Library budget mismanaged

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One of the factors in this year’s tax hike is a 15% increase in the library budget.

Vancouver Island Regional Library Board chair Erin Hemmins said the surge is due to financial management problems over the past few years.

“It was about this time last year we discovered quite a significant cash flow issue at the regional library,” she said. “For over the course of about six years we had been using reserves for operations and we hadn’t accounted for that in the budget and the board wasn’t terribly aware of it so you can imagine when this hit last year it was it was quite a problem for us.”

Hemmins said this is a “very unusual year” financially, and they’re hoping to repair the budget without any program or personnel cuts.

Taxpayers throughout the island service area will see their library bill increase by almost $20 this year, from $58 to $78 per capita

In her presentation to the regional district board yesterday, Hemmins said 30% of people in the area use library services, which she said is the most used public service after water, sewer and waste.