Public Library Districts: And Now We Are 9

by Beth Wheeler Fox

Bulverde, Canyon Lake, and Forest Hills recently joined the distinguished list of public library districts in Texas. Since the enabling legislation only went into effect in September 1997, this is an amazing statistic! Currently, there are other library districts in Westbank (suburb of Austin), Salado, Wells Branch, Benbrook, Dripping Springs, and Wimberley. These communities represent very different constituents yet each was able to create library districts with strong voter support. Some of the libraries were in small towns, while others were suburbs of large metropolitan areas. Some had long established libraries; others were in the infant stage or were nonexistent. Some were located in economically depressed areas; others were in booming economies. Some were marginally funded by other taxing entities; others were solely non-profits.

What is the common denominator? People love to read, and Texans believe that public libraries are vital to their communities since they provide access to knowledge for people of all ages. Because this is a new arena, questions arise at every turn. To help others answer questions that have already been painfully researched, I have put together two packets of information. The first packet, Library Districts - Elections, is for people who are interested in creating a library district. This packet contains information about election mechanics as well as details on generating support for the election. The second packet, Library Districts - Formation, focuses on how to form a government entity. It is tempting to call this packet "How to Create Red Tape." This information is not needed until after the election has occurred. Either of these packets is available from your system coordinator or from the professional collection of the Texas State Library. Also, a group of usboth those who work with newly established library districts and those interested in creating a library districtmet during annual conference. We have formed a discussion group and will be meeting in Salado during the summer.

What the library district has meant for Westbank

As the Library Director of the first library district in Texas, I am a strong advocate for this new type of funding. There are very clear benefits that have dramatically changed the library's ability to provide outstanding library service for the Westbank community.

Stable Funding. After over 15 years of nonstop fundraising and the reality of funding the library from donations, I cannot speak strongly enough about the advantage of having a stable revenue stream. While there will be some fluctuation from year to year in the total revenue, there are obvious advantages in terms of long range planning and funding for services and programs. Specific benefits that have occurred or will occur this year:

• Eliminated 10 fundraisers each year;·Redirected staffing and volunteer activities to enhance services;
• Extended both hours and days of service;
• Removed a number of customer based fees;
• Expanded both adult and children's programming by over 50%;
• Increased the collection development budget by 100%;
• Paid the staff competitive salaries, thus enhancing retention of personnel;
• Expanded and improved technology support;
• Installed a phone system that handles the high volume of calls;
• Expanded the network to provide outstanding Internet service with 24 computer workstations;
• Allowed funding for additional staffing when it is first needed;
• Provided employees with an extensive benefit; package and thus the ability to attract qualified staff;
• Remodeled the current library by repainting, recarpeting, and reroofing; and
• Enabled us to borrow funds to build, furnish, and landscape a 12,000 square foot addition.

It is a toss-up as to whether the public or staff is more excited about adding space for library services!

Funding Roulette

The sales tax that is generated within the library district can only be used to provide library service. The funds cannot be used for a city playground, to fill potholes, for a new fire truck, or for a health care facility. This means that the annual scramble to protect library funds is no longer necessary. Decisions like those to cut library hours or close branch libraries will be reviewed annually by voters during the yearly trustees election.

Role of Board

Often, when a library survives on fundraising, there is a need for a large library board. It can be difficult to motivate such a large group or even to keep the board members informed about library needs. Occasionally, there will be very real issues about how to diplomatically remove a non-performing member or the dilemma of how to replace someone who has served an excessive period of time. These types of problems are less likely to occur in a library district, since by law the Board of Trustees is composed of five members, who serve two-year terms.

So what is the down side to library districts? Just as there are positives that have not yet been identified, there will also be negatives that occur.
The specific problems that we have encountered are the following:

• Election Effort. The sheer effort needed to hold a successful election involved a large number of volunteers and all of the staff. Planning and implementation will take six months of solid effort. On the positive side, this initiative needs only to be done once.
• Creating a Government Entity. The complexity of forming a government entity also takes a great deal of time and effort. There are many intricacies associated with running a governmental entity. A large number of these involve legal issues and range from the mechanisms for purchasing supplies to practices for responding to an open record request. Trustees for the Westbank Community Library District met weekly for the better part of a year to resolve these and other issues.
• To some degree, these problems are simplified by the information packets mentioned earlier. Problems that none of the library districts have yet encountered but are recognized as potential problems include the following:
• Single Agenda Candidates. Elections often attract candidates who focus on a single agenda item, whether it is a controversy about censoring material or the location of the library.
• Candidates with Higher Aspirations. Occasionally, local elections attract candidates who want to use the elected office as a stepping stone to a higher office and who have little real interest in the public library.
• Donations. When sales tax revenue does not completely support the library's annual operations, it will probably be more difficult to raise donated funds. Potential donors may view the library as a taxing entity and thus are less likely to make cash gifts.

As you can see, the positives associated with library districts far outweigh the negatives. Despite some grumbling along the way, every library trustee, every volunteer, and every staff member of the Westbank Community Library District continues to celebrate the ever improving quality of library service that can now be provided to our community. J

Beth Wheeler Fox is the director of the Westbank Community Library.

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