By PAULENE POPARAD

Trustees of Westchester Public Library by consensus Thursday agreed to cut its 2009 tax rate by not levying or appropriating money for the Capital Projects Fund next year as a savings to taxpayers.

It wasn’t immediately known what the savings to a typical individual homeowner would be, but the CPF rate was just over one cent in 2006 or about 10 percent of WPL’s total rate.

The CPF has a current balance of $229,547 with the fund’s 2008 and 2007 income yet to be posted, the latter due to late distribution of property taxes last year. In all funds WPL currently has $3,387,675 in investments and checking on hand with another $2 million due in outstanding 2007 taxes; a 2008 state budget order hasn’t been finalized.

With WPL’s financial condition so good, said director Phil Baugher, not collecting CPF money is the responsible thing to do. The operating fund can’t be reduced or that would become the new base level jeopardizing future tax collections.

Library Board members Vern Odom and Rick Hokansan asked if reducing the CPF income would in any way hurt the library’s ability to make improvements or respond to unforseen, catastrophic problems. Baugher said WPL’s Library Improvement Reserve Fund also is available for projects, and the library should have a margin of at least $200,000 available despite $300,000 in planned upgrades like new computers, carpeting, circulation stations and repairs to the Thomas Library roof this year.

Hokanson supported dropping the 2009 CPF rate “as long as we can recapture it if we have to and we’re set if we have an emergency.” Baugher said with the approval of the Westchester Township Advisory Board, or a county body if townships are abolished, the CPF rate can be reinstituted.

The discussion turned to projects needing attention at library facilities and Baugher was authorized to look into the costs for addressing the furnace and wall problems at Hageman Library in Porter and persistent leaks in the 20-year-old Thomas roof in Chesterton.

Baugher said the 1975 cooling unit on the Thomas roof also needs replacement and that should occur before a new roof is put on. To protect new carpeting, leak-prone areas could be omitted temporarily, he told the board. Recarpeting at Hageman is slated to begin Jan. 21.

As it did last month, the Library Board discussed the implications of an Indiana State Library proposal regarding unfunded, mandated certification standards for library employees. If approved, the standards could be implemented in late spring or early summer.

Baugher said to be in compliance WPL would have to re-examine its departmental organization and employee education policy to reduce the Library Board’s financial liability because as currently proposed, board members can be held personally responsible for hiring uncertified/undercertified staff and may be required to reimburse public funds used to pay those salaries.

Baugher and board members did not respond kindly to the threat. The board has errors and omissions insurance, but it’s not known if the certification liability would be covered. The State Library has requested the home addresses, telephone numbers and email addresses for all library trustees.

Baugher said although WPL supervisors are very competent in their jobs, some don’t hold the required library associate’s degree and additional credit hours in library science proposed, necessitating a realignment of WPL staff and job descriptions. “Don’t they understand this isn’t practical?” asked Library Board member Sharon Robbins. Member Claire Jolie asked if WPL’s non-certified staff would be grandfathered; Baugher said yes, but they would have to meet the new continuing-education requirements. However, if they leave, new employees would have to meet the certification rules.

Odom said the rules benefit larger libraries who will be able to scavange away certified employees by paying more, and Baugher said it plays into the hands of those in the Indiana General Assembly currently trying to mandate the dissolution of smaller library systems and consolidate them into single- or multiple-county library districts.

He pointed to a local online poll of 189 respondents, 70 percent of whom expressed support for keeping WPL independent and not merging with the Porter County Library System, which doesn’t support consolidation either.

In a related matter, Library Board members voted unanimously not to renew their individual memberships in the Indiana Library Federation. To do so would have cost just over $2,000. The library system will renew its $150 membership, as will Baugher for the same amount, to stay abreast of ILF actions or lack thereof.

Board members said ILF has become more political than professional and isn’t taking a stand in general support of libraries threatened by consolidation takeovers. Said Odom regarding his board’s withholding of ILF dues, “It gives me no pleasure but what they’re doing doesn’t give me any pleasure either.”

Many in the Duneland community have supported WPL’s continued independence. Although circulation of materials was down by just over 2 percent last year at Thomas, circulation jumped by almost 19 percent at Hageman over 2006. In all 376,432 materials were circulated system-wide in 2007.

While circulation of some items has dipped, the instances of public service to patrons through other indicators such as computer use, meeting room use, web page visits, reference questions and museum program attendance increased by 16 percent last year over 2006. Each such use is a public service unit. In 2006 WPL logged a total 887,529 PSUs compared to 1,031,876 last year.

Immediately following the Library Board meeting its members reconvened as a Board of Finance and received a report on 2007 investments. Baugher said $160,543 in interest was earned. The library had cash on hand and did not, like some other government units last year, have to borrow money and pay interest while awaiting the delayed tax payments.

Posted 1/11/2008