When a combination of state laws nearly forced Jamesburg to shut down its municipal library last year, for no good reason, it was a sign that something was amiss at the state level. The need for reform will be even more clear this year, as municipalities will be forced to dole out often unreasonable increases in library funding while limiting the overall budget to a 4 percent increase.
At least one state official is heeding the call of the Jamesburg mayor and council. Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein, whose 14th District includes the borough, wrote a bill that would change the current library funding formula, which mandates that one-third of a mill (a mill is one-tenth of a cent) per $100 of assessed value on properties in a municipality be given to the library. This amounts to $33 per $100,000 of assessed valuation in a town.
The library funding formula dates to 1884, which may lead some to believe it’s outdated; others may say that it has stood the test of time because it works. Well, it may work well for libraries, but it’s not always so good for the local taxpayers. Greenstein’s bill would cap library funding increases at 4 percent, just like the overall budget.
This makes some sense, and at least it would fix the problems faced in towns like Jamesburg, where officials have had to take money from other important parts of the budget to fund the library, simply because of the state formula.
The bill, naturally, isn’t so popular among librarians, many of whom are looking to thwart the legislation. In fact, the New Jersey Library Association (NJLA) has launched a postcard campaign to garner public support for the current funding formula. Several local libraries are actively participating in the campaign, making postcards available for patrons to fill out.
Library officials note that the current formula gives libraries enough funding to make it through times of economic downturn in communities, preventing municipal officials from cutting their programs to save a penny on the tax rate in an election year, for example. The funding formula, they feel, provides a minimal level of funding for an important and, in most cases, highly used community program.
In Jamesburg, the library board fears that a change in the formula will ultimately bring cuts to library funding, forcing the library to reduce hours and charge for services and programs that are now free to members. Elsewhere, library directors see the proposed legislation as simply unnecessary, since only a few towns, Jamesburg being one of them, are having a problem with the current situation. They have a point, except that it’s not so easy to get the state to make exceptions. As Jamesburg Councilman Otto Kostbar pointed out, “The whole point of the 4 percent [cap] is to force these types of spending decisions.”
Of course, Jamesburg’s borough officials are in support of the legislation. The current library funding formula is presenting a hardship for the town, and something needs to give. Greenstein has been working with Jamesburg officials since the summer to help find a solution to their budgetary issues. She introduced a bill last year that would place libraries outside the 4 percent spending cap, but it was not approved. That bill, which would go a long way to solving the problem, should be presented again this year.
It’s time that the state take a good look at its laws regarding library funding and its effects on town budgets and overall services, and come up with a plan that either funds libraries based on their actual needs or places these costs outside the 4 percent cap on budget increases.