LibraryLinkNJ February 20, 2019 Town Hall Meeting

LibraryLinkNJ is holding a series of virtual Town Hall meetings to inform the membership about our budget crisis, its impact on services, and the future sustainability of the Cooperative.

These meetings are open to all interested staff in LibraryLinkNJ member libraries, as well as the general public.

LibraryLinkNJ’s fiscal year began on July 1, 2018. We are operating under the parameters of an FY19 (July 1, 2018 - June 30, 2019) budget approved by the LibraryLinkNJ membership at our Spring Membership Meeting on June 13.

Update: Over the last few months, LibraryLinkNJ has undertaken a concerted effort to save the organization from possible closure by June 30. On Thursday, February 7, the LibraryLinkNJ Executive Board voted to keep LibraryLinkNJ open into FY2020 (July 1, 2019 - June 30, 2020). We are appreciative of the board’s action and want to express our gratitude to you and the LibraryLinkNJ community for helping to make this happen.

In order to keep LibraryLinkNJ operating, the State Library has committed $1.84 million to fund LibraryLinkNJ services in FY2020, contingent on funding for their budget and the NJ Library Network budget line. This funding will allow LibraryLinkNJ to continue to serve communities statewide, through our member libraries. This development, however, is not without some disheartening news. We will have to operate with a smaller staff, providing only delivery and a very curtailed continuing education program. Layoff notices will soon be issued for several affected employees.

For more detailed information, go to our support page.

The Town Hall meetings apprise you of developments in our advocacy efforts.

Registration is required, as virtual seats are limited. A group of colleagues from one or more libraries can attend jointly using a single connection. We will send an access email to all registrants the day before the virtual meeting.

The Town Hall meeting will be recorded and the recording will be available on this page.

Registration will close when full or at 12 noon Tuesday, February 19, 2019, whichever occurs first.

Based on your questions during our previous Virtual Town Halls, we have prepared an FAQ for easy reference. The FAQ covers questions about Funding and Services, Advocacy, and Delivery. We will update it regularly as new questions arise, and as we have more information to share.

Background 

LibraryLinkNJ is in a precarious financial situation. 

• Since FY11, the Cooperative has been flat-funded at $1,840,000 and has supplemented the State Contract with monies from our cash reserves.
• The cash reserves were funds transferred by the State Librarian to LibraryLinkNJ in 2010 from the three disbanding cooperatives.
• State Contract monies are administered to us by the New Jersey State Library and come from the New Jersey State Budget for the New Jersey Library Network.
• The New Jersey State Library has tried, without success, in other budget years to secure an increase in network funds.
• Our projected delivery costs for FY19 have increased by 45% from $940,000 to $1,360,000.
• The FY19 (July 1, 2018 - June 30, 2019) budget draws on all remaining LibraryLinkNJ reserve funds.
• LibraryLinkNJ is unsustainable as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization without receiving ongoing additional funding. The budget gap in FY19 is $370,000.
• Since March 2018, Executive Director Kathy Schalk-Greene, former Executive Board President Kimberly Paone and current Executive Board President Ranjna Das have met regularly with State Librarian Mary Chute and Associate State Librarian Kathleen Moeller-Peiffer, as well as presenting LibraryLinkNJ’s budget situation to NJLA’s Public Policy Committee and Executive Board.
• The FY19 budget includes an additional $93,060 in one-time supplemental funding from the New Jersey State Library