HARRISBURG, Pa., June 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Librarians have been saying
for years that public libraries are a bargain. Now they've got the numbers
to prove it.
According to a study conducted by the University of North Carolina's
School of Information and Library Science, Pennsylvania taxpayers receive a
return of $5.50 for every $1 they invest in public libraries in
Pennsylvania. That means a return of $55 for every $10 of local, state and
federal taxes we invest in supporting our public libraries.
The Pennsylvania Library Association (PaLA) is collaborating with
Pennsylvania's Office of Commonwealth Libraries, which commissioned the
study, to spread the word about the results. This study is part of a
state-by-state national project.
If public libraries in Pennsylvania were to disappear, the study
concluded, the total economic loss to users and local economies would
amount to approximately $1.34 billion.
That potential economic loss is approximately 5.5 times the $249
million that Pennsylvania taxpayers currently dedicate annually to support
public libraries at all levels.
"This is a remarkable study that helps us better understand and
appreciate the magnitude of the role that public libraries play in our
lives," said Glenn Miller, executive director of PaLA.
The study said that "if there were no public libraries, citizens and
organizational users would be faced with a much higher cost in terms of
both time and money to obtain the needed information from alternative
sources."
The potential loss also would include lost wages and salaries of
library employees and lost revenue sustained by related or nearby
businesses.
"We've always regarded our public libraries as valuable community
resources, but for the first time we are now able to quantify and measure
their value," Miller said.
"This study provides conclusive evidence that public libraries
contribute significant economic impact to our communities," said Gerald L.
Zahorchak, secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, which
includes the Office of Commonwealth Libraries. "Now everyone will
understand the importance of our libraries as an economic tool, and it will
change the way we think about public libraries."
As of 2006, Pennsylvania had 474 public libraries serving a population
of nearly 12 million residents, according to the study. Including
satellites such as branches and bookmobiles, as well, the total number of
available library outlets to Pennsylvania residents is 630.
The study revealed that during a year's time, 51.6 percent of adults in
Pennsylvania visited a public library in person and 13.2 percent used a
remote connection to visit a public library.
Overall, Pennsylvania's public libraries recorded 40.8 million
in-person visits in the year previous to the study -- 48.2 percent by
adults, 39 percent by school-age children, 8.4 percent by adults who
brought children and 4.4 percent by tourists.
Large numbers of library patrons came to get information for
work-related activities, to research personal or family issues, to study
and do school work or just to stay current -- not just for recreation and
entertainment. Overall, the study said, 43 percent of all in-person visits
were education-related in some way.
Public libraries also recorded 11.4 million visits by remote connection
in the year previous to the study. The largest group of remote users, 44
percent, logged on to get information related to personal or family issues.
"Pennsylvania libraries are used extensively because the information
and services they provide are found to be trustworthy, the best source
available to users and convenient or easy to use," the study said.
Conducted in 2006, the study encompassed four surveys done in
conjunction with the Center for Social and Urban Research at the University
of Pittsburgh.
The surveys included a statewide telephone survey that amassed 1,128
interviews; an in-library survey of 2,614 users at 19 libraries and their
branches; a survey of 226 librarians at universities and colleges,
businesses and private organizations; and a follow-up survey that went to
112 public libraries.
The study also used annual statistics compiled by the Office of
Commonwealth Libraries and calculations of the economic value of library
benefits by means of a "statewide economic input-output model."
The full study, Taxpayer Return-on-Investment (ROI) in Pennsylvania
Public Libraries, is available at http://www.statelibrary.state.pa.us .
This project is supported in part by the Institute of Museum and
Library Services under provisions of the Library Services and Technology
Act as administered by the Office of Commonwealth Libraries.
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SOURCE Pennsylvania Library Association
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CONTACT:
Cheryl Slavinsky of PPO&S for The
Pennsylvania Library Association, +1-717-232-1898,
cslavinsky@pposinc.com, cell, +1-717-433-0406
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