Money Issues

The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh has decided to employ the services of a collection agency to help the acquire about $1 million in overdue materials. With state funding crunches being what they are, it seems that the idea of libraries using collection agencies is gaining in popularity. "About 1,000 of the library system's 250,000 customers have tens of thousands of the library's 3.5 million items. One person has more than $600 worth of materials, including law enforcement exam preparation guides." Read More.

Fang-Face writes "On the one hand, The American Library Association (ALA) applauded the significant increase proposed for the Institute of Museum and Library Services, on the other hand, the ALA expressed concern over the funding for the Improving Literacy Through Schools Library program at the Department of Education. Read all about it at the ALA web site."

Another disappointing story, this time out of Tennessee. The Ooltewah/Collegedale branch of the Chattanooga–Hamilton County Bicentennial Library will close August 1 due to a $481,000 budget cut made by Hamilton County officials. The amount accounts for 20% of the library's revenue. The library board called an emergency meeting, where they decided to close the library and reduce hours, services and pay. Says the Board chairman; “We had to make the most difficult choices our board has ever made. Under the circumstances, we had to do what was best for the library system.� Read More.

It would appear that the Indianapolis Public Library system might have some explaining to do after "racking up more than $380,000 in legal and consulting bills this year as part of its effort to deal with structural damage found at its $103 million Downtown branch expansion. Last month, a chief contractor sued the library, a move that likely will further increase its legal bills." The Indy Star newspaper has made requests to the library for copies of all bills, but the library has yet to produce them. Read More.

The Mt. Olive, NJ Library could close its doors in September and remain closed for the rest of 2004 if proposed funding cuts occur. According to one library official, the library can handle a cut of about $27,000. The proposed cuts equal about $180,000. Read More.

The public library in Greensboro, NC is raising fines for the first time since 1968. Up until now, the fine has only been $.05 cents per day, which doesn't give patrons much incentive to return things on time, if at all. According to the director, "At the library's old rate of 5 cents a day, a reader could keep a book overdue for almost a year for less money than it costs to buy the book." Patrons obviously won't like the new $.50 cent fine, but since the library has about 5,000 overdue books out at a time, it may entice them to read that book and return it in a timely manner. Read More.

A few years ago, funding for libraries in PA seemed to be on the upswing, but it sure didn't last long... Bad news for the Susquehanna County Library in Pennsylvania. "The state of Pennsylvania cut $110,000 from Susquehanna County's library funding in 2004, leading to cutbacks in materials and services that could get worse as the Legislature works out the 2005 budget." Read More.

Here's an article about a library director in Delaware who only makes $25K per year and receives no benefits. She's working on her MLS, "yet even armed with a degree, she doesn't expect any major bumps in salary, comprehensive benefits, or even a larger library. She's not complaining, though. According to her, "This is just the way things are." More proof that people don't join the profession for the money, but for the love of it. Read More.

Blake sends us this article from the Guardian regarding how even an infusion of 2 million pounds fails to deal with some important issues facing England's public libraries. From the article:


"The money will do nothing to restore the value of book budgets or improve drab buildings, two factors often seen as being central to libraries' falling popularity over the past 20 years. One report forecasts they will cease to exist in a further 20 if trends continue."

PDF Report commissioned by LSSI and other key library leaders from Lewis/Kennedy Associates, a fund-raising consultancy with a long history of working with both public broadcasting and public libraries. Detailed background information plus detailed business plan for libraries interested in getting started with plural funding.

The report looks at how libraries could supplement and diversify their revenues by taking advantage of plural funding strategies long used by National Public Radio, museums, colleges and universities, zoos, and virtually every other non-profit cultural and educational institution in our communities.

After 30-years on the job, a Phenix City, Alabama librarian has been arrested for embezzling $50,000 from the library. If found guilty, she could receive up to 20 years in prison. Read More.

The Brown County (WI) library system that was mentioned in another story this week as being top-ranked, is in the news again. The library board is asking the county Board of Supervisors, for a second time, for funds to keep the systems libraries open during an anticipated shutdown this fall. More here from American Libraries.

madcow shares this article from Mother Jones about "how teacher pay leaves many scrounging during the summers to make ends meet."

madcow adds, "You may have heard of Dave Eggers, the author of the article who also wrote A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius."

Is it relevant to LIS? Considering that many media specialists are teachers, I think it's relevant. Also, replace "teachers" with "librarians" in the following quote, and you'll be nodding your head.

"We love teachers, we think they're saints, but most of us consider unavoidable the fact that they are underpaid and often have to work two or three extra jobs to maintain a middle-class existence.

The latest statistics put the average teacher's salary at about $46,000; some teachers earn a little more, some a little less (the average teacher's salary—not the starting salary—is $38,000 in Kansas, $36,000 in New Mexico, and $32,000 in South Dakota). Overall, that's about the same that we pay pile-driver operators ($45,980) and about $8,000 less than the average elevator repairman pulls down. Meanwhile, a San Francisco dockworker makes about $115,000, while the clerk who logs shipping records into the longshoreman's computer makes $136,000."

Gary Price shares this news item from last Friday's Louisville Courier-Journal:

"All 26 members of the Louisville Metro Council have signed a letter asking Metro Mayor Jerry Abramson to increase funding for the Louisville Free Public Library and urging that the greatest emphasis be placed on book purchases.

In response, Abramson told the council members Monday in a letter: "Be assured that my commitment to libraries ... is unwavering. You will see that commitment" in the proposed 2004-05 metro budget that he will unveil Thursday."

My concern is that there is too much emphasis placed on obtaining money for materials purchases. Non-librarians usually do not realize that there is a cost involved with processing new materials, and often that cost is not included in additional funds for purchasing materials. LFPL would be better served by a general budget increase with no strings attached.

kmhess writes sends this "interesting article about how most Humanities PhDs go to school for 7 years and end up on food stamps.

From the
Village Voice

I liked this sentence:

"The best phrase I've heard for us is the intellectual lumpenproletariat," he says, using the Marxist term for the ground-down members of the underclass who lack the class consciousness for revolt.

Higher education, anyone?

A Release from the Pennsylvania Library Association says Nearly 500 local library advocates from across Pennsylvania today called upon state legislators to restore full state funding for the Commonwealth's 625 public libraries.

Library funding was cut 37 percent in FY2003, from $75.2 million to $47.8 million. The preliminary impact of budget cuts has forced 75 percent of libraries to reduce collections, 43 percent to reduce hours of service, and 34 percent to reduce staffing. Because library operations have no excess to cut, funding reductions translate directly into cuts in services.

judgebean writes "The University of Arizona library is planning to cut book and journal subscriptions by 16% to fight inflation and an absence of additional funding. Looks like it's not just student textbooks that keep getting more expensive every year. Read more about it here at the Wildcat."

Bob Cox shares this article about the grass-roots style fundraising uses by the Friends of the Minneapolis Public Library.


"Margaret Howes raised the magic question:

"What if everyone in Minneapolis chipped in to support the library? How much would it take?"

Good question, thought library director Kit Hadley, and reached for her calculator. She divided the expected $4.5 million in state-budget cuts by the Minneapolis population of 382,000.

"Twelve dollars," she announced, rather stunned that the figure was so low. "About $12 a person."

With all of the budget cuts we've been dealing with in recent years, it's nice to see that some libraries are getting help with funding their projects.

"Libraries are essential to our democracy," said Director Martin.

Can I get an "Amen!"?

Although dated in 2002, this article from The Age, an Australian newspaper, outlines the reasons for the decision to grant librarians in News South Wales a pay increase. The decision was extremely controversial and has not yet spread to other states in Australia.

Have there been any similar situations in other countries? Read the article here and make a comment.