The California State Library preserves California's past and shapes California's future. For over 160 years, the State Library has preserved California's past - our collective cultural heritage - by collecting historic materials on California and the West. This includes books, posters, maps, photographs, government documents, and artwork.

The State Library shapes California's future in a variety of ways: by providing information and conducting research that helps policymakers craft sound approaches to our public issues; by strengthening the state's over 1,100 public libraries; and by providing the visually disabled with informational and literary resources that meet their needs.

Since department programs drive the need for infrastructure investment, each department has a related capital outlay program to support this need. For the specifics on the State Library's Capital Outlay Program, see "Infrastructure Overview."