Rural depopulation and general underfunding are financially affecting library organizations, which is why Palliser Regional Library (PRL) believes advocating to the government could help address revenue shortfalls.
The emptying of rural municipalities is happening just as libraries are taking on new roles and facing increasing service costs, explained PRL director Jan Smith. Besides materials, libraries are now technology hubs, government service points, and programming/enrichment activity centres for life, education and recreation.
Libraries are also important partners in making rural life attractive, while the system allows branches to work cost-effectively, she continued. That system is in crisis, but it is not being felt equally and has resulted in Palliser and Chinook (Swift Current) facing budget deficits in 2023.
“The money is not there without massive public layoffs. We need money … ,” Smith said during the Nov. 4 in-person/online fall meeting.
PRL has received a total funding increase of 2.38 per cent during the past decade, which is unsustainable and will force the organization to cut staff at headquarters, she added.
A chart in Smith’s report showed that in 2011-12, the organization received $680,708 in provincial funding. A decade later, in 2021-22, that increased to $708,753 — a jump of $28,045. However, the grant will decrease by $3,616 to $705,137 for the 2022-23 year.
The province has increased regional library funding in general during the last decade by 2.16 per cent — the province’s population grew 15.66 per cent in that time — but that distribution has been unequal and “even the best of us can’t live off that,” Smith said.
Of that funding, Chinook received 3.71 per cent, Palliser received 2.38 per cent, Southeast (Weyburn) acquired 7.29 per cent and Wheatland (Saskatoon) acquired 12.58 per cent.
Library board chairs from Palliser and Chinook met with the Ministry of Education on Sept. 8 and asked for three things:
- An immediate moratorium on municipalities withdrawing from regions; Swift Current and Yorkton are considering leaving their respective library organizations
- An overall increase next year to Palliser’s and Chinook’s core budget of about $70,000 to retain staff and services
- An overall increase in the regional library resource sharing grant to remain aligned with the province’s 2030 population goal of 1.4 million that Premier Scott Moe “is bragging about” and keep abreast of inflation
“We are having a very hard time selling the need for increases to the regional library pool as, once again, all is quiet on the library front,” Smith said. “No one from the grassroots level is reaching out to the government and letting them know that the funding is inadequate and should annually be brought in line with the growth plan.”
Besides sending letters and petitions about this issue to municipalities, local library boards and regional representatives, Smith has also written a letter to the provincial government saying the library system needs a “living, breathing regional stipend” and support addressing the Chinook and Yorkton issue.
“It has the potential to destroy absolutely everything, (which) the (The Libraries Act, 1996) fixed, which was the ability for people to withdraw,” she continued. “We would spend every year trying to track down who would be a member.”
The system’s “universality” is important since it allows regions to swap physical and online materials easily, Smith added. The province needs to say no to Swift Current and Yorkton leaving.
Mary Smillie, from Davidson, said the public protests against the province’s funding cuts in 2017 had a major effect on MLAs. Her MLA indicated that the picketing in front of his office was the most significant thing in his 20-year career.
“We were able to garner a lot of public support for libraries under that crisis … ,” she said, adding regional libraries should align their goals with the province’s 2030 growth plan to acquire more funding. “The status quo is a tremendous magnet for not changing.”
Palliser board chair Jim Achtymichuk told those online, “Your silence on this will be considered acceptance of the situation. Just remember that … . So, please don’t be silent.”
