GilfordGrok

Well, today was the subcommittee for the Library to meet with the Library Trustees and Administration to review their budget.  I expected that there would be some "discussion" as their budget increase, percentage wise at 7.46%, was the highest of all of the Town's departments. 

I made a recording of the session, just click on the gramaphone below.

Their budget, both proposed and allowed by the Board of Selectmen, is shown below.  Yeah, there were a few issues that you can pick up from the audio:

• Their rate of increase, 7.46%, is far above that of most other departments - and most of the other department's increases were due to an accounting decision to move fuels from DPW's budget to the separate departments.  The library had no such line item.
  

• The new part time position.  It was explained that it was really an "old" part time position in that it was added after last year's Budget season (where no extra position was approved) while they were still in the old library but before they moved to the new building (therefore, it was not a new position).  As far as I could tell, it is a New position - New in that it now exists where one did not during last year's deliberations.

• We also discussed that their circulation is up as well.  In fact, much of their budget was defended that they were unwilling at all to decrease ANY line item due to the increase in circulation even as we pointed out that all other departments had much lower increases as they had realized that times were economically unstable (yet had upticks in demand as well).

• They have a number of programs that are used to bring in people to the Library for various reasons.  Essentially, this is in hopes of ramping up circulation (i.e., most people will pick up a book when they visit).  It seems that these marketing programs are working - more marketing means more people which means higher circulation  which means an ever increasing budgetary spiral that provides for more marketing.Fine for a business, but for a government agency?
  

• If you listen to the audio, it will become obvious near the end (that besides the tension discussing the budget line items) that there is a wide philosophical difference between the BudComm members and how they perceive what the mission of a small town library should be vs what the Library Trustees (specifically Tracey Petrozzi and Polly Sanfacon) believe it should be.  In short:

• The subcommittee members tend to see a library as a collection of books and other information materials to be utilized by the citizenry.
• A discussion of mission or "project creep" - what happens when something continually grows beyond its initial purpose - overlaps with other departments, competition within the town and marketplace, et al.
  
• The Trustees seemingly see the Library as just one piece of an overall puzzle to help care for all children and that the Town should spend what is necessary to stand in for parents who either have to work or are "absentee" parents.  They also had no problem, it seemed, to "compete" with the private marketplace by providing some materials (e.g., saving a trip to the DVD store) to make it more convenient ("I don't have to go all the way to the store...").
  

The primary question is "What is the right and proper role of government?"  This question should always be asked of all levels of government.  Then at each level, a determination should be made of the relative importance of each each department in relation to that question, and drilling down, the relative priorities within a department.

Government cannot be all things or supply all things to all people; there is not enough money in the world to slake the incipient demand for those services and products perceived as "free".  Priorities must be set - not all things can all be Priority 1 when dealing with a scarce resource - dollars.

But don't take my word for it - listen to the audio yourself and come to the Budget Committee meeting this coming Thursday - it may be quite interesting.