Title
To express support for Issue 4 to maintain the exceptional service and valuable resources provided by the Columbus Metropolitan Library.
Body
WHEREAS, Columbus Metropolitan Library has been serving residents of central Ohio for more than 125 years, and strives to provide the most valuable and relevant services for its customers; and
WHEREAS, the library lends over seventeen million items and logs over eight million visits per year; and
WHEREAS, each year over 40,000 residents use the Job Help Centers, 52,000 children use the Homework Help Centers and 85,000 people participate in the Summer Reading Club at the Columbus Metropolitan Library; and
WHEREAS, earlier this year, the Columbus Metropolitan Library received the Library Journal's Library of the Year award, one of the highest honors bestowed on library systems in the United States; and
WHEREAS, due to cuts in state funding and budget reductions, the Columbus Metropolitan Library has decreased its operating costs by $11 million through pay cuts, reducing staff by 160 positions, reducing book and reference material budgets, deferring maintenance issues, delaying technology upgrades, and reducing library hours at all locations including closing branches on Sundays; and
WHEREAS, to maintain the quality of the area's library system, the Columbus Metropolitan Library is seeking to replace the current 2.2 library levy which was passed in 1986 and expires this year and add 0.6 mills to replace the large cuts in state funding; and
WHEREAS, the levy is the only local funding provided to the Columbus Metropolitan Library and the last increase was 24 years ago; and
WHEREAS, the passage of the levy would add $5.24 per month on a $100,000 property and protect library services including books and references materials, vital programs for children and youths, internet access for research, small business growth and job searches, programs and outreach for seniors, technology upgrades and necessary building maintenance; and
WHEREAS, the Columbus Metropolitan Library is a vital community resource that provides exceptional services for area residents to help transform their lives and benefit the entire community; now, therefore
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
That Columbus City Council does hereby support the passage of Issue 4 for the Replacement and Increase of the current library levy to maintain the exceptional service and valuable resources the library provides everyday to the residents of our community.