The provincial government needs to step up and provide fair funding to support public libraries.
Coun. Dylan Kruger, Delta’s representative on the Fraser Valley Regional Library board, says he wholeheartedly supports a motion that’s coming up at this September’s Union of B.C. Municipalities convention calling on the government to do just that.
“The province’s contributions to local libraries have remained stagnant over the last decade even as inflation has gone up, increasing the funding burden on local municipalities. I will be supporting Victoria’s UBCM motion to restore provincial library funding to 2009 levels adjusted for inflation, and I encourage my fellow Delta councillors to do the same,” Kruger told the Optimist.
The City of Victoria is putting forward the proposed resolution and several municipalities have already shown support.
Victoria’s resolution notes funding rates have been frozen since 2009 and inflationary costs have increasingly been put on municipal property taxpayers, which is “a regressive approach to funding public libraries.”
Kruger agreed, saying, “Libraries exist in our communities not just to lend out books, but also to promote the universalization of knowledge. Our local Delta libraries are a great asset to our residents who borrow from an ever-increasing collection of books and educational materials, participate in great programing, and also use the space as community hubs and meeting spaces.”
Delta is a member of the FVRL system, which services more than 700,000 people through 25 community libraries, including branches in Ladner, Tsawwassen and North Delta.
Last year, council voted in favour of Delta’s membership assessment in the FVRL going up 3.34 per cent, which worked out to an extra $123,645, bringing the city’s total annual membership charge to over $3.8 million.
At the time, Coun. Robert Campbell asked, “When do we reach the breaking point?”
In 2017, Delta approved a 2.86 per cent increase that added $102,776 to the library budget, while similar increases were incurred in previous years.
Part of an ongoing strategic plan, Delta council has been allocating money for library enhancements at the three local branches. According to staff, during the last two years, more than $270,000 has been spent on upgrades to provide library staff more flexibility to expand programming options and to make Delta’s libraries more pleasant and welcoming places.
