MLA Hosts Roundtable With Attorney General Dana Nessel

On November 13, MLA brought together library leaders from across Michigan for an energizing roundtable with Attorney General Dana Nessel at the Kent District Library Service Center in Grand Rapids. More than just a policy discussion, the gathering underscored the shared commitment between Michigan’s library community and the Attorney General’s office to protect access to information and opportunity for Michiganders.

The conversation centered on federal funding threats to the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), and Attorney General Nessel’s lawsuit in partnership with 20 other state Attorneys General to halt the federal administration’s dismantling of the agency. IMLS funding is foundational to the work Michigan libraries do every day: $4.8 million routed to Michigan each year powers widely popular programs that serve every region of the state, like MeL and MeLCat. In 2024 alone, MeLCat circulated over 1 million items between participating libraries.

Roundtable participants Carol Dawe, Dillon Geshel, Jenny Marr, Randy Riley, and Lance Werner shared stories of the real impact these programs have in communities across the state, and discussed what’s at stake if federal support disappears. Attorney General Nessel offered updates on her office’s legal efforts to ensure that agencies like IMLS can continue to operate as Congress intended, reaffirming Michigan’s commitment to protecting the essential services libraries provide.

The visit also included a tour of the Kent District Library Service Center, where staff demonstrated the sorting and delivery systems that make local and statewide resource sharing possible. Seeing the scale and coordination required to connect Michiganders with materials from libraries across the state gave Attorney General Nessel a firsthand view of how IMLS funding fuels the necessary work done in Michigan libraries.

MLA is grateful for the privilege and honor of hosting Attorney General Nessel and for her leadership in taking bold legal action to defend IMLS.