Palliser Regional Library will not increase the rural library levy in 2020 thanks to a one-time increase in provincial funding, but some branches will lose several open hours per week regardless.
The organization held its fall general meeting on Nov. 1 at the Moose Jaw Public Library. It approved its 2020 budget and the 2020 rural levy. It also approved two special motions that read:
- That the budget be amended to reflect the 2020 library allocation in the City of Moose Jaw budget when city council passes that budget;
- That the rural budget and its salary line be amended in the revenue and expenses categories to reflect the additional open hours purchased by special levies.
The organization expects to have a balanced budget next year at $2.48 million. Costs of note include special projects for $6,251, the carbon tax of $1,999 and the purchase of books for $7,015.
Rural library levy
“We’re holding the line, is what it is. It’s a zero-based budget,” said director Jan Smith.
The regional library recognized that farmers faced terrible growing conditions this past year, she explained. The organization received positive feedback from rural municipalities after they were told about this zero-increase decision in July — in time for the RMs’ budget preparation meetings.
The provincial government provided a one-time increase of $20,000 to Palliser Regional Library this year, while the organization’s headquarters also found some savings. Smith noted that the increase “saved our bacon, quite frankly. It saved part of a job. We’re able to give some of the money back to the rural branches (and) put more back into collections.”
The rural base levy for 2020 will be $14.595 per person. Those towns with a library will charge a levy rate of $21.595 per person, while the Town of Assiniboia will charge $28.595 per person.
The regional library will use that money to build up its database and acquire more books, said Smith. It will also purchase more programs for the online streaming platform Hoopla, which offers TV shows, radio programs, movies, comic books, graphic novels, and other downloadable materials.
“It’s a very, very popular one, but it’s becoming very expensive because it’s better than Netflix,” she added.
There are over 70 municipalities within the Palliser Regional Library area. The average cost to keep the 19 Palliser rural branches open for one hour per week in 2019-20 is $19,332.54.
In 2005, the base rural library levy was $8.01, while next year it will be $14.595 per person. This is an increase of almost 83 per cent. Meanwhile, in 2005 the provincial grant was $589,831, while in 2018-19, the grant was $681,684 — an increase of 15.6 per cent.
The one-time grant increase enabled Palliser to pick up a shortfall in libraries’ hours worth $1,281. However, without the purchase of additional hours, 19 branches will lose 7.5 hours per week next year. Two branches will not lose any hours; three branches will lose 0.25 hours; seven branches will lose 0.50 hours; and five branches will experience a loss of 0.75 hours.
To offset this shortfall, an increase in 2020 for the rural library levy of 37 cents per person would have been necessary, Smith explained. However, the increase would not be evenly distributed since eight branches would pay more to maintain their open hours while others would gain up to four hours without paying anything.
“For a lot of our branches, to raise $500 to pick up that extra half-hour is not that hard for them to do,” she said, adding unless the organization receives more grant money, it may have to increase the rural library levy in 2021.
