With lower budget, public library faces a tough year

The already “limited” services being offered at the Joeten-Kiyu Public Library may be cut even further if the Legislature ignores pleas to restore the working hours of its staff, according to library executive director John Oliver Gonzales yesterday.

Gonzales reiterated yesterday to members of the House Ways and Means Committee the need to exempt library personnel from the planned austerity measure for the next fiscal year.

The public library employs six part-time federally funded personnel and seven who are paid with local funds, including the executive director.

The library was budgeted $217,240 for its personnel in the beginning of fiscal year 2011. This dropped to $109,669 as a result of budget cuts implemented by the Executive Branch.

Gonzales disclosed yesterday that the same budget ceiling of $109,669 is being proposed for the library in fiscal year 2012, plus about $20,000 for operations and supplies.

If that budget passes, Gonzales said the library will have “very tough year” and will be forced to implement further cuts in its service hours.

This year’s budget cuts has already resulted in the library having only four days of service—from Wednesday to Saturday and, if holidays fall within these days, the facility also closes down. This has resulted in complaints and negative feedback from the reading community, Gonzales said.

He stressed that the library is ancillary to the Public School System, which has been exempted from the austerity measures.

On Aug. 11, Gonzales will face the Senate Fiscal Affairs Committee to take up the library’s proposed budget for next fiscal year.

“Statistics show that thousands of people visit and patronize their public library because all services we provide are free. During these resource challenging times, our library must be more relevant, open, accessible, and available to our people,” he told Saipan Tribune.

Despite having only four days of full service, an estimated 500 people visit the facility each day, Gonzales said. During summer, the number significantly increases due to various reading programs conducted by schools and organizations.

The Joeten-Kiyu Public Library has been operating without a librarian since 2005 due to a funding shortfall. The position, according to Gonzales, was eliminated five years ago and has never been restored.

The seven locally-funded staffers are employed as librarian aides. If austerity will continue in fiscal year 2012, Gonzales said the library may soon lose its workforce because many of them are looking for alternative jobs.