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Amendment to Restore Ohio Library Funding FailsThe Ohio Senate rejected a proposal June 1 that would have restored $22.9 million in funding to the state’s libraries for 2006. The budget currently before the state legislature calls for a 5% reduction in the Library and Local Government Support Fund beginning January 1.“Cutting library funding is completely unacceptable,” Sen. Mark Mallory (D-West End), the amendment’s sponsor, said in the June 2 Cincinnati Post. “This budget betrays the public trust on so many levels, but chief among them is the damage that is being done to libraries.” The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County has been bracing itself for the lost funding since March, when trustees cut the materials and supplies budget by 10% and initiated a hiring freeze. The board has also eliminated 78 of the system’s 900 jobs and replaced them with 28 new jobs that anyone laid off can apply for. But PLCHC Executive Director Kim Fender said in the May 31 Cincinnati Enquirer that the library’s 41 branches would probably escape any reduced hours as long as the General Assembly doesn’t cut funding by more than 5%. The board is scheduled to meet in August after a group of branch librarians and managers has completed its study of branch staffing and operations efficiency. Posted June 3, 2005. |
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