By Karyn Walsh, Director of the Laurel-Jones County Library System
Imagine our county’s doors closing to the digital world. Imagine a student sitting outside a dark commercial building in the heat, trying to catch a stray Wi-Fi signal to finish their homework, or an unemployed parent unable to submit a single job application because the screens in their town have gone dark.
This isn’t a dystopian script. It is the looming reality for the Laurel-Jones County Library System if the federal government cuts E-Rate funding for public libraries and schools. Federal lawmakers are considering changes that could eliminate or dramatically reduce the E-Rate program that has helped libraries and schools afford internet access for nearly three decades.
E-Rate is not an abstract telecommunications policy. In Jones County, it translates directly to $13,392, which covers the vast majority of our community members’ internet connectivity (the Library budget pays 10% of the internet connectivity charges). We have already done our part to be fiercely efficient, cutting our operating costs by over 35% in recent years and reducing our bandwidth to the bare minimum just to survive. We cannot absorb another hit. If E-Rate is eliminated, the Laurel-Jones County Library System would almost certainly be unable to continue providing public internet access without significant new local funding that is desperately needed elsewhere.
To understand what that means, you have to look beyond the spreadsheets and consider the sheer number of people who depend on us to survive in a digital world.
Every month, our library provides more than 5,600 Wi-Fi sessions, and more than 670 patrons use our public computers. Those numbers represent students completing homework, job seekers applying for work, seniors accessing telehealth care, and families navigating everyday life in an increasingly digital world. This isn’t casual internet use; it is access to education, employment, healthcare, and essential services.
On any given afternoon, you will find children, some of whom are currently homeless, playing educational games on our public computers. Their mothers work grueling shifts at local processing plants and fast-food restaurants, saving every dollar to secure a rental in an area with outrageous prices and no daycare or after-school care options. The library is their safe haven. It is the only place they can access job and benefits assistance, look for housing, let their kids do homework, and change their lives and their children’s lives – for free and without judgment.
Because we are five full-time positions short due to budget constraints, my remaining staff and I routinely work 45-50+ hour weeks. We aren’t just stamping books; we are sitting side-by-side with our neighbors to bridge a massive digital divide. Every month, our short-staffed team manually assists about 30 adults with job applications and resume writing. Just this past week, we sat with a man in his 50s and a woman in her 30s who could neither read nor write, helping them navigate online job applications. Days later, we helped an elderly widow type her husband’s obituary because the newspaper in Jackson no longer accepts handwritten submissions and she has no computer, no internet, and no email address at home.
During the school year, we see about 525 students each month using our computers, collections, and hands-on staff assistance. In any given month, we serve as the direct pipeline for 10 to 15 junior college applications and financial aid requests, 5 to 10 scholarship searches, 5 to 10 virtual job interviews, and 10 to 15 virtual health appointments for residents who otherwise have no way to see a doctor.
We provide cooling in the dead of summer and heating in the winter for elderly residents who cannot afford utilities. Through donated food and clothing, we help our neighbors when we can, stepping into the gaps where society has too often looked the other way.
I am not a political person. There is far too much work to be done right here on the ground, in our own community, to spend time on national politics. But I have reached the end of keeping my peace. Regardless of political affiliation, eliminating a program that provides access to education, employment, healthcare, and essential services would have serious consequences for communities like ours.
Our community is fighting a generational battle against poverty, yet the seeds of victory are right here. Our children are finally seeing accessible technology and career paths that can transform their lives. We cannot let the federal government pull the plug on their futures.
If you believe that a child’s education, a senior’s healthcare, and a worker’s path to employment matter, I beg you to act immediately, before any more decisions or cuts are made. Contact the offices of Senators Roger Wicker and Cindy Hyde-Smith. Contact your representatives. Tell them that a vote to cut E-Rate is a vote to disconnect Jones County. We are doing our part on the ground. We need them to do theirs.
Libraries have always adapted to meet the needs of their communities. We will continue doing everything we can for Jones County. But we cannot keep people connected if the connection itself is taken away. Protect E-Rate. Protect our libraries. Protect the future of our community.
Here is a template letter you can use to contact your legislator, as well as contact information for local representatives:
Subject: Save Our Public Internet – Protect E-Rate for Mississippi Libraries and Schools
To: [Senator Roger Wicker / Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith]
Dear Senator,
As a constituent and resident of Jones County, Mississippi, I urge you to protect E-Rate funding and oppose any cuts or caps to the Universal Service Fund.
If federal support for E-Rate is cut, the Laurel-Jones County Library System will be forced to eliminate public internet access at all its locations. For our community, this is not a luxury—it is an essential service.
Our local library system relies on E-Rate to cover more than $13,000 in basic connectivity costs. Despite cutting its operating budget by more than 35% in recent years, our library cannot absorb the loss of this program.
If our library is forced to go dark online, Jones County loses:
· Workforce Support: Over 30 adults each month rely on library staff to help submit online job applications and write resumes.
· Education for Kids: Over 525 students each month use the library’s computers and resources for homework, along with dozens of students seeking financial aid and junior college access.
· Basic Lifelines: Over 5,600 Wi-Fi sessions and 670 computer patrons each month depend on this access for virtual doctor appointments, virtual job interviews, and connecting with family.
The E-Rate program costs the federal government very little, but losing it will pull the plug on economic opportunity, education, and healthcare in rural Mississippi.
[Optional: Add 1-2 personal sentences here. Example: “My family uses the library Wi-Fi for…” or “I see how much the library helps my neighbors who don’t have internet at home…”]
I ask you to stand up for rural Mississippians, protect E-Rate funding, and keep our communities connected to the modern world.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Street Address / City, MS]
Senator Roger Wicker:
https://wicker.senate.gov/contact
425 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Main: (202) 224-6253
https://www.wicker.senate.gov/
Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith:
https://hydesmith.senate.gov/contact-senator
528 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510-2405
Phone (202) 224-5054
Fax (202) 224-5321
https://www.hydesmith.senate.gov/
US Representative Mike Ezell:
https://ezell.house.gov/contact/
443 Cannon HOB Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-5772