A coalition of independent libraries asked the Rio Arriba County Commission Sept. 29 to revisit budget cuts commissioners made in June. Three weeks after commissioners agreed to find the money in the County’s budget, there was no indication whether they will follow through.
Representatives from Rio Arriba Independent Libraries asked the county commissioners, during the Sept. 29 meeting, to reinstate at least some of the $20,000 cut. The total allocation for the libraries went from $37,500 in Fiscal Year 2016 to $17,500 in Fiscal year 2017, which began in July.
“The County budget cuts for Rio Arriba Independent Libraries was very unexpected and will create a hardship this winter,” Isabel Trujillo, director of El Pueblo de Abiquiú Library and Cultural Center, said. “We ask that you reconsider your annual support.”
Commissioners appeared sympathetic to the librarians, and directed County Manager Tomas Campos and finance staff to find the money.
“I definitely want to push our managers and finance department to brainstorm, get back to these rural library directors, and let them know what we can help them with,” Commissioner Barney Trujillo said. “I would like to ask my commissioners to push them actually to back it up and let’s give them what they need.”
Trujillo suggested that the money be taken out of the $4 million budget for the County’s detention center.
“You know people (detained in the facility) have done some wrong in life, yet we’re only funding our libraries mainly $40,000, not even that, this year,” he said. “To me, that number has to come up quite dramatically, and the other number has to come down. If we can’t allocate (money) to our youth, and to our community, I mean, what do we have elected officials for? ”
Commissioner Danny Garcia said the commission is willing to help.
“I’m sorry about what happened, we had to do it (make the cuts),” Garcia said. “But definitely, we will sit down and see how much we can help you guys with.”
When asked for follow up comment on Oct. 19, Campos wrote in a text message that there was no word yet on whether the funding had been reallocated.
“Not yet,” he wrote. “There is no change in Rio Arriba revenue outlook.”
He did not address moving library funds from other budgets, as suggested by commissioners.
The libraries were expecting word from the County that week, Shel Neymark, president of Embudo Valley Library and Community Center, said in an interview.
Rio Arriba Independent Libraries is a coalition of five nonprofit public libraries. They are Truchas Public Library, El Rito Library, El Pueblo de Abiquiú Library and Embudo Valley Library.
County Commissioners approved a last minute $46,332,915 budget for Fiscal Year 2017 that includes a $17,696,063 General Fund allocation.
Commissioners, management and finance officials balanced a projected $1.9 million budget deficit by making across-the-board cuts, which will leave several departments with unfilled positions and support services they enjoyed during healthier financial times.
Felicity Fonseca, executive director of Embudo Valley Library, said the County provides the core funding that allows them to provide basic library services, which frees up money for their after school and early literacy programs.
The libraries get some state grant funding along with money from the County but they don’t get as much funding as municipal libraries, Fonseca said, before she showed commissioners a slideshow of various events and programs at the libraries, including a Youth Conservation Core program, early literacy storytime, free public access computers and an archaeology partnership with University of California, Berkeley.
“(Embudo Valley Library and Community Center) has about 50 volunteers that help us work in the community,” Fonseca said. “Every one of our R.A.I.L. libraries rely on volunteers. There’s no way that we could do our work without volunteers.”
To hear more about Rio Arriba County’s rural libraries listen to the 8-minute segment on KSFR, produced for Solutions Journalism. It follows the successes and financial challenges of the libraries. https://soundcloud.com/user-625996886/new-mexicos-independent-libraries