Minutes of The Board of Library Commissioners - April 3, 2003 

Time : 10:00 A.M.

Place : Perkins School for the Blind

Watertown, Massachusetts

Present : Joseph S. Hopkins, Chairman; John E. Arnold, Vice Chairman; Dr. Em Claire Knowles, Secretary; Edward L. Bertorelli; Deborah Hill Bornheimer; Walter L. Cameron, Jr.; John E. Henderson; Elia D. Marnik

Absent : Robert F. Mooney

Staff Present:

Robert Maier, Director; Dianne Carty, Head of State Aid and Data Coordination; David Gray, Director of Communications and Public Information; Maureen Killoran, Head of Public Library Advisory and Government Liaison; Paul Kissman, Library Information Systems Specialist; Anne Larsen, Associate Library Building Consultant; Anne Meringolo, State Aid Specialist; William Morton, Assistant to the Director; Beth Wade, Grants Manager

Observers Present:

Kim Charlson, Regional Librarian, Braille and Talking Book Library at Perkins School for the Blind; Kerry Cronin, Program Consultant, Boston Massachusetts Regional Library System; Carolyn Noah, Administrator, Central Massachusetts Regional Library System; Gregory Pronevitz, Administrator, Northeast Massachusetts Regional Library System; John Ramsay, Administrator, Western Massachusetts Regional Library System; Cynthia Roach, Administrator, Southeastern Massachusetts Regional Library System; Steven Rothstein, President, Perkins School for the Blind; Warren Rutherford, Rutherford Consulting; Sondra Vandermark, Administrator, Metrowest Massachusetts Regional Library System; Marnie Warner, Law Library Coordinator, Administrative Office of the Trial Court, Trial Court Law Libraries

Call to Order

Chairman Hopkins called the meeting to order at 10:05A.M. and welcomed attendees. He recognized Steven M. Rothstein, President, Perkins School for the Blind, who welcomed the Board to its annual meeting at Perkins. Mr. Rothstein thanked the Commissioners for their commitment to the Talking Book Library Programs. He informed the Commissioners that since January 1st he has met with several dozen representatives and senators on Beacon Hill and has received a warm welcome for the Talking Book programs and for the Board of Library Commissioners.

Approval of Minutes - March 6, 2003

Commissioner Marnik moved and Commissioner Cameron seconded that the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners approve the minutes for the monthly business meeting of March 6, 2003.

The Board voted approval.

CHAIRMAN'S REPORT

Chairman Hopkins relayed that the past month had seen a lot of activity. He said that Library Legislative Day, sponsored by the Massachusetts Library Association (on Wednesday, April 2, 2003) was a resounding success, and mentioned a Resolution by the Bay State Council of the Blind that was passed on March 30, 2003, that was handed out at the Legislative Day which supported the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners as an independent agency and the Massachusetts Talking Book Libraries in Watertown and Worcester remaining under the MBLC. He requested that the resolution be read into the minutes.

"BAY STATE COUNCIL OF THE BLIND RESOLUTION 03-05

WHEREAS, Massachusetts must continue to have a visible, strong, independent and properly funded state library agency, said agency being the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, to deliver essential library services in the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, the Board of Library Commissioners initiates and coordinates programs that link libraries, promote resources sharing through a statewide delivery system, and encourages the provision of content that promotes equity of access to information for all residents; and

WHEREAS, the Perkins Braille and Talking Book Library (Watertown) and the Worcester Talking Book Library are specialized library programs for residents of the Commonwealth who are blind, visually impaired or have other physical or reading disabilities preventing the use of regular print materials; and

WHEREAS, these specialized library programs, provided in cooperation with the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped of the Library of Congress, are most effectively administered in Massachusetts by the Board of Library Commissioners; and

WHEREAS, the House 1 budget for fiscal year 2004 put forth by Governor Mitt Romney would negatively impact library services in Massachusetts by doing the following:

1) Merge the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners into a new organizational structure headed by a new Executive Office of Education, thus compromising the programs and services of the Board of Library Commissioners; and

2) Merge the Perkins Braille and Talking Book Library (Watertown) and the Talking Book Library (Worcester) into the Executive Office of Health & Human Services under a new Assistant Secretary of Operations within the proposed Disability Cluster, with no expertise in the administration or provision of specialized library programs;

NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the Bay State Council of the Blind, assembled in convention this 30th day of March, 2003, in Brookline, Massachusetts, that this organization strongly urges all of the members of the Massachusetts House and Senate to ensure that the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners remains the independent agency of state government with the statutory authority and responsibility to organize, develop, coordinate, regulate, enhance and improve library services throughout the Commonwealth; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Bay State Council of the Blind urges all of the members of the Massachusetts House and Senate to ensure that the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners remains the state agency responsible for the governance and administration of the Massachusetts Talking book Program comprised of the Perkins Braille and Talking Book Library (Watertown) and the Talking Book (Worcester).

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Joint House and Senate Committee on Ways and Means is urged to support the recommended House 1 appropriation for the following line items:

Line item account: 7000-9406 Braille and Talking Book Library (Watertown) Proposed FY04 Appropriation: $1,628,550

Line item account: 7000-9402 Talking Book Library (Worcester) Proposed FY04 Appropriation: $318,777"

Noting financial and organizational issues, Chairman Hopkins stated that these are difficult times for the agency and for libraries. He relayed that today's agenda would address many of these issues.

DIRECTOR'S REPORT

Director Maier called the Commissioners attention to a new brochure on databases that the Gale Group had designed, printed, and distributed to all public libraries in the Commonwealth.

He relayed that he had met with an attorney from the State Attorney General's office to discuss a class action suit regarding the distribution of CDs that Massachusetts was involved in. As part of the settlement, 125,000 CDs will be distributed to public libraries throughout the state later this year, and more details would be forthcoming, he said.

Director Maier informed the Commissioners that he had met with Regional Librarian Kim Charlson and others from the Talking Book Library in March to discuss a new product called "Newsline" that delivers newspapers through a telephone connection for those who are visually impaired. More details will be provided as the technical details are worked out.

LEGISLATIVE REPORT

Chairman Hopkins stated that there was no legislative report per se because legislative matters are covered under other items on today's agenda.

SUMMARY REPORT ON THE LEGISLATIVE BREAKFASTS, LEGISLATIVE HEARINGS AND THE STATE BUDGET

Although no official Legislative Report was given, Director Maier provided a summary of activities and developments surrounding the state budget that have taken place in the last 6 weeks as follows:

• The Regional Library Systems organized 18 legislative breakfasts statewide that took place over the last 5 weeks. Attendance totaled 90 legislators and aides and 1,132 members of the library community.

• On Feb. 28, Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey attended the legislative breakfast in Methuen, spoke to the 135 people in attendance, and met with a small group after the breakfast. She expressed her heartfelt appreciation for the role of libraries and what libraries have meant to her. She said that she had a better understanding of the role of the MBLC as a result of the breakfast, and she asked the Board to help municipalities retain eligibility for library state aid in the fiscal crisis.

• On March 5 Chairman Hopkins and Director Maier met with Peter Nessen, designated Secretary of EOE. He spoke of his support for libraries and asked about the role of the Board, but had no specific information on a budget for next year.

• On March 6, the Board passed resolutions on its role, on the talking book libraries and on softening the state aid requirements for FY2004. This softening of which is a proposal to the legislature would reduce the MAR for next year to 100% and provide a total of 85 waivers for communit ies that do not disproportionately cut library funding.

• Director Maier testified at the joint hearing of the House and Senate Ways & Means Committees at Holyoke Community College. About 30 members of the library community turned out in support and six gave their own testimony: Rep. Donald Humason of Westfield, Mary Kronholm, Krista McLeod, Jim Sutton, Lee Fogarty, and John Ramsay.

• On March 20, Director Maier along with Chairman Hopkins and Construction Liaison Bornheimer testified before the House Committee on Long Term Debt. The testimony was about public library construction funding, but the focus was on the interest of the committee members in keeping the MBLC independent. Rep. Susan Pope told us about a letter of support she has written to the Governor and that the Metrowest Caucus is endorsing.

• Discussions with the BLC's Fiscal Affairs Division budget analyst have revealed the following: 1) the administration plans to issue a budget errata in which they will adjust their recommendation on LLR funding to reflect $1.06 per capita; 2) a review of capital spending controlled by Administration and Finance has resulted in a likely $2,000,000 reduction in the agency's bond spending cap for FY2003. Director Maier Has an initial agreement that any reduction in spending this year will be moved to years FY2004-FY2007 on a plan that works for the 18 projects approved by the Board. 3) A "top to bottom" review of capital spending has been ordered by A & F Secretary Eric Kriss.

• Discussions with the BLC's House Ways & Means budget analyst have been focused on budget language. Using FY2003 budget language as a starting point we have asked him to make the following changes: 1) in state aid to reduce the MAR to 100%, to add 75 waivers, and to remove the prohibition against Boston as LLR being eligible for a waiver; 2) in the regional/LLR account to remove the language that requires Boston as LLR to meet the MAR without a waiver; 3) in account 7000-9506 to change the title to "Technology and Automated Resource Sharing Networks;" 4) to restore the LSTA account (7000-9702) which was omitted in the Governor's budget at $3,248,954; and, 5) to keep the Talking Book programs under the Board's administration.

• On March 27, the Board's Committee on Regions and the Library of Last Recourse met with Boston Public Library President Bernard Margolis, Boston Region Administrator Dee Brennan and Kathleen Kirleis, Chief Financial Officer, Boston Public Library. The full content of that meeting will be discussed under committee reports. Agreement was reached on budget language that would result in proportional reduction of both the LLR and Regional parts of the regional budget line item should it be reduced. We have asked that this language, which has also been endorsed by the regional administrators, be included in the House budget.

• MLA held its annual Legislative Day at the State House yesterday. Attendance is estimated at 350. The Senate Reading Room was overflowing for the briefing at which MLA President Krista McLeod, Chairman Hopkins and Director Maier spoke. At the luncheon speakers included Krista McLeod, Sen. Susan Fargo, Rep. Lida Harkins, and Rep. Susan Pope before Commissioner Knowles kicked off Library Awareness Month and Rep. Marie Parente received the MLA Library Advocate Award. Earlier in the day, Commissioner Marnik was the host as the Massachusetts Center for the Book recognized the Massachusetts winners in the Letters about Literature program.

DISCUSSION AND CONSIDERATION OF A POLICY OF ACCOMMODATION FOR THE MATERIAL EXPENDITURE AND HOURS OPEN REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE AID TO PUBLIC LIBRARIES IN FY2004

Dianne L. Carty, Head of State Aid and Data Coordination, presented for approval the Proposed Policy, Materials Expenditure and Hours Open Accommodation Policy, for the FY2004 State Aid to Public Libraries Program.

Ms Carty relayed that public libraries in Massachusetts receive 1.31% of the municipal budget to fund the daily provision of library services to the 6,349,097 residents of the Commonwealth. This municipal support provides, on average, 88% of the library=s operating budget. State Aid to Public Libraries is awarded annually to those municipalities whose library is meeting the statutory and regulatory requirements. The intent of State Aid to Public Libraries is to encourage municipalities to support and improve public library service, compensate for disparities among municipal funding capacities, and offset the cost of circulating public library materials to Massachusetts nonresidents from certified municipalities.

Ms Carty stated that Local Aid to cities and towns has been reduced and is expected to be further reduced in FY2004. These cuts could range up to 20%. She informed the Commissioners that the proposed accommodations were developed to certify as many municipalities as possible to receive FY2004 State Aid to Public Libraries while still reinforcing the principles of library service represented by the minimum standards of public library service.

She called the Commissioners' attention to the proposed policy for the FY2004 State Aid to Public Libraries program, Materials Expenditure and Hours Open Accommodation Policy.

Commissioner Arnold moved and Commissioner Marnik seconded that the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners adopt for the FY2004 State Aid to Public Libraries program the proposed policy: Materials Expenditure and Hours Open Accommodation Policy as follows:

"FY2004 State Aid to Public Libraries Program Materials Expenditure and Hours Open Accommodation Policy

In light of the fiscal realities of FY2004, the Board of Library Commissioners recognizes the necessity of accommodating the standards of the State Aid to Public Libraries program. This policy for the accommodation of the Materials Expenditure and the Hours Open standards seeks to certify as many municipalities as possible while still reinforcing the principles of library service represented by the minimum standards of public library service.

A municipality will receive certification for FY2004 State Aid to Public Libraries if it:

• meets the FY2004 Municipal Appropriation Requirement (MAR), or receives a waiver of the FY2004 MAR,
• meets the materials expenditure and hours open standard at either a full (100%), mid-level (90%), or minimum (80%) amount,
• meets all other statutory and regulatory requirements for State Aid to Public Libraries as contained in 605 CMR 4.01.

State Aid to Public Libraries grants will be awarded to all certified municipalities.

A municipality may meet a reduced standard of as low as 80% of the materials expenditure and hours open requirement contained in regulation (605 CMR 4.01), while continuing to remain certified and receive State Aid to Public Libraries. Award amounts will be unchanged for municipalities meeting 100% of both standards.

Awards for municipalities meeting adjusted standards will be reduced according to compliance with reduced standard, and will be no less than 50% of the full award for meeting the minimum (80%) of both standards. Each standard that is met at a lower level will result in a 12.5% reduction to the full award for each level of reduction. Awards may be made in amounts of; 100%, 87.5%, 75%, 62.5%, 50%."

The Board voted approval.

CONSIDERATION OF APPROVAL OF CHANGES TO THE PROGRAM & BUDGET FOR THE LIBRARY SERVICES AND TECHNOLOGY ACT (LSTA) 2004 GRANT ROUND

Commissioner John Henderson, Board Liaison for the LSTA Program, reported that he discussed the proposed revisions with Commissioner Bertorelli, Board Liaison for the LSTA Program, SACL Chair Mary Braney and Grants Manager Beth Wade in a conference call on March 28, 2003 and that the revisions are in order.

Beth Wade called the Commissioners' attention to the "At a Glance" chart which shows the approved LSTA FY2004 budget with proposed revisions. She noted that the adjustments to the budget are based on the receipt of 97 applications at the MBLC office on March 20, 2003.

Ms Wade reported that given the applications received and funds available staff are able to recommend a revised budget that will permit funding of all applications that meet review criteria in all categories.

Commissioner Cameron moved and Commissioner Henderson seconded that the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners approve the revised FY2004 Library Services and Technology Act, Program and Budget, as presented in the accompanying documentation.

The Board voted approval.

Responding to a request from Commissioner Bornheimer, Director Maier stated that he would prepare a year-to-year comparison of grant awards and budgets and provide it to the Commissioners.

OVERVIEW OF THE PAST YEAR=S ACTIVITIES OF THE BRAILLE AND TALKING BOOK LIBRARY PROGRAM

Kim Charlson, Regional Librarian, Braille and Talking Book Library Program, presented an overview of the past year's activities of the program including the challenge of continuing to provide a full-range of services to borrowers while experiencing budget cutbacks and a hiring freeze, and continuing to produce recorded and Braille titles for the collection. Ms Charlson brought the Board's attention to the following achievements:

$20,000 LSTA Grant Awarded to BTBL

The Board of Library Commissioners awarded the BTBL a $20,000 Library Services and Technology Act grant for FY2003. The $20,000 grant in the Serving People with Disabilities category is targeted for upgrading the Library's cassette duplication equipment. The current system has been in use since 1986 and has copied over 700,000 cassettes during its working life span. The sound quality and fidelity of duplicated cassettes has been diminishing over the past few years, and this project is an effort to improve the overall quality of our in-house tape duplication program.

Web-OPAC Upgrade

In preparation for an update of the KLAS (Keystone Library Automation System) Online Public Access Catalog, a letter was sent out in large print and braille to all library borrowers who have used the Web-OPAC in the past to send themselves books. Nearly 500 borrowers were alerted to the pending upgrade, and informed of a test site where they could go and review and check out the new site's features without worrying that they might do something "wrong". The demonstration site was made available for patrons to get firsthand practice on the new system, and users were encouraged to give their feedback to the Library for possible improvements prior to the launch.

Public Library Initiatives

The Perkins Library has instituted a program of providing Braille transcription and production services for other Massachusetts libraries that need their brochures or other shorter documents printed in Braille. Instead of having libraries purchase expensive Braille production equipment that is seldom used, the Perkins Library can use existing equipment and trained staff to produce high-quality Braille materials. This is being done as a free service to the Massachusetts library community.

Library Sleepover

On January 25th, librarians and staff from the Perkins Outreach Services program welcomed ten 9- to 12-year-old legally blind girls to the BTBL for a sleepover. After setting up their cots and laying out their sleeping bags, the participants toured the Library, picked out a Braille or cassette book, and with staff assistance went to the stacks and found their own book - like a scavenger hunt. They had firsthand experience rewinding cassettes, and after the tour, snacks were enjoyed by everyone. Marilyn Poindexter, Children's Services Librarian, read the girls a story about Emily Dickinson, and after that, some girls read their books, others chatted and told scary stories, and others just went to sleep. The next morning, after breakfast, participants received special tote bags with mementos to remember their Library experience. The bags were sponsored by the Friends of the BTBL. All of the youngsters had a wonderful and exciting time, and it was a tremendous success.

Descriptive Video CollectionLaunched

The Described Video Collection began circulating in early February to borrowers of the BTBL. Working cooperatively with the Worcester Talking Book Library, the BTBL and the TBL will be able to loan over 475 video titles from both collections. The Worcester Library has had a video collection for several years, and their holdings include titles that are no longer available for purchase. The Perkins holdings are newer and we have several copies of all video titles. A catalog of the collection is in the final stages of production and will be distributed to patrons who have signed up for video services. The catalog will be available in large print, Braille, cassette, and electronically in a Word file.

Ms Charlson thanked Commissioner Cameron, the Board's member on the Consumer Advisory Board (CAB), for his service on the CAB over the years. She noted that Commissioner Cameron has shown himself to be an effective advocate of the program and a valued liaison to the visually impaired community of Massachusetts.

Commissioner Cameron reaffirmed the Board's commitment to the Braille and Talking Book Library Program. He stated his pleasure in serving on the CAB with its qualified and committed members.

REPORT ON THE BENCHMARK STUDY OF SERVICES PROVIDED BY REGIONAL LIBRARY SYSTEMS

Warren Rutherford, Project Consultant Benchmark Study of Services Provided by Regional Library Systems, reported that the Benchmark Study was tabulated based on data provided by the Six Regional Library Systems: Boston Massachusetts Regional Library System (BMRLS), Central Massachusetts Regional Library System (CMRLS), Metrowest Massachusetts Regional Library System (MMRLS), Northeast Massachusetts Regional Library System (NMRLS), Southeastern Massachusetts Regional Library System (SEMLS), and Western Massachusetts Regional Library System (WMRLS).

Mr. Rutherford stated that the purpose of the benchmark study was to develop an overview of the services provided to public and private school libraries in Regional Library Systems, and determine the value of regional and statewide services to school libraries. He noted that benchmark study deliverables included 1) a comprehensive listing of services provided, including a description of each service; 2) statistical information on the use of these services by school libraries over the past three years, FY 2000, FY 2001, and FY 2002; 3) an estimate of the dollar value for these services in aggregate statewide and by region, per average individual elementary and secondary school member library, and per student; and 4) development of a standard "value of service" tool.

He noted that certain limitations were imposed on data analysis, including 1) data was available from all regional systems only for FY 2002; limited for FY 2001 & FY 2000; 2) data was not collected or reported in consistent format and content; 3) there was no common requirement for value estimation; 4) school data is not disaggregated for elementary and secondary schools; 5) there is insufficient data for the total number of students served in the regional library system prevented reporting on a per student basis.

Mr. Rutherford informed the Commissioners that the Value of Service is commonly accepted by the Regional Administrators as the value of "what it would cost a member library to procure a service, if the regional system were not present." The major Value of Service categories include 1) Delivery, 2) Reference Services, 3) Mediated ILL, 4) Continuing Education, 5) Advisory & Technical Assistance, 6) Bookmobile Services, 7) Supplemental Materials, 8) Supplemental Audiovisual Materials, 9) Other Supplementary Services, 10) Purchasing Cooperative, 11) Mass Cat, 12) Other Assistance, and 13) Electronic Databases.

Mr. Rutherford called the Commissioners' attention to graphs that detailed the Aggregate Statewide Service Values, Regional Service Values, and School Value of Service. He reported that the School Value of Service per average individual school member library is $10,506.74, the total value of service to school member libraries is $ 10,002,417, and 952 school member libraries that received regional library services in FY 2002.

He noted the Percent Distribution of Commonly Shared Services as follows:

Delivery	$14,577,923	25%
Reference	$406,355	1%
Mediated ILL	$2,021,540	4%
Continuing Education	$1,320,950	2%
Technical Assistance	$330,652	1%
Bookmobile	$5,251,350	9%
Supplemental Materials	$691,190	1%
Supplemental AV Materials	$836,130	1%
Other Supplementary Services	$119,937	0.28%
Purchasing Cooperative	$6,022,440	11%
Other Assistance	$337,586	1%
Electronic Databases	$25,370,041	44%

Concluding his report, Mr. Rutherford noted that the study calls for the following recommendation to reduce value of service reporting to a level that is meaningful, manageable, and adaptable.

• Meaningful: report values shared by all regional systems, which clearly demonstrates the effectiveness and efficiency of the regional library service delivery systems.
• Manageable: report values that do not excessively contribute to additional data tracking requirements by each regional library system.
• Adaptable: allow regional systems to collect additional value of service categories that assist that region in communicating effectively with its member libraries and communities.

STATEMENT FROM THE BOARD OF LIBRARY COMMISSIONERS CONCERNING THE TRIAL COURT LAW LIBRARIES

Commissioner Arnold stated that consistent with the Board actions of March 6, 2003, adopting resolutions in response to the Governor's budget, to provide clarity to Board members, Board staff and members of the library community as the Board and agency are asked for their position by librarians, trustees, Friends of libraries, members of the legislature, and administration officials that he is now recommending a proposed resolution on the Trial Court Law Libraries. Citing his own experiences as a past user of these libraries, he stressed that the resources of the Trial Court Law Libraries should remain open and free to all residents of the Commonwealth.

Commissioner Arnold moved and Commissioner Bornheimer seconded that the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners adopt and relay a resolution to the library community and Legislature, recognizing the importance of the free use of the resources of the Trial Court Law Libraries: "The Board of Library Commissioners recognizes that the Trial Court Law Libraries insure that all Massachusetts residents have access to the laws that govern them. Through the regional library systems these specialized law libraries share their resources and expertise with the broader library community. The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners believes that these libraries must remain free to the public and free to their resource sharing partners."

The Board voted approval.

STANDING COMMITTEE AND LIAISON REPORTS

Massachusetts Center for the Book

Commissioner Marnik, the Board Liaison to the Massachusetts Center for the Book, updated the Commissioners on the relocation of the Massachusetts Center for the Book to Hampshire College in Amherst and Simmons College in Boston. She also reported on the Third Annual Massachusetts Letters about Literature Awards Ceremony held at the State House during Library Legislative Day on April, 2, 2003. The Letters About Literature project, sponsored by the Center for the Book in association with the Weekly Reader Corporation invites students to write a letter to an author -- living or dead -- explaining how that author's work changed the student's way of thinking about the world. There are now three competition levels for students in grades 4 through 6, 7 and 8, and 9 through 12.

Public Relations Committee

Commissioner Knowles reported on the various Board sponsored activities for Library Awareness Month. Among them, the kickoff at the State House that included a Proclamation by Governor Mitt Romney, designating April as Library Awareness Month in Massachusetts.

She reported on a new section on the Board's Web site that was recently inaugurated that lets Massachusetts Library Users Share Their Stories. This year's theme, "Your local library has something for everyone. It's where families, technology and community converge," highlights the vast amount of resources available at local libraries or online with a library card.

Commissioner Knowles noted efforts that the Board is supporting for Library Month include a four-color information hand card about statewide library services that will be distributed at all local public libraries throughout the state.

She relayed that, in addition, libraries across the state will be hosting special events for children and adults throughout the month. Among them are author readings in Belmont, Framingham, Leominster and Westford. A writing workshop in Newton that is being co-sponsored by Women's Day and the American Library Association. A project in Saugus to provide library cards to every student in that town, and bringing the entire sophomore high school class to the library in Belmont. Other libraries are hosting celebrity story hours and special projects for children, as well as open houses and musical concerts.

Regional and LLR

Commissioner John Arnold reported on a meeting with staff from the Boston Public Library to discuss its role in being the Library of Last Recourse. He said that discussions centered on looking at a LLR budget and its services, as well as requirements for State Aid that the Board was reviewing for FY2004.

Commissioner Arnold informed the Board that Bernard Margolis, President of the Boston Public Library, had proposed that the Board consider suspending the requirements and standards for the state aid program for FY2004. He suggested this approach as a means of moving the discussion with the legislature away from the focus on details of the MAR and the standards and toward maintenance of funding levels. Commissioner Arnold asked Board members for their thoughts on this proposal as the committee will be meeting with representatives of the BPL again on April 9. Board members shared their opinions which varied from interest and support to concerns about the impact on libraries that rely on the standards to maintain service levels.

Commissioner Arnold also reported on the part of the meeting that covered the Library of Last Recourse. He indicated that the committee wishes to develop a thorough rationale for LLR funding through an annual plan of service and budget similar to those of the regional library systems. He also noted the need to rethink the relationships between the regions, the LLR and the MBLC to see them as partners in the same enterprise with roles and relationships clearly identified.

It was also reported that the committee and the BPL have reached agreement on language to be recommended to the legislature that would assure that if the regional line item is reduced that the reduction is shared by the LLR and the regions. The specific language is: "Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary, the allocation of funds under this section shall be calculated to insure that any reduction is shared proportionately among the regional library systems and the library of last recourse."

PUBLIC COMMENT

There was no public comment.

OLD BUSINESS

There was no old business.

NEW BUSINESS

There was no new business.

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business, Chairman Hopkins adjourned the April 3, 2003 monthly business meeting of the Board of Library Commissioners at 2:10 P.M.

Dr. Em Claire Knowles
Secretary