[Bogie Shooter]

As The Villages grew so did the revenue that Sumter County collected. With that additional revenue, new libraries were built and staffed. But now the county wants to get out of the library business. Will there not be additional revenue coming in with the additional 10,000 homes yet to be built? Why has the proposal to privatize the library being done in such haste? I agree with the letter writer in the Daily Sun, this is beginning to smell like a middle of the night deal. Why not vet the issue in the public with all the pros and cons.

[Harry Gilbert]

Originally Posted by Golf View

If the letter writer in today's Daily Sun is correct that $3,100,000 is budgeted for the library system, wouldnt that mean that if the system was privatized the taxpayers would save the $3,100,000? Just askin'

No,

As an example:

The County budgets 3.1 mil for the Library system and a private Co comes in and says they can do the same job for say 2.7 mil. That would save taxpayers .4 mil not the entire 3.1

[Taltarzac725]

I do not believe you can put a money value on what functions a library does in a single community. A library provides avenues of information for potential job seekers especially with respect to information about potential employers, schools and universities one might attend, tax break information, etc. It also increases literacy of those kids who use libraries after school and during summer vacations. Many library systems have extensive DVD, CD, audiobook, e-Book, and other collections which save many citizens the cost of buying these items. Many libraries have programs for kids offering story tellers, sleep overs in libraries for teens, teen activities like trivia hunts, etc.

I just do not think libraries should be privatized. They serve a critical role in many communities.

I am biased as I have a MA in Librarianship and Information Management from the University of Denver (Class of Spring 1984) and have worked or volunteered in a number of different libraries including public libraries in MN, FL, and CO; a law library in MN; and an academic library in Colorado. I have used libraries heavily in Nevada, Arizona, California, Minnesota, Illinois, Florida, and Colorado since I was 17 or so.

I have also been involved heavily in improving the situation of survivors/victims of crimes through better access for practical information since 1992 and received 24 nominations to Marquis Who's Who volumes from 1992 or so through 2002. I tried to have some kind of affect on the holdings of every library in the US going through various associations. I do not believe a victim/survivor of crime should be alone on the Internet looking for this kind of information and libraries should have links to support groups that help people in this situation.

I used the identifiers 224 and 613 in telling my story since mid 1993 to many using whatever means at my disposal as my interest in helping survivors/victims of crimes is rooted in my own experiences with a conspiracy involving two murders one of which occurred near the University of Nevada, Reno campus on my birthday of 2-24 in 1976. This was the murder of my then high school English teacher's daughter Michelle Mitchell on 2-24. It also involves my experiences at 3 law school libraries starting at Brigham Young in 1982, through the University of Denver in 1983-1984 and the University of Minnesota from 1986 through late 1991.

[HMLRHT1]

the county would then use the saved money else where. Didn't read of any money coming back to the tax payer.

[Golf View]

Originally Posted by Harry Gilbert

No,

As an example:

The County budgets 3.1 mil for the Library system and a private Co comes in and says they can do the same job for say 2.7 mil. That would save taxpayers .4 mil not the entire 3.1

Where did the 2.7 mil. figure come from? Even if you are right, the savings would be $400,000, that's not pocket change.

[Goodgriefcb]

Thank you Taltarzac725. You have said exactly what I try to explain to people. The truly great work library employees do each day, all day is the stuff that is not measurable. We do more that just lend stuff out and shush people. Yet we rarely toot our horns. I have helped countless people receive help when their homes were underwater from Hurricane Debby when every govt agency turned them away. I've consoled people, encouraged people, taught people how to use the computer so they can look for jobs, apply for aid, register for college. I've convinced a stubborn soul to seek medical help when they came in with a list of symptoms that were frighteningly serious. If I was stumped on how to help someone, I have never just shrugged my shoulders and told them "I don't know". I sought advice from my colleagues and worked harder until I found the answer. Do you know how many times I've had that happen to me by some employee in a store? At least 100. I can understand if you work part time for minimum wage that there might not be much motivation to go above and beyond. But that's what library workers do daily--go above and beyond. The problem is, the county officials don't see that nor do they understand that. LSSI just comes in and tells them a fantasy that speaks only what they understand. Money. To hell with hard working dedicated employees who are already mostly underpaid. Eventually it trickles down to library users because the new less skilled, possibly less dedicated employees will simply shrug and say I don't know. Kinda reminds way back when hospitals laid off RNs and replaced them with less experienced people. If I remember correctly, the poop hit the fan and hospitals reversed back into hiring RNs again.

[jflynn1]

This was an article form **************.comWeek after LSSI deal, temporary library jobs posted. .
A week and a day after the Sumter County Commission voted in favor of a nearly $2 million deal to outsource county library services to a Maryland company, the County’s Library Services Department posted two positions for temporary library assistants.

In a June 25 standing-room only meeting at Colony Cottage Recreation Center, commissioners voted to contract with Library Systems & Services LLC to take over operations of the county-run facility.

A large crowd, the vast majority opposed to library privatization, for nearly two hours that evening aired their strong opinions on the proposed move.

Many were concerned that dedicated library employees would be the first causality of the deal.

The temporary jobs, posted on the eve of the Independence Day holiday, pay $10.21-$16.24 per hour and offer no benefits. The closing date for applicants is 5 p.m. July 10.

The qualifications listed are, “Graduation from an accredited high school or possession of an acceptable equivalency diploma. One (1) year related experience or training. Valid Florida Driver’s License and a driving record acceptable to insurance provider.”

I guess this answers alot of the questions raised. The company awarded the outsourcing/ privatizing contarct operates with a 21 % profit margin, this would indicate based on a $2,000,000 contract $420,000 of Sumter county taxpayers dollars are being sent out of the county and out of the state. Confrming Greed is realy Good.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by jflynn1

This was an article form **************.comWeek after LSSI deal, temporary library jobs posted. .
A week and a day after the Sumter County Commission voted in favor of a nearly $2 million deal to outsource county library services to a Maryland company, the County’s Library Services Department posted two positions for temporary library assistants.

In a June 25 standing-room only meeting at Colony Cottage Recreation Center, commissioners voted to contract with Library Systems & Services LLC to take over operations of the county-run facility.

A large crowd, the vast majority opposed to library privatization, for nearly two hours that evening aired their strong opinions on the proposed move.

Many were concerned that dedicated library employees would be the first causality of the deal.

The temporary jobs, posted on the eve of the Independence Day holiday, pay $10.21-$16.24 per hour and offer no benefits. The closing date for applicants is 5 p.m. July 10.

The qualifications listed are, “Graduation from an accredited high school or possession of an acceptable equivalency diploma. One (1) year related experience or training. Valid Florida Driver’s License and a driving record acceptable to insurance provider.”

I guess this answers alot of the questions raised. The company awarded the outsourcing/ privatizing contarct operates with a 21 % profit margin, this would indicate based on a $2,000,000 contract $420,000 of Sumter county taxpayers dollars are being sent out of the county and out of the state. Confrming Greed is realy Good.

I missed that point somehow.