The State Library of Ohio is one of many libraries across the country awaiting legal battles over federal funding and congressional debates as to how much they’ll receive next year. State funds go toward conservation efforts within the state library, to keep Ohio’s founding documents and other historical artifacts properly stored. Funds going to the State Library of Ohio were put into an operating expenses fund under the Public Library Fund umbrella. For Helmick, the scrutiny over library funding is a distraction from other existing problems, when public support for libraries has remained strong. Federal funding for next year has survived a congressional hurdle, having passed out of committees in both the U.S. House and Senate.