Although DeKalb County, Georgia, is sitting on $80 million in sales-tax money and plans to slash homeowner property taxes by up to 38%, its library has shut down two branches and has ended Sunday hours systemwide.
The reason, according to the February 7 Atlanta Journal-Constitution, is that the banked sales-tax money—which came from a 1% sales tax approved in March with the stipulation that most of it would go to roll back homeowner property taxes—can only be legally used on public-improvement projects or to buy equipment. Compounding the county's budget crisis are 558 positions, most in law enforcement, added since 1997 and $20 million spent on year-2000 compliance.
“It's a shame these reductions are necessary, especially when the economy is doing so well,” Library Board Chair Bebe Joyner told the newspaper February 4, adding that the library “provides extremely high service levels with minimal staffing compared to other library systems, and we just don't have any fat to trim.”
Posted February 15, 1999.