Supervisors to Hire Library Consultant
Ventura County supervisors agreed Tuesday to hire a consultant to help the county come up with a more efficient way to operate its financially drained library system.
The board voted unanimously to pay as much as $60,000 to hire a private contractor to study several reorganization options, including a joint operating partnership with the cities or local school districts or both.
The county’s 16-branch library system lost half of its $10-million budget through state cutbacks in 1993 and has been struggling to stay in business ever since.
In addition to providing administrative direction, Supervisor Frank Schillo said, the consultant’s study would help county voters decide whether to support a parcel tax to help pay for future library services.
The Board of Supervisors agreed earlier this year to pursue placing an advisory vote on the November ballot to establish a benefit assessment district for this purpose.
The county also hired a consultant earlier this month to conduct a telephone poll to determine whether voters would support a library tax. The results will be presented to the board July 9, officials said.
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