UPDATING FLORIDAS STATE AID PROGRAM Analysis and Recommendations 2005

Contents Introduction State Aid Today Issues Recommendations Next Steps

Introduction A review of the State Aid program was initiated by the State Librarian in response to requests from the library community.

Task Force Members Wendy Breeden, Lake County Library System Mary A. Brown, Pinellas Public Library Cooperative Eugene Fischer, West Florida Regional Library Danny Hales, Suwannee River Regional Library Sol Hirsch, Alachua County Library District Ed Kilroy, Osceola County Library System Mike Knievel, Volusia County Public Library Rita Maupin, Calhoun County Public Library Bob Melanson, Winter Park Public Library Raymond Santiago, Miami-Dade Public Library System Julie Sieg, Marion County Public Library System Joe Stines, Hillsborough Public Library Cooperative

Introduction Review Process Task Force State Library and Archives Staff April to September meetings and 2 conference calls Public Library Directors Meeting, Oct presentation and discussion

Part I: State Aid Today

State Aid Today Incentive program Grants based on local money spent on library services Encourages local support for public library service

State Aid Today State Aid Recipients - 67 counties and 18 municipalities FY Appropriation - $31,849,233

State Aid Today Funding Overview FY $ million FY $ million FY $ million FY $32.4 million FY $32.4 million FY $31.4 million

State Aid Today Operating Grants Equalization Grants Multicounty Grants

Declining Operating Grants

Operating Grants Available to qualified county and municipal public libraries More libraries eligible than in past Legislature can provide up to 25 cents for each local dollar spent FY cents provided for each dollar spent FY cents provided for each dollar spent

Operating Grants Calculated after the Equalization and Multicounty Grants are determined using the remaining funds – prorated Distributed to all participating libraries Decreasing as libraries qualify for more Equalization funding

Equalization Grants Available only to counties (1) that qualify for Operating Grants and (2) have limited tax resources

Equalization Grants Calculated first Fully funded - not prorated Based on three factors: 1.Fiscal Capacity (eligibility) 2.Need (eligibility) 3.Local Effort (amount of grant) Increase as local expenditures increase

Equalization Factor 1 --Fiscal Capacity Considers a countys ability to fund public services Based on the value of a mill - after adjustments are made Must rank among the lower 34 counties Note: A mill is $1 tax for each $1,000 of property value.

Equalization Factor 2 -- Need Countys per capita expenditures for library service must be below the statewide average

Equalization Factor 3 --Local Effort Reward for counties that spend a higher proportion of their limited resources for public library service Receive a match of 50 cents on the dollar if they spend more than statewide average Receive a match of 25 cents on the dollar if they spend less than statewide average

Multicounty Grants Provide funding support for rural counties with low tax bases and limited resources Enable counties to share resources Currently there are nine multicounty public library systems with two to four counties each

Multicounty Grants Fully funded – not prorated Provide a match on local expenditures up to $1 million based on the number of participating counties Three-county systems also receive a base grant of $250,000 Two-county systems do not receive a base grant

Part II: The Issues

Guiding Principles Continue to tie State Aid to local funding State Aid is important to libraries with limited financial resources Changes should not undermine Equalization and Multicounty Grants

Guiding Principles Changes should not decrease grants for any library as long as local expenditures remain the same Grants benefit different libraries in different ways Stagnant State Aid appropriations and rapid population growth have created funding shortages for some counties

Major Issues Operating Grants do not need modification Equalization & Multicounty Grants need to be strengthened The balance among the three grant programs must be restored to reverse the continued decrease in Operating Grants

Equalization Grant Issues The need factor requires further review Libraries that no longer qualify for Equalization Grant need time to prepare to operate without it Counties with ample resources may still qualify

Multicounty Grant Issues Continue incentives to encourage larger multicounty library systems Continue match on local expenditures Add a base grant for two-county systems Increase base grant for systems with three or more counties

Part III: Recommendations

Recommendations 1.No change for Operating Grants 2.Equalization and Multicounty Grants provide much-needed support to low-wealth counties 3.Keep the current fiscal capacity criterion for Equalization Grants

Recommendations 4. Replace the current need factor with one of two factors: Operating millage subject to the 10-mill cap when compared to statewide average or Per capita income equal to or below the statewide average

Recommendations 5. Add a three-year phase out for a county that no longer qualifies for an Equalization Grant

Recommendations 6. County cannot reenter the Equalization Grant program once it fails to meet the qualification requirements

Recommendations 7. Limit the amount available to fund Equalization Grants to no more than 15 percent of the total appropriation 8. Limit a countys Equalization Grant to no more than 10 percent of the amount available to fund Equalization

Recommendations 9. Multicounty library systems must include at least one county that qualifies for an Equalization Grant 10.Provide a $50,000 base grant for two-county multicounty library systems as soon as the legislation passes

Recommendations 11. Increase the base grant for multicounty libraries with three or more counties to $350,000 when the appropriation is at least $32,804,710, which is three percent more than the FY appropriation

Recommendations 12. Eliminate current language that allows an increase in the base grant for multicounty libraries based on the cost of living 13. Keep the current match on local expenditures for multicounty libraries

Recommendations 14. Do not prorate Multicounty Grants 15. Freeze the amount available to fund Equalization at $7,090,792 (FY amount) until State Aid reaches at least $47,272,000 (15 percent of the appropriation for Equalization)

Next Steps Changes to the State Aid grant program require action by the Florida Legislature Recommended changes may go forward for consideration in 2007 Approved changes would become effective for FY