News PA Budget - Killing the Library System

[byronm]

PA Budget - Killing the Library System :(

If you live in PA, what's your take of the potential killing of the state library system through massive budget cuts?

If you're not in PA, have your state budgets killed your public library system or are pushing to kill it?

Recent Budget updates for PA:

1. The Public Library Subsidy would be funded at $50 million, a 34% cut from the 2008-09 budget level of $75.7 million.

2. The now-combined Library Access funding (which includes POWER Library, Ask Here PA, the statewide library card, interlibrary delivery, and the Access Pennsylvania database) would total only $3 million, a cut of 73% from 2008-09’s combined total of $11.1 million.

What your take on this? For me, its sort of saddening. I use the libraries a LOT and i mean a LOT. I could never afford the books that i get through the library system.. everything from the expensive science books to periodical access and archival searches to expensive courses from the Teaching Corporation. For me the #2 item above is going to break my most pleasurable experience with the library system - the interlibrary loan where i can go online, request a book and be notified when its available for me and or delivered to my local branch. If #2 happens i forecast my local branch being shutdown entirely.. and that's sad because its built right next door to a great pre-school that often takes kids to the library as well.

such drastic cuts seem like a deathblow to me.. small communities will most certainly lose their local public libraries and often these small communities don't even have a local bookstore to supplement that loss.

i wrote my congress critters but I'm not expecting a miracle..

 

[WhoWee]

Hard to believe it's happening in PA. Andrew Carnegie must be turning over.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnegie_library

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

I have only ever lived in fairly large cities and the libraries around here seem to most often be run mostly by the cities. Perhaps a good idea in your states case may be for the larger cities to take up the slack and spend more on their own libraries so there will be more state funding for libraries in smaller towns.

 

[drankin]

With the way the economy is right now, cuts have to be made. The library system can suffer with the rest of the state. When the economy is back up the funding will be there again.

 

[byronm]

I have only ever lived in fairly large cities and the libraries around here seem to most often be run mostly by the cities. Perhaps a good idea in your states case may be for the larger cities to take up the slack and spend more on their own libraries so there will be more state funding for libraries in smaller towns.

Philadelphia Public Libraries already stopped lending books and is shutting down entirely as of October 2nd right now.

My Local library system is already cutting back hours and has already laid off people and the local library system doesn't rely on state money entirely.

Oddly enough they're cutting the budgets so much they won't even get federal matching funds and that is 3-5 million in losses there. Seems excessive.

 

[byronm]

With the way the economy is right now, cuts have to be made. The library system can suffer with the rest of the state. When the economy is back up the funding will be there again.

I wish it were oh so simple, but History shows me otherwise... In fact, history often shows that during recessions its often the best time to USE libraries.. not limit them.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

Philadelphia Public Libraries already stopped lending books and is shutting down entirely as of October 2nd right now.

My Local library system is already cutting back hours and has already laid off people and the local library system doesn't rely on state money entirely.

Oddly enough they're cutting the budgets so much they won't even get federal matching funds and that is 3-5 million in losses there. Seems excessive.

Wow, that's pretty bad. Cutting money to education and educational resources should be damn near the bottom of the list on where to make spending cuts in my opinion. Is it really that bad there? Maybe my state just approaches not having any money differently. Several people have already been taking the state to court for some of the cuts they have been making. No one is really willing to take any.