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State librarian: department legally required to supply books to correctional facilities; outlines budgets, limits and e-book plans
Summary
Katherine Delo told the Senate Institutions committee the Department of Libraries is statutorily obligated under 22 VSA —, section 605 to provide materials to state correctional facilities, described recent purchases using federal and state funds, and said the department is working to expand e-book access while following corrections'content and format rules.
Katherine Delo, state librarian and commissioner of the Department of Libraries, told the Senate Institutions committee on Tuesday that the department is legally required to provide and maintain library collections for state correctional institutions.
Delo cited 22 VSA —, section 605 as the statutory basis for the department's work and described recent spending to restore and refresh facility collections. She said the department used about $42,000 in federal Institute of Museum and Library Services ARPA funds for purchases delivered in 2023, budgeted roughly $40,000 in 2024 for additional acquisitions, and has proposed $20,000 in general funds for the next fiscal year to maintain collections.
The state librarian outlined how selections for correctional libraries follow public-library practices but must comply with corrections'policies. She said corrections limits the content and format of materials the department can supply: paperback editions are required, large-print is preferred when available, and some items are restricted (Delo said, for example, corrections will not permit certain books that include accurate maps of the surrounding world). Delo said the department has recently increased Spanish-language titles to better serve non-English readers in facilities.
Committee members asked about electronic resources. Delo said e-books and e-audio are a priority because e-readers can improve accessibility (scalable fonts, backlit screens) and accommodate more readers at scale. The department has begun discussions with the Palace Project app to provide a subset of titles appropriate for use on facility tablets, but Delo said that capability is not yet available and will require coordination with corrections and the app's developers.
On-the-ground logistics also limit access: Delo described how many facilities house libraries in separate education buildings, so security and staffing shortages can prevent residents from reaching collections. She said Vermont does not currently staff embedded librarians inside corrections; some facilities run libraries on an "honor system" or assign the work to incarcerated people.
Delo said the department can accept donations earmarked for correctional collections and can help facilities establish book groups or provide multiple copies when needed. She identified Karen Bradlin as the department's access services librarian who handles audio, braille and other services for people with print disabilities and coordinates with correctional facilities.
The department also funds the Community Legal Information Center at Vermont Law and Graduate School, Delo said, and incarcerated people can use that legal reference service primarily by email. She said the department is still assessing needs and potential partners before proposing new policy or larger funding requests, and currently has not included expanded visitation-reading or similar programs in a budget proposal.
The committee did not take formal action during the exchange; members thanked Delo for the briefing and moved on to other business.
