Megan Janicki

Libraries Warn Federal Cuts Could Undo Digital Inclusion Gains

Officials say agency funding underpins broadband and workforce access.

Akul Saxena

Oct 31, 2025 — 2 min read

Photo of (from left) Megan Janicki, deputy director of public policy and advocacy at the American Library Association; Christine Morris, digital resources manager at the Ohio Public Library Information Network; and Lauren Abner, state E-Rate coordinator at the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives at panel on Friday, Oct. 31, 2025.

ARLINGTON, Va., Oct. 31, 2025 — National and state library officials warned that federal efforts to eliminate the Institute of Museum and Library Services could unravel hard-won progress in digital inclusion, leaving libraries without stable funding for broadband, devices, and workforce training.

At a Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition panel here, speakers said libraries remained the nation’s most reliable digital access points, providing Wi-Fi, computers, and guidance in communities still outside commercial broadband reach.

Megan Janicki, deputy director of public policy and advocacy at the American Library Association, said the IMLS’s Library Services and Technology Act delivered more than $200 million annually to state agencies that sustain local technology programs. She said the White House’s proposal to abolish the agency had created “an atmosphere of uncertainty” for libraries that depended on those grants for connectivity and staff support.

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Megan Janicki Digital Equity Amerian Library Association IMLS Schools Health and Libraries Broadband Coalistion Christine Morris Lauren Abner Anchor Nets 2025 E-Rate Kentucky Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives Ohio Online