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Saturday, March 29, 2003

By Ernie Hoffman, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

Members of the Westmoreland County Library Federation met in Greensburg yesterday to voice their opposition to a 50 percent cut in aid to public libraries as part of the new state budget.

The libraries received $75 million in state tax dollars during the current fiscal year, but that figure will drop to $37.5 million in 2003-04 if the budgeted appropriation isn't amended before the end of June.

That reduction translates into about $1 million less for the 19 libraries in Westmoreland County, said Fred Natale, federation system coordinator.

Robert Lightcap, a past president of the federation, said the cuts would reduce state aid to libraries to pre-1999 levels when "Pennsylvania had one of the poorest-funded library systems in the country."

The 50 percent cut will force the libraries to reduce programs and hours and it might even force some of the smaller Westmoreland libraries to close, Natale and Lightcap said.

The state Legislature approved the budget earlier this month. It goes into effect July 1.

State Reps. Jess Stairs, R-Mount Pleasant and Ted Harhai, D-Monessen, and state Sen. Allen G. Kukovich, D-Manor, said they would work with the libraries to try to reduce the amount of the aid reduction.

"The 50 percent is not acceptable," said Stairs.

Kukovich was hopeful that something could be done while lawmakers work on a proposed supplemental education budget.

"We have three months to ease the pain of these cuts," Kukovich said.