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The following opinion is presented on-line for informational use only and does not replace the official version. (Mich Dept of Attorney General Web Site - www.ag.state.mi.us) STATE OF MICHIGAN FRANK J. KELLEY, ATTORNEY GENERAL Opinion No. 5896 May 11, 1981 CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: Const 1963, art 9, Sec. 29--state financing of a new or increased required service LIBRARIES: Interlibrary loan program STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION: Interlibrary loan program A voluntary interlibrary loan program of books and materials approved by the State Board of Education is not a new or increased mandated service required of a local unit necessitating state funding pursuant to Const 1963, art 9, Sec. 29. Honorable John A. Welborn State Senator The Capitol Lansing, Michigan You have asked for my opinion regarding the Department of Education's plans for a new interlibrary loan pattern within the State and whether those plans violate Const 1963, art 9, Sec. 29, which provides in relevant part: 'The state is hereby prohibited from reducing the state financed proportion of the necessary costs of any existing activity or service required of units of Local Government by state law. A new activity or service or an increase in the level of any activity or service beyond that required by existing law shall not be required by the legislature or any state agency of units of Local Government, unless a state appropriation is made and disbursed to pay the unit of Local Government for any necessary increased costs. . . .' In general terms, interlibrary loan programs permit a library to assist a patron seeking a book outside its collection by borrowing that book from another library participating in the program. According to the report (1) of the Interlibrary Loan Task Force, pp i and ii, which describes the plans, a regional approach to interlibrary loans is contemplated: 'What has evolved is a multi-type regional concept backed up by the five major reference/research libraries (Detroit Public Library, Michigan State University, State Library, University of Michigan and Wayne State University). 'The regional concept is a voluntary plan which described a formal structure for interlibrary loan. It begins with a concept of multi-type regions of cooperation in which 'all resources within a contiguous geographic region will be searched and shared to fill requests of all participating types of libraries (public school, academic, special) within the region of cooperation.' . . . '6. Future federal, and possibly state, funding will be for multi-type library cooperation not only for interlibrary loan but for many other shared activities. Michigan needs to have a multi-type library structure in place. 'As the new interlibrary loan structure evolves, it is hoped that representatives from all types of libraries will continue to cooperatively solve problems with the end results being better library and information service for Michigan residents.' [Emphasis added to the first line of the second paragraph.] Your letter states that services once provided by the State Library are being unilaterally reduced, while new tasks are being imposed on the existing cooperative libraries created under 1977 PA 89; MCLA 397.551 et seq; MSA 15.1791(151) et seq, and their member libraries. While the current budget situation has forced the State Library to significantly reduce its operations in other areas, the Interlibrary Loan Task Force Report does not indicate any reduction of service provided by the State Library concerning interlibrary loans. I am also advised by the State Librarian that no reductions in interlibrary loan services are contemplated. As to imposing new tasks on any local units of government, there is no indication in the plans that any service or activity is required by law or by any state agency of any local governmental unit. Under 1977 PA 89, supra, Sec. 14, cooperative libraries provide various services to member libraries, although interlibrary loans are not listed among the potential services outlined in Sec. 14. As noted in OAG, 1979-1980, No 5739, p 872 (July 15, 1980), all Michigan residents are entitled to use the public libraries of this state subject to reasonable regulations by those libraries. In the past, grants under the Library Services Construction Act, Title III, 20 USC 355e et seq, for facilitating interlibrary loans were directed by the State Board of Education to the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, and Wayne State University. In the current year, the plans are recommending that these federal grants of approximately $120,000 to facilitate interlibrary loans be made available to regions of cooperation which, on a voluntary basis, file applications with the State Library for such grants. Accordingly, it is my opinion that Const 1963, art 9, Sec. 29, is not involved in these voluntary interlibrary loan plans, since no new activities or services are being required of local units of government, nor is state funding being reduced for any existing service or activity which is required of any local governmental unit. Frank J. Kelley Attorney General (1)
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