[Publib] Answers to city council questions

[Chris (CE)]

Dear Colleagues,

More than five years ago I asked this group for questions library 
service staff should be able to answer because
not knowing the answers to these questions makes library staff looks 
stupid.

I posted the list, "Things Making Libraries Look Stupid", on Publib-L
and someone preserved this list at 
http://ala-apa.org/newsletter/vol1no8/career.html

A librarian told me that this list was used in a distance-learning class 
she took.

I am telling you this not to brag, but to show that your contributions 
actually help other librarians...

...because again I am asking for your help in making another learning tool.


This tool will be a list of questions city councils, city managers, etc. 
may ask when librarians ask for money AND
good answers or strategies for answering these questions.

Below is a list of questions provided by Cynthia Berner Harris, Director 
of Wichita Public Library and
Jerie Tichenor, Director of Meriden Community Library

*If you are interested in developing this tool further please email to 
crippel at ckls.org either:
- a question not already listed, or
- provide a good answer or strategy for answering one of the questions.*

Like "Things Making Libraries Look Stupid",
- I will add contributor's initials behind their questions with a key 
providing the full name and library behind each initial, and
- I will also post the tool on Publib-L and Kanlib-L.

I thank anyone who reads this list.
I double-thank anyone who contributes questions to the list, and
I triple-thank anyone who writes an answer or strategy for answering a 
question on the list.

Chris Rippel
Central Kansas Library System
Great Bend, Kansas
crippel at ckls.org


***** Questions *****

*Can’t you ask somebody else?*
• Can’t you get a grant for that? Have you tried the Lions club? (CHB)
• Can’t the Friends of the Library pay for that? (CHB)

*Can’t you tighten your belt?*
• Could you use more volunteers instead of paid staff? (CHB)
• Would you be willing to reduce the materials to fund that? (CHB)
• Isn’t there anything else you could cut to get the money for that? (CHB)
• Would you be willing to reduce your staffing in order to fund that? (CHB)
• Don’t you have contingency funds you can use instead of asking us for 
more money? (CHB)
• What are you doing to cooperate with other libraries in town? Couldn’t 
we take kids books from the schools during the summer so you wouldn’t 
need to spend so much on those? (CHB)
• What do you charge people who use the library? Can’t you increase 
those fees so that you don’t need to ask us for more? (CHB)
• We know libraries are important, but so is public safety. Are you 
asking us to cut the police department budget just so you have money to 
do this? (CHB)
• If you are having trouble balancing the budget why don't you stop 
buying books for a few years? (JT)

*Why don’t libraries charge?*
• Why don't you start charging patrons for library services? (JT)
• Instead of asking for more tax dollars why don't you charge overdue 
fees (JT)
• Maybe charge for the summer reading program? Day camps charge a fee. (JT)

*Why are libraries even needed?*
• Why should we give you more money for materials when it is so easy to 
order them from Amazon? (CHB)
• Doesn’t the State Library let books be downloaded for free? Can’t we 
just use that instead of increasing the budget for books? (CHB)
• With the Internet, I don’t think libraries are used the way they used 
to be. Why should we be adding to the budget instead of reducing it? (CHB)
• Why should we spend more on books? Everything we need is on the 
Internet anyway? (CHB)

*Should libraries even do that?*
• Why should we give you money for films when everybody can get what 
they want from Netflix and Blockbuster? (CHB)
• I’m not sure I think we should spend ANY money on materials in 
languages other than English. After all, the State Legislature passed an 
“English-only” bill last year. Doesn’t that apply to this? (CHB)
• There is than new video [book] store down the street. Isn’t giving you 
more money competing with them? (CHB)

*Contributors*
CHB = Cynthia Berner Harris, Director of Wichita Public Library
JT = Jerie Tichenor, Director of Meriden Community Library