RSS Feed
 |
|
|||||||||||||||
Islip Library budget vote set for Tuesday The West Islip Library Board of Trustees has adopted a proposed operating budget of $3,212,802 for 2008-2009 year, which will be voted on by residents on Tues., April 15 from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Daniel L. Carter Community Room B in the library. Approval of the budget would result in a 3.3 percent increase in the library tax appropriation. The various components of the proposed budget include the funding for Library materials, operating expenses, salaries, benefits and other expenses, said Library Director Andrew Hamm. The average West Islip homeowner pays $365.85 a year for library taxes and the proposed budget would increase that figure to $378.41, or an additional $12.56 a year for library services. The total increase in spending for the coming year is $121,194, or 3.98 percent. "We're hoping the budget as a whole strikes a balance between providing the services that people have come to expect and being financially prudent," Hamm said. The largest portion of the budget is for salaries and benefits. The new budget increases those line items from $2,375,608 to $2,454,802, or $79,194. This includes an increase in professional positions (which includes the reclassification of the head of communication services from clerical to professional) as well as library aides and custodial positions. Benefits including social security, disability, and various health insurance also factor in. Director Hamm said the staff would largely remain the same with minor additions for custodial help. Hamm said overall services levels would increase with the new budget. "We are looking to maintain what we have as well as increase programming," Hamm said. Books and materials for the library will see an increase of $8,000 in the budget proposal. Aside from books, the specific increase includes periodicals such as newspapers, magazines and various financial services, which Hamm said, have increased in cost. Also included are microfilming services, which includes archives of The New York Times and Newsday. Hamm stressed the importance of having a permanent archival collection within the library itself. Electronic resources are also included and are available on the library website: www.wipublib.org. These include various databases services not available to the average consumer. Also included is various library programming such as concerts, lectures and children's programming. The library board is hoping to add additional programming in the coming year. "We are trying to build up our DVD collection as it's the highest circulating segment of our collection," Hamm said. Other expenditures and incidentals in the proposed budget include utilities such as gas and electric, telephone, accounting and legal costs. The cost of insurance also sees an increase of $6,500 that includes the addition of a federal flood insurance policy for the library.
Also on the ballot on April 15 is one five-year position for Library Trustee held by Joan Schumacher, who is running unopposed for re-election.
|
for larger version       Ads have a Patent Pending. Click Here for More Information |
||||||||||||||
