Libraries Take on Summer Challenge
Libraries across the Commonwealth are challenging themselves and their residents as part of the Third Annual First Lady of the Commonwealth and Blades Summer Reading Challenge. The challenge began in 2020 as an option for libraries that moved summer reading to fully remote during the pandemic and runs from July 1 to Au...
May 12, 2022 - Librarians trained on Creating Accessible Services for Deaf and Hard of Hearing
The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) recently partnered with the Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (MCDHH) to present the free webinar “Welcoming Patrons Who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing, or Late Deafened to Your Library.”...
May 11, 2022 - Youth Mental Health First Aid Trainings a Success
The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) has partnered with Walker Cares to offer Youth Mental Health First Aid to library staff. Since April 2021, there have been 191 attendees in 15 classes on YMHFA funded through federal CARES ACT and ARPA funds....
May 09, 2022 - Library Construction Cap Increased
Included in the recently released Baker-Polito Administration’s FY2023 Capital Investment Plan is an increase in the annual cap for the Massachusetts Board of library Commissioner’s (MBLC) Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program (MPLCP). In the plan the program’s annual cap, which is the amo...
May 06, 2022 - Three Libraries Given Partial Construction Awards
Boston Public Library, Cambridge Public Library, and Grafton Public Library were awarded partial Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program (MPLCP) payments at the May 5, 2022 meeting of the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC). ...
April 27, 2022 - The MBLC and Perkins Increase Library Accessibility
For the 1,700 public, school, and academic libraries across the Commonwealth, giving people equal access to library services is fundamental. But for the more than 780,000 people* with disabilities living in Massachusetts, access to library services is often a challenge. The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissi...
April 14, 2022 - Good News for Libraries in Proposed House Budget
On Wednesday, April 13, 2022, the Massachusetts House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee released their proposal for the FY2023 budget. The budget includes increases for all line items that fund library services....
April 07, 2022 - Shutesbury Awarded Small Libraries Construction Grant
At its April 7, board meeting MBLC Commissioners voted to award the Small Library Pilot Project construction grant to the Town of Shutesbury. Over the past decade just two of the thirty-two libraries that were built as part of the Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program (MPLCP), were in communities with popul...
March 29, 2022 - Governor Appoints Jessica Vilas Novas as MBLC Commissioner
Lawrence native Jessica Vilas Novas has been appointed by Governor Charlie Baker to serve on the nine-member Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC). The MBLC is responsible for library services across the Commonwealth including the Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program, federal Library Services...
February 11, 2022 - Mental Health First Aid Training for Librarians
The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) has partnered with Walker Cares to offer Mental Health First Aid for Adults to library staff. “COVID has caused stress and anxiety for so many people and librarians are seeing the mental toll on their communities first-hand,” said Lyndsay Forbes,...
February 07, 2022 - 347 Municipalities Certified in State Aid Program
At its February Board Meeting, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) approved twenty-eight Municipal Appropriation Requirement (MAR) Waiver applications. The MAR is funding from the municipality to support the library. This and other requirements of the State Aid to Public Libraries program help creat...
February 04, 2022 - First Lady Lauren Baker and Blades kick off the Boston Bruins PJ Drive at Weymouth Library
First Lady of the Commonwealth Lauren Baker will celebrate the 15th annual Boston Bruins Pajama drive at the Weymouth’s Tufts Library on February 23, 2022, at 10:30am. She will be joined by Bruins mascot Blades for a special story time, craft, and games. Everyone is welcome to wear their PJs to the event and join...
January 31, 2022 - Former Commissioner Alice Welch Passes Away
The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) is mourning the loss of former Commissioner Alice M. Welch. “Alice truly made the needs of library patrons her priority,” said current Board Chair Mary Ann Cluggish. “Her work with Friends and Trustees brought people together and impacted library...
January 31, 2022 - Governor Gives Slight Increase to Library Technology in FY2023 Budget
On Wednesday, January 26, 2022, Governor Charlie Baker released his proposal for the FY2023 budget. The $48.5 billion budget includes a modest increase in funding for two library line items....
January 06, 2022 - MBLC Suspends Open Hours Requirement
In an ongoing effort to support frontline library staff and encourage safe library services, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) voted unanimously to relax specific State Aid to Public Libraries program requirements. The vote, taken at the board’s January meeting, suspends the Hours Open Requi...