McMorris Rodgers checks out stimulus-funded library

Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers tours the newly remodeled Colfax branch of the Whitman County Library.

United States Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers got an up close view of federal stimulus dollars in action last Friday when she stopped by the newly remodeled Colfax branch of the Whitman County Library.

McMorris Rodgers was very impressed with the new youth area and Hayden’s Corner, which features books and new computers centered around a sprawling rainforest tree.

“This is fantastic,” she said, looking around at the new décor. “What a lot of fun.”

The 5th District representative also took a ride in the library’s new elevator, which took her to the refurbished downstairs conference room.

While viewing pictures adorning the walls from the library’s Rural Heritage Project, she took note of how the faces of Whitman County’s communities have changed.

Library Director Kristie Kirkpatrick asked what she could do to help invigorate the small towns of eastern Washington.

McMorris Rodgers said the key is to provide funding that would allow communities to keep their schools and hospitals.

“I know how vital schools are to a community,” she said. “Anything we can do to keep them from consolidating certainly helps these small towns.”

The congresswoman voted against a recent bill that released funding to schools to keep teachers employed. The bill, signed into law by President Barack Obama Aug. 12, provided $10 billion to states to spend on schools.

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan said the funding would keep 160,000 teachers on the job.

McMorris Rodgers said she voted against the bill because it prevented state governments from prioritizing their spending.

McMorris Rodgers voted against the bill, decrying it as an example of bloated government spending. She praised local citizens and businesses for donating to help cover the remaining cost of the remodel.

The library re-opened Aug. 11 after the nine-month remodel. Price tag on the renovation was nearly $1 million. Funds from a loan made possible by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the stimulus bill, accounted for $550,000 of construction cost.