Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Library bills get paid

Money was appropriated by the Nevada County Quorum Court to allow the Nevada County Library to pay debts owed for 2001.

This was done at the court's regular monthly meeting Monday, Feb. 11.

The monies were transferred from left over funds from the Nevada County Sheriff's Office and Nevada County Jail budgets from 2001. In all, the court moved $4,000 from these two budgets into the library fund, which had $3,700 left in it.

This money will be used to pay off upgrades to the library's computer system and other overdue bills.

The funds were available from the other budgets after the court transferred some $20,000 from the solid waste budget to the NCSO to keep it solvent for the last few months of 2001.

The court left enough in these budgets to pay any bills for 2001 which haven't come in yet and will need to be paid.

At the outset of the discussion, Justice of the Peace Willie Wilson, who was on a temporary library committee, suggested the county pick up the tab for the entire $6,678 the library owed, with the money to be transferred from the Sheriff's budget, saying it had approximately $20,000 left.

Nevada County Judge James Roy Brown reminded the court late bills have been known to arrive through March, and money has to be available to pay them also.

He said the NSCO budget had about $6,000 in it, and this alone wouldn't pay all the bills the library has due.

But, he continued, with the library having $3,700 in its budget, with the funds left in the NCSO budget there would be enough to pay the library's overdue bills, and leave enough to pay any late-arriving bills for the NCSO.

Janet McAdams, president of the Friends of the Library, said the library spent $36,000 in 2001, yet only $27,000 was appropriated for 2002.

This, she said, will leave the library in the same financial situation at the end of the year this year.

Brown said amending the budget would keep the county out of trouble, as counties cannot operate in a deficit situation under the Arkansas Constitution, but added, "I don't think there will be any money left over.

"I know this is coming up," he said, "but I don't think there's $36,000 in the budget."

It was said money has been specifically donated by the Friends of the Library to pay for the computer upgrades and equipment, but these funds were not used as earmarked. Instead, they were used to pay other bills, and reportedly salaries.

Wilson said the court needed some guidelines set in place to prevent having money earmarked for one item be spent otherwise, and suggested such things be brought before the court.

McAdams brought up the topic of a millage increase to help fund the library in a more permanent manner. She said one mill would only cost $10 in tax on property valued at $50,000 in the county.

She pointed out the library used to get a full mill in funding, but this was dropped back to 1/3 mill.

Operating the new library, she continued, will cost more money, as people will be wanting it to be open longer hours.

According to McAdams, it would take 100 signatures of registered voters on a petition to get this issue on the November General Election ballot.

Otherwise, she said, the library's funding problems will continue, and the library will have to come back before the court to ask for more money.

Joyce Gibson, county librarian, said the library averages 55 visitors per day, and is open frm 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.

The visitors, she said, make use of the Internet, genealogy materials and books.

"I can see the need to expand the time we're open," she said. "We need to be open Saturdays and Mondays and later at night."

Gibson said the library does get volunteer help, and now has a student from Emmet helping out.

Brown read a letter from local attorney Barry Barber, which stated there was no evidence money had been deposited in the library account originally, but funds had been deposited in the account prior to 2001, with deposits made in 1999 and 2000.