The Nova Scotia cabinet minister responsible for library funding has requested a meeting with the board of the Annapolis Valley Regional Library in the wake of news that five library branches will close due to funding shortfalls.
“We’d like to sit down and have a meeting with them and see where those gaps are,” Dave Ritcey, minister of communities, culture, tourism and heritage, told reporters following a cabinet meeting Thursday.
Ritcey’s comments come one day after he received a letter from the Council of Regional Libraries, which represents the province’s nine regional library systems.
The letter called for the province to increase funding as the libraries struggle with rising costs due to inflation.
“The strain on library systems is now becoming unsustainable,” Erin Comeau, chair of the council, wrote in the letter which was made public Thursday.
“Reduced staffing levels are contributing to safety concerns, staff burnout, and a diminished capacity to respond to growing community needs.
“Stagnant wages and limited operational support are also contributing to staff turnover, further reducing the ability of libraries to develop and sustain valuable programs and services.”
Libraries call for $12.78 million funding increase
Comeau’s letter calls for an increase to the core provincial operating grant of $12.78 million, “with future funding levels subject to annual indexation to account for inflationary pressures and rising operating costs.”
Ritcey told reporters Thursday that his government provides about 70 per cent of operational funding for regional libraries, which amounts to $16.4 million.
On Monday, the Annapolis Valley’s library board announced it plans to close branches in Hantsport, Kentville, Lawrencetown, Port Williams and Middleton as of July 20—changes that will affect 23 staff members.
Ritcey called the decision to close libraries “devastating.”
“We want to make sure we understand how we got to that point,” Ritcey said.
He said Nova Scotia’s libraries receive $16.4 million each year from the province, which accounts for 70 per cent of their operational costs, and the province has never reduced that funding.
But library officials have said the situation should come as a surprise to no one, and that warnings have been issued for years about the need to revisit a funding formula that has not changed since 2020.
Julia Merritt, CEO of the Annapolis Valley Regional Library, said they’ve received Ritcey’s request for a meeting and are working to nail down a time.
Merritt said it’s good to talk about how much libraries mean to communities and the good work they do, but ultimately the issue at hand is that doing that work comes with a financial reality.
Without a change in the funding formula, Merritt said libraries across the province are facing similar concerns as hers.
“We have all been feeling the pressure and Annapolis Valley just happens to be first at this point,” she said.
“But make no mistake, the other libraries are feeling the pressure.”
Reserve funds have restrictions
Although some politicians have raised questions about the board’s ability to use reserve funds to reduce the financial burden they face, Merritt said it’s not that simple.
The board has a restricted reserve fund, the majority of which consists of a $1.2-million bequest from 2022 that came with the instruction the money be used for the benefit of the branch in Annapolis Royal.
Merritt said the board invested that money and will use it to cover staffing costs at the branch so the site is able to remain open.
Other reserve funds will largely be consumed offsetting deficits from last year and the anticipated shortfall this year, she said.
Opposition leaders called on the government to update the funding formula for libraries to reflect the increased costs they’ve faced since the last time the formula changed and to ensure services continue for the communities in question.
Source: CBC Nova Scotia