S. Carolina Library Funding Veto Met with Override Votes
By Norman Oder Jun 14, 2010Update June 17: The Senate has overridden the veto of state aid.
Update June 16: The House of Representatives has overridden the veto of state aid, according to The State. The issue is now before the Senate.
Last week, South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford vetoed $4,653,933 in state aid to public libraries and $1,172,758 in stimulus funds to public libraries, a decision that "is immediately catastrophic to the citizens who use our public libraries," according to David Goble, director of the South Carolina State Library.
If the General Assembly does not override Sanford's vetoes (a vote is expected this week), it will put $2.7 million in federal grant funds at risk. A Save SC Libraries Facebook group has been organized to lobby legislators. It links to the South Carolina Library Association's legislative page.
Most libraries in South Carolina use state funds to buy materials, though some smaller systems use it for basic operational costs, the Post and Courier reported. Goble noted that, in FY 07, State Aid to libraries was $2.25 per capita; it would drop to $.97 per capita in 2011.
"Loss of the minimum State Aid grant will force library closures in our counties with the most need," he wrote, noting that Internet use had jumped 142 percent, largely because people are looking for jobs at the library.
Lottery a solution?
According to the Post and Courier, Sanford concluded "that fully funding local libraries does not rise to the level of many of our other core services such as law enforcement and health care."
While Sanford said that libraries are supported by lottery funds, the state library has not provided money to public libraries in two years, the newspaper reported.
Goble noted, "While the Governor's veto refers to Education Lottery funds for public libraries, Lottery funds are allocated only occasionally and are not comparable to State Aid. There is no guarantee that Lottery funds will make up for reductions in State Aid and Stimulus Funds."
Sanford has vetoed 107 line-items and budget provisos totaling just over $100 million, as well as ‘Part Four' of the budget in its entirety, totaling another $214 million, leaving legislators much to debate.
