AUGUSTA – Libraries wrote the book on regionalization. They were the first entities to even think about sharing services with neighboring towns, said Rosemary Waltos, director of the Auburn Public Library.

She and other Maine librarians came to the State House on Tuesday to support a bill that would give municipal libraries a boost in information sharing tools and technology.

The bill, sponsored by Senate President Beth Edmonds, D-Freeport, a librarian in the off-season, was heard in the Legislature’s Appropriations Committee.

Edmonds has requested $2.8 million for each of the next two fiscal years for libraries. The money would go toward helping them transport materials back and forth, provide grants, improved collections and digitize materials.

“LD 793 would provide funds for the digitization of historic Maine resources,” Edmonds said in her testimony. “It would assure preservation of key elements of Maine history and enable electronic access to these resources from anywhere in Maine.”

Edmonds’ presentation centered around MARVEL!, an online free information service library, which gives users access to books, magazines and news articles. Her bill would expand materials available through the site.

During a news conference before the hearing, a graduate student and two business owners told a crowd of supporters how MARVEL! has helped them. Brian Walker of Point B Consulting in Portland said the database saves him and his employees a tremendous amount of time.

Access to information is the key to a knowledgeable Maine, Edmonds said. “In my work at the Freeport Community Library over the years, I’ve come to realize that access to information is very important to everyone’s success,” she added, “whether they’re just curious or need to learn for education or business.”

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