January 3, 1989 Honourable Rita Johnston Minister of Municipal Affairs, Recreation and Culture Province of British Columbia Parliament Buildings Victoria, B.C. V8V 1x4 Dear Madam Minister: At a recent meeting of , the Provincial Government grant to the Fraser Valley Regional Library was discussed. [t was noted that in the period 1980 ~ 88, the Provincial Government grant as a percentage of the library budget had decreased from 17.3% to 14.26%. Caring that time there has been no increase in the funding formula, merely increases for increased population figures in the 1981 and 1986 census. This has resulted in the member municipalities and school boards carrying an ever increasing portion of the library budget. The New Approaches Task Force on Public Libraries made recommendations in this area that seem to us valid and worthy of your support. At this time, we would particularly urge you to support and implement the following recommendations of the Task Force - 1.1 We recommend that the per capita grant for the acquisition of library materials be increased by 30 percent to restore the historic 15:85 percent balance between Provincial and local government funding of public libraries. 1.2 We recommend that the ber capita grant for the acquisition of library materials be adjusted annually to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index. 1.12 We recommend that all public libraries be exempt from Provincial Sales Tax, ~ aS these seem to be the recommendations most concerned with the issue of Ongoing Provincial Government financial Support of public libraries. ; Yours sincerely, - ei |