Libraries and Our Budget Crisis
by Birgit Pauli-Haack
Commentary for April 2009 from Frank Halas, County Commissioner for District 2
On my way home from the county complex last week on my usual route, I passed Vanderbilt Public Library. A surprising and unlikely sight caught my eye. A group of demonstrators complete with placards marched in protest of the reduction of hours at that branch. (I half expected to see my wife was among them - she loves that library.) Over the next few days, I received several emails from constituents requesting more information about why and how this reduction occurred. I gave them the simple answer: The county suffers from a severe revenue shortfall. This shortfall resulted from the property tax amendment that citizens adopted last year coupled with the free fall of property values. The millage rate is down and the valuations on which rates are calculated are down. Unfunded mandates from the State are up. Need has gone up; revenue has gone down. Critical health, safety, and welfare services are under-funded. Every thing had to give.
People understood, but it was clear that many misconceptions are afloat in the community. Given the importance of our library system in people's daily lives, I felt that... [more]
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