Distribution of County Library Funds Called Inequitable

Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina charged Tuesday that the county’s distribution of library funds is inequitable, providing state-of-the-art facilities in affluent areas and small, inadequately staffed libraries in some poorer neighborhoods.

Molina, who has frequently raised the equity issue since joining the board last March, agreed to approve proposed funding levels for this year but asked that a task force be formed to study ways to address the problem in future years.

An amendment by Supervisor Deane Dana to adopt current funding levels for the next five years while the review is taking place caused Molina to vote against her own motion. But after the hearing she said she still considers its passage a victory.

County attorneys said that the five-year stipulation would not be enforceable because all budgets must be reviewed annually.

Molina accused Dana of “grandstanding for the Palos Verdes area,” which he represents and which was among those targeted by Molina as receiving an inordinate share of the funds from the special library district fund. Dana said he was merely “trying to give these areas the opportunity to know what’s coming.”

Snapshots taken by Molina’s staff last weekend contrasted the spacious, well-stocked libraries in Palos Verdes Estates at Malaga Cove and in Altadena with more simple structures and small book collections in areas such as Lawndale and El Camino Real in East Los Angeles.

But Molina said that what disturbed her even more was the difference in posted hours, a reflection of staffing levels and funding.

While the Altadena library is open seven days a week from 1 to 6 p.m. Lawndale is closed Sunday and Monday and open only five hours on Friday. El Camino Real is closed weekends and only open afternoons Wednesday through Friday.

The fund in question is supported by property and utility taxes and is intended to augment existing budgets for county departments ranging from the Fire Department to the Mosquito Abatement District. For 1991-92, it totaled $160.4 million.

Altadena and the Palos Verdes area have established library districts separate from the county library system, but still rely on county funds for a significant portion of their operating budgets.

“About 25% of our operating budget comes from the augmentation fund, so that everything we do is impacted by it,” said Linda Elliot, director of the three-library Palos Verdes Library District.

This year, the Altadena Library District, consisting of one library, will receive $570,200 from the fund. The Palos Verdes district will receive $425,974.

The remainder of the 94 county libraries will split $30.9 million, an average of less than $329,000 apiece. Similar distributions were made in 1990-91, according to Mary Jung, assistant chief administrative officer in the county.