Summer reading is latest budget-cutback victim: Montgomery is lone Md. county to lose program
As part of a 23 percent reduction in funding for fiscal 2011, the Montgomery County Public Library System will lose 78 positions, said county library business manager Eric Carzon. Fiscal 2010 budget cuts forced the system to eliminate 60 positions. The library systems fiscal 2011 budget is $28.9 million, down from previous year’s $37.7 million.
Decreased staffing — a result of county budget cuts — has forced the library system to suspend participation in the popular statewide summer reading program, said Michele Sellars, the system’s public services administrator for community engagement and outreach. The system is decreasing hours at most branches and shuffling many employees to new locations.
Libraries also will be limited to having three staff-run early literacy development programs per month, Carzon said. These programs, such as preschool story times, are run by librarians. Staff-run adult programs, such as librarian reading groups, also have been cut.
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