Libraries under budget microscope as Prince George’s struggles to rebound from recession (2013)

[UrbanScholar]

Really

Libraries under budget microscope as Prince George’s struggles to rebound from recession - The Washington Post

[justtitans]

Can somebody please explain to me, why PG has had budget shortfalls the past few years and no one has seemed to question how mismanaged the budget seems to be?

Can we finally admit that there is something seriously wrong with the fact that this county is still struggling to recover from the recession?

[North Beach Person]

The school system laid off 1/2 of the school Media Specialists (Librarians) a couple years ago. The result was that Elementary and Middle schools had part time coverage in the libraries. Last year a plan was floated to cut the High School Specialists in 1/2 also. That ended up not happening (COMAR requires full time librarians at that level) but Baker is just following Hite's program.

As to PGVATitans question: this isn't new. I'm now in my 30th year in the school system and for the vast majority of those there has been some sort of budget "crisis".

[EdwardA]

Originally Posted by UrbanScholar

Really

Libraries under budget microscope as Prince George’s struggles to rebound from recession - The Washington Post

Prince George’s has fiscal challenges that set it apart from other Washington area jurisdictions. The county funds 70 percent of its spending plan with residential property tax revenue, which has been slow to rebound from the economic downturn. A voter-imposed tax cap limits the county government’s ability to raise taxes, which are already among the region’s highest.

Good thing PG has good bond ratings or it'll be like Detroit in more ways than one. Another reason why I think this casino is a red herring. Oh well. Personally I enjoy the libraries, sure there are probably better options in the region but the libraries in PG seem like an oasis to me. I can get the titles I want even popular ones without much of a wait. The staff is nice and the riff raff is kept to a minimum.

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by EdwardA

That says it all right there. Which is why the county needs more revenue from commerce. Yes, as many have stated, the casino is not a panacea, but it is a big drop in a bucket that has been empty far too long. In addition, the more people that move into the county that will work at new businesses will naturally add to the coffers. It is a slow painful process and the recession certainly didn't help. The most frustrating part is that the recession hit just as there were signs of life in the county. It sucked the wind out of those sails big time.

[justtitans]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

That says it all right there. Which is why the county needs more revenue from commerce. Yes, as many have stated, the casino is not a panacea, but it is a big drop in a bucket that has been empty far too long. In addition, the more people that move into the county that will work at new businesses will naturally add to the coffers. It is a slow painful process and the recession certainly didn't help. The most frustrating part is that the recession hit just as there were signs of life in the county. It sucked the wind out of those sails big time.

The county also needs to find a way to handle the foreclosure process. Of course Maryland has tons of rules that prevent PG from pushing the foreclosures back on the market, but I'm also talking about creative marketing to intice people to buy those homes up and also continuing to educate people. Having a bunch of houses that are just sitting and rotting, instead of having families in them, won't help the cause.

[justtitans]

You know I was thinking about this situation this weekend and I think the situation is deeper than even a budget. It seems as though whenever there are budget issues within PG the first things on the chopping block are education or in this case libraries. I believe that there is mindset to suppress anything that would allow people to have an understanding of things or at least to be in position to make more educated decisions or at least to continually allow people to think that these type of things are important. If people were more knowledgeable in PG County they wouldn't support half the laws or half the leaders that they do. I mean think about it, if the libraries were so important to the people in this county, then this wouldn't even be a consideration, would it? There is clearly something wrong with the priorities in this county when so much energy spent on stupid things like a casino, but little to no time is spent on ensure that essential services such as libraries, public safety and other things aren't cut.