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April 15, 2010

Libraries stand to lose a lot, too

northjersey.com
Friday, April 2, 2010
BY DARIUS AMOS AND ROBIN DECICCO
Cliffside Park Citizen
STAFF WRITERS
0 Comments CLIFFSIDE PARK — Card catalogs and the Dewey Decimal System might seem archaic by today’s library standards, but browsing and research might revert back to those days if funding to the state’s libraries is cut as per plans laid out by the governor’s office.
If cuts proposed by Governor Christie in his effort to reduce New Jersey’s budget deficit are realized, libraries throughout the state, including all centers belonging to the Bergen County Cooperative Library System, will be dealt a serious blow. And local librarians fear that the residents and students who depend on their neighborhood library are the ones who will feel the most impact.

"Libraries are a part of our lives," said Eileen Mackesy-Karpoff, director of the Ridgefield Park Library. "They exist, they serve and for most of us they have always been part of our American life. They provide services at no cost."
"Like all such institutions, they are taken for granted."

Librarians throughout the county are denouncing Christie’s cuts, which will have impact on all types of libraries, which includes all public, school and academic. On the other side of the sword, they are also wary that municipal funding to libraries also faces drastic cuts.

State stops spending
When the state budget goes up for approval in June, the fate of aid to libraries will also be on the table. If the spending plan passes as it stands now, much of what patrons depend upon will be lost.
"More than half of the public libraries will lose the free Internet connection," said Robert White, executive director of BCCLS. "BCCLS currently has its own Internet connection, and we were considering moving to the state to save some money. Not a chance now."
"Many will make other arrangements at differing costs. Some will just lose the service," White continued, adding that libraries that drop Internet service will put financial and personnel strain on those that continue to offer it.

While libraries still have some options to continue providing free Internet to its patrons, a handful of services are already on the chopping block. Among the most depended-on service that will cease is the delivery between all of the state’s libraries. In other words, a library that does not carry a specific book cannot depend on another library to deliver the title as it did in the past.

"Anything happening to one of us happens to all," said Cliffside Park Library Director Ana Chelariu, explaining the BCCLS network. "Anyone in this county could go on a computer and request via e-mail the needed item and have it delivered at their home library. Due to these cuts, this service, together with Interlibrary Loan service from around the country, will cease to be funded."

"To me, this is the most horrifying of the cuts," added Mackesy-Karpoff. "Theoretically, you may no longer be able to order a book from the Ridgewood Library to be delivered to the Ridgefield Park Library after Dec. 31."

While deadline for delivery between state libraries is in December, the bell will toll sooner for out-of-state loans and access to several research databases. According to Mackesy-Karpoff, on June "when you need a book that is only held by a library in California, you will not be able to borrow it as you are now."

The state will drop funding for two major reference databases, the Ebsco suite and RefUSA, both of which provide access to newspaper articles and periodicals.
"The state getting out of the database business means a minimum of $2 million statewide, and about $300,000 for BCCLS members would have to be picked up locally," White said. "So these proposed cuts have a double whammy. We lose the state leveraging power, and the state shrinks its direct financial role in support of libraries."

For local libraries like Cliffside Park and Ridgefield Park, giving residents access to periodicals outside of the print titles they carry, is a necessity.
"In this day and age, computer access is one of the most important features that libraries can offer, especially expensive databases," Chelariu said.

"Individual libraries will not be able to provide the same range of information from their existing print reference collections since print reference is extremely expensive, and most of us have had to cut back on these purchases," added Mackesy-Karpoff.

Municipal money matters
A bill to repeal the "1/3 of a mil" rule has again surfaced after three attempts to pass it last year were defeated. If the bill, A2555, passes, it would eliminate the law establishing minimum municipal aid to libraries.

According to the rule, libraries receive funding from the town budget based on the equalized valuation of all property in the municipality.

"[The bill] would mark the end of quality library service as we have known it for the last 25 years," White said. "It would be disastrous for all libraries, including every one in BCCLS… Though BCCLS libraries are superficially better prepared to deal with these cuts [in state aid], their local budgets cannot accept the transferred costs as is, so the likelihood of quality reductions in service is a certainty, not a supposition."

In Ridgefield Park, Mackesy-Karpoff said the village’s governing body has always budgeted more than the minimum for its library. However, she said other towns might not be as lucky.
"Any measure that weakens any library in New Jersey has to be of concern to all librarians and all citizens who value library service," she said. "If town X has a library that doesn’t meet the needs of its residents, residents will begin using the services of neighboring town Y, thereby increasing the costs of that library."

Chelariu shares similar worries in her town.
"Such action could jeopardize our library activities as we know them," Chelariu said if the bill is passed.

"In past years, Cliffside Park Public Library experienced a tremendous increase in circulation of library items, reaching by November 2009 159,000 – double from 10 years ago… Cutting our budget in half will result in cutting open hours, programs, personnel, cutting the services that all citizens of our town are used to and are demanding."

Posted by tumulty at April 15, 2010 7:15 PM

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