by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
Public libraries all over America are facing funding challenges caused by municipal coffers shrinking and the general malaise in economies both nationally and locally.
According to the American Library Association:
• In St. Joseph County, Mich., public libraries have reduced hours of operation as well as staff hours in response to budget cuts. In an effort to avoid layoffs, employees have been asked to volunteer to reduce their hours.
• In Washington, D.C. the District of Columbia Public Libraries will close all library branches on Fridays starting this fall. In addition to the closings, the district has lost 74 full-time positions amounting to about 14 percent of the system’s staff.
• Libraries in Glendale, Calif. have also reduced hours of operation following a 5 percent reduction in budget. The $427,000 shortfall has also resulted in a reduction of hourly-paid staff and a reorganization of full-time positions.
• In Modesto, Calif. the Stanislaus County Library laid off 94 of its 138 part-time staffers this summer in response to a $1 million budget shortfall due to the slowing economy. The system receives its revenues from a dedicated one-eighth cent sales tax that was instituted in 1995 to prevent branches from closing altogether.
Jacksonville is no exception. The City Council Finance Committee is currently conducting hearings to review the proposed 2008-09 budget. Included in the document before the Council is a $1 million reduction in the amount of money available to the Jacksonville Public Library for one of its most basic needs, buying books and other materials for circulation at the system’s Main Library and 20 neighborhood branch libraries.
“We believe the library system is one of the best values offered by the City government,” said Harry Reagan, president of The Friends of the Jacksonville Public Library, a citizens organization that supports the Library and its programs.
The group holds the annual “Great Jacksonville Book Sale” during which books and other materials that have been removed from active circulation are sold to the public. The sale is managed and staffed by volunteers and all proceeds are donated back to the Public Library. The sale accounts for about two-thirds of the money raised each year by the Friends, said Reagan. The Booktique store at the Main Library and the Saturday book sales at the University Park Branch Library account for the remainder of the money raised by the Friends.
Last year’s efforts resulted in the organization presenting a check for $150,000 to the Library. Reagan said if the $1 million materials budget reduction can’t be restored, there is no way the Friends would be able to make up the difference.
“It would take us more than six years to raise $1 million,” he pointed out, then added the impact of losing that amount of materials funding might not be immediately felt, but would have long-term effects.
“The people of Jacksonville would gradually get less from their Library,” said Reagan. “Waiting lists for a specific title would get longer because there wouldn’t be as many copies to go around and some titles might not be available at all.”
The Library’s board of trustees is also concerned about the possible reduction in the amount of money in the budget for books, tapes, CDs and DVDs. Board chair Mark Wood said, “We support the difficult position the mayor and the City Council are in, but we want to communicate to them that reducing the materials budget will impact the quality of our library system.
“We don’t want to close libraries or even reduce hours of operation, but if we do lose the $1 million, we will have to review the Library’s budget and reprioritize. We’ll figure it out but it won’t be easy.”
The Jacksonville Public Library Foundation is also involved in the Library’s bottom line. The group has raised as much as $2.5 million in some years through philanthropic efforts but most years the contribution is around $200,000. That would mean a $1 million loss would be the equivalent of several years of fundraising for the foundation.
“We fund things that are above and beyond what the taxpayers pay for. We find money for the enhancements,” said Executive Director Maggie Hightower. “But let’s face it, everyone is facing cuts this year. This may be a hit we have to suffer but we understand the mayor and the City Council have to work with the budget they have.”
The Friends of the Jacksonville Public Library has been collecting signatures on petitions supporting the restoration of the materials budget. So far about 10,000 people have signed their names and Reagan said the petition will be delivered to City Hall. The group also will send representatives to the Finance Committee’s budget hearings and they plan to attend Tuesday’s regular meeting of the City Council in force.
Reagan said the Friends will make their feelings known during the public comment period and as a former Council member (he served as an at-large member from 1990-95) he understands not only how the system works, but what not to do as well.
“”We will have some people address the issue before the Council,” he said. “We’re not going to have a long line of redundant three-minute speeches. But we will have hundreds of Friends standing behind the speakers.
“And don’t be surprised if all of us are holding a library book in our hand.”
By the numbers
• Since 2005, circulation of library materials has increased from 6.5 million to 8.5 million. In that time, the number of library visitors has also increased from 3.8 million to 4.7 million visitors.
• With improvements fostered by the Better Jacksonville Plan, the library system opened six more branches and a new Main Library. Total library square footage increased from 474,561 square feet to 785,046 square feet.
2006-07
• Print materials budget: $3,233,425
• 231,956 copies of 39,150 titles purchased.
• Non-print budget: $1,094,855
• 43,007 copies of 6,782 titles purchased.
2007-08
• Print materials budget: $2,650,594
• 95,469 copies of 21,741 titles purchased.
• Non-print budget: $927,487
• 19,688 copies of 3.340 titles purchased.
356-2466