CA Slashes School Library Funding
Library materials budget cut by 80 percent, now only $5.32 per student annually
Debra Lau Whelan -- School Library Journal, 11/1/2002
California's Governor Gray Davis in October maintained funding for school library materials in next year's state budget, but at the same time, he slashed funds by 80 percent, from $158.5 million to $32.8 million.
As a result, the state's 8,000 K–12 public and charter schools will receive $5.32 per student for school library materials rather than the usual $28 per student. Despite the heavy cuts, however, the 1998 California Public School Library Act, which specifically allocates state money for school library materials, will remain as a separate line item in the state budget. Prior to 1998, school libraries didn't receive any state funds and relied solely on money distributed by individual school districts.
Since passage of the act, school library book collections have grown and the student/book ratio has improved to 11.9 books per student from 10.9 books per student, says Martha Rowland, a school library consultant at the California Department of Education. More than 90 percent of California's school libraries now report that their biggest source of money comes from state funds.
Davis had proposed repealing the 1998 act to instead create a consolidated block grant. Such a move would relegate students to the inferior school libraries that existed before 1998. Davis changed his mind amid protests from the California School Library Association and the state's superintendent of schools, Delaine Eastin.
Public libraries support the governor's decision. Bessie Tichauer, a children and youth services consultant for the California State Library, says, "The public library is in no way intended to replace the school library. Our funds have been reduced, too, and in the end, kids are the ones who suffer."
