book purchases, hours
First in a series
Staff Writer
The Union County Carnegie Library is asking for corporate sponsors to help it continue purchasing new books and avoid cutting back on operating hours.
Director Nancy Rosenwald said the library has to reduce its 2008-2009 budget by approximately $70,000 because of cuts in state assistance. Mrs. Rosenwald said that when the budget was set at $420,000 at the beginning of the current fiscal year, it was with the expectation that the library would receive $67,232 in state funding. Since then, the drop in state revenues caused by the ongoing recession has forced the state to slash spending to maintain a balanced budget as required by law.
Mrs. Rosenwald said that with the first round of cuts in July, the library's state funding was reduced to approximately $65,000. A second round of cuts slashed the library's funding to $53,188, but state law prohibits the funding from falling below $60,000. The balance of the cuts the library should have experienced will therefore be absorbed by the larger public libraries around the state.
Despite this, Mrs. Rosenwald said, the cuts have placed the library in the position of having to reduce its planned purchases of new books and other materials and/or cut back on staff and operating hours.
“I have only two options, the first put the staff, including myself, on ‘furlough,' which means working without pay and I don't want to do that,” she said. “The second option is reduce the amount of new books, magazines, books or DVDs and other materials we'd planned to purchase. We estimated that continuing our regular program of new acquisitions would cost $60,000 this year. While I believe we'll still be able to make some purchases, it won't be as much as we need and I don't want to have to do this, either.”
Another possibility is that the library may have to close an additional day of each week. The library is currently open six days a week. Mrs. Rosenwald said she doesn't want to take any of these steps, especially these days when public use of the library is increasing.
“Over the past two years, visits to the library have increased 147 percent; computer use is up 131 percent; and total circulation is up 26 percent,” she said. “Books, magazines, Internet access, these are things people depend on the library for. Adults working up resumes, children doing homework and people just generally using the Internet to stay connected with the world. These are the things people rely on the library for, especially during hard times like these.”
In addition to cuts in direct state assistance, the library has seen its funding from education lottery fluctuate and its Gates grants phased out, both of which were used to purchase computers and other technology. This has forced the library to delay making these purchases in an attempt to extend the life of the new computers.
To avoid cutting services and materials acquisition, the library is seeking corporate sponsors to make up the shortfall caused by the state cuts. The library's board of trustees sent a letter to Union County Council asking council to become a “Literacy Initiative Partner” by pledging $5,000 a year for five years.
The letter states that the tax-deductible donation will be used to purchase books, magazines and audio/visual materials for public use. Beyond the tax deduction, Literacy Initiative Partners will be honored with permanent bookplates in each resource, their name on the Carnegie website and spotlighted at the entrance of the library.
Mrs. Rosenwald said any amount pledged by potential sponsors is welcome. Whatever the amount, the library will use it to address the needs outlined in the letter.
Union County levies a 4-mill tax for the library which Mrs. Rosenwald said generates $240,000 a year. She described the tax revenue the library receives from the county as its most reliable and important source of funding. Another important source of local support is the Friends of the Library, which raises money from private sources.
Despite this, the library needs additional funds if it is to continue meeting the needs of the public and to maintain a quality facility, she said.
“Our county funding is our most predictable and necessary funding, but with growth in the library and its usage by the community that's not enough,” she said. “We have a beautiful, historic building we have to maintain; we pay the utilities; and make the necessary repairs to the building and the parking lot.
“In this county there is such a great need for the library and its services and we want to keep providing those services and improving them to meet the growing needs of the community,” she said. “That's why we're asking for corporate sponsorship, to help us avoid having to cut back on meeting those needs.”
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Anyone wanting to become a Literacy Initiative Partner may contact Mrs. Rosenwald at the Union County Carnegie Library at 427-7140.
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