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No open-access location is known for this record yet.
It appears that we are losing public libraries. Over the last three fiscal years reported (2003 through 2005), the data show we have fewer library systems operating in the United States. There were 9,211 public library systems in fiscal year (FY) 2003, and in FY 2005 there were only 9,198 systems. (The FY 2005 figure takes into account libraries damaged by hurricane Katrina.) Further, these public libraries are serving 6.1 million more people than in FY 2003. However, discussion with the state libraries where these declines were evident showed that some closures were really mergers with other libraries to form larger units of service. Other fairly marginal libraries that perhaps should never have been counted in the national data also closed; these had inconsistent budgeting, were open very few hours, and often had no full-time paid staff. A few libraries did close for fiscal reasons— their communities could not or would no longer support them. Sad as it is to lose any library, losing solid library operations because of local funding issues is doubly unfortunate. Interestingly, we saw growth in a number of states. And, even with operating budgets that are increasing modestly (between 3 percent and 4 percent each year, going largely to staff salaries), services and collection use are rising. Public library visits were up nearly 3 percent (yes, people still go to the library), and circulation of audio and video collections increased more than 14 percent between FY 2003 and FY 2004; early data for FY 2005 indicate a similar increase. Staffing costs rose 4 percent for this period, while staffing numbers declined less than 1 percent in FY 2004. Detailed data about public libraries are available on the National Center for Education Statistics Web site,
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