Buffalo/Erie $1.6 Million Boost Will Restore Service Hours
Lynn Blumenstein -- Library Journal, 12/11/2007
On December 4, the Erie County Legislature, NY, passed a $1.4 billion 2008 budget that includes an additional $1.6 million for public libraries. The Buffalo & Eric County Public Library (BECPL) will use the funds over a three-year period to restore neighborhood service hours. While BECPL expressed gratitude for the increase, it pointed out that the cost “would still be low—approximately what the taxpayers provided in 1998!” All branch libraries eventually will be open a minimum of 40 hours per week. The funding will also allow libraries to provide additional programming, including computer training and youth programs, as well as to improve system-wide services. Otherwise, BECPL’s 2008 budget remains flat.The additional funds are long overdue. Between 2004 and 2005, the system lost nearly 25 percent of its county funding. In September 2005, BECPL requested $21.7 million in county support, some $7 million less than in 2004, but still had to close 15 branches, raise fees, and lay off 100 employees, nearly one-third of the full-time workforce. Funding remained static in 2006; three libraries weren’t open enough hours per week to meet New York State minimum standards. For FY07, BECPL received an additional $500,000.
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