With revenue down and demand up, libraries are in a tough spot

By Erin Dostal

Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2010 | 2:05 a.m.

The Las Vegas-Clark County Library District estimates it will lose $60 million over the next five years if changes aren’t made to its budget.

For libraries, difficult economic times are a catch-22 — their popularity skyrockets, but their funding, which comes primarily from property and consolidated sales taxes, plummets.

Over the past two years, circulation at Las Vegas libraries rose 12 percent, visits increased by 12 percent and research question, such as job search inquiries from patrons, increased by 23 percent, said Jeanne Goodrich, executive director of the Las Vegas–Clark County Library District.

Computer usage at the district’s 12 urban and 12 rural libraries increased by 25 percent over the past two years, too, she said.

“There’s a direct correlation between our high usage and high unemployment right now,” she said.

Because only 4 percent of the library’s revenue comes from fines and other fees, it is difficult for public libraries to find other sources of money, Goodrich said. As of yet, no new sources have been proposed.

Tom Fay, executive director for Henderson District Public Libraries, said his district has seen a 40 percent increase in traffic across all categories.

The Henderson district, which is about a tenth of the size of Las Vegas–Clark County District Libraries, is projected to lose $6 million over the next five years.

“We’re the only free source of information,” Fay said. “We have people in here doing job applications every day.”

The operating budget for the Las Vegas–Clark County District Libraries is about $52.5 million this year — less than its projected five-year loss, Goodrich said.

Goodrich said she hopes layoffs won’t be necessary, but they are likely.

“I’ve told the staff that, at this point, I can’t say it won’t happen,” she said. “I told them, ‘If you’ve got any major expenditures to defer, do them now.’”

At the North Las Vegas Library District, revenue is expected to be down about $1.3 million for the next fiscal year, Director Kathy Pennell said. The district has an operating budget of about $5 million.

The North Las Vegas libraries already have instituted a hiring freeze and cut materials costs. If the decline in funds continues, Pennell said, layoffs and reduced operating hours will also have to be considered.

North Las Vegas Councilwoman Anita Wood said one of the things that sets the city’s library district apart from others is that it does not receive consolidated tax revenue. It operates on property tax revenue.

“As a result, our district is getting hit double hard,” said Wood, a former president of the nonprofit Friends of the North Las Vegas Library District. “It’s a little different for us.”

Henderson’s libraries, meanwhile, have lost about $1 million in property tax revenues during the past fiscal year and expects to lose another $1 million next year, Fay said.

The yearly operating budget for Henderon’s libraries is about $8.3 million for this year and $7.3 million for the 2010-2011 fiscal year.

About a year ago, Henderson began closing its libraries on Sundays to save money. In the future, the libraries will likely look to limit their operating hours even more, Fay said.

Libraries have never been well funded, he said, and during tough economic times, they get hit hard.

“I’ve lived here 12 years, and now it’s definitely bad,” said Joan Vaughan, president of the Nevada Library Association. “We haven’t been hit this hard before.”

Vaughan said that similar problems are cropping up all over Nevada, with libraries in the northern part of the state also reporting loses during the past few years.

“It’s pretty hard to face the numbers, especially when you’re traditionally fiscally responsible, as libraries are,” she said.

The fact that Las Vegas-Clark County Libraries, the largest district in the state, is proposing cuts is a significant barometer for the rest of the state, Vaughan said.

“They’re regarded as the shining light,” she said.

Some cost cutting measures, such as hiring freezes and halting improvement projects, have already been taken in Las Vegas and Clark County, saving about $5.6 million this year.

The cuts made so far have not drastically impacted library services, Goodrich said, but future, deeper cuts will.

At a board of trustees meeting at the Clark County Library at 6 p.m. on Thursday, officials will meet to discuss the Las Vegas district’s future.

The board may approve a voluntary separation package, which would encourage some longtime employees and those close to retirement to take a buyout to leave their jobs, Goodrich said.

The Henderson district is proposing a similar severance program and has instituted a hiring freeze, Fay said.

At a public meeting at 7:45 a.m. Feb. 18 at the Paseo Verde Library in Henderson, the Henderson library’s board of trustees will meet to pass a 5 percent pay cut for all employees. Another 5 percent pay cut has been proposed for July.

“People are using us more and more,” Fay said. “Unfortunately, we have no choice but to cut.”