Lawmakers are alleging a California State Library program — which was created to distribute books to young children — has spent a million dollars of taxpayer money without donating a single book. Adam Echelman with our partner, CalMatters, has more.
The program is a collaboration between California’s state library and country star Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
The Imagination Library says it’s delivered around 3-million books to kids across the state since the partnership launched in 2022.
But lawmakers say the state non-profit set up to support California’s part in the collaboration has little to show for its efforts…even though that group has already spent over a million dollars.
Pasadena Senator Sasha Renée Pérez grilled California’s State Librarian at a multi-hour hearing earlier this month.
Officials from the state’s nonprofit…known as the Strong Reader Partnership…have pushed back…saying the role of the group was to fundraise and secure participation from local organizations…not distribute books.