The next five-year plan for Oconto County libraries is almost ready for prime time.
A special ad hoc committee has been working for more than a year to update the five-year library services plan that is required by state law, and the Oconto County Board received a preview presentation at its June 20 monthly meeting.
Tracy Vreeke of the Nicolet Federated Library System and County Clerk Kim Pytleski explained that they are doing a series of informational sessions regarding the process in advance of public hearings scheduled Aug. 15 in Gillett and Lakewood.
The issue has generated some attention because of the shift over the past decade between “libraried” and “unlibraried” communities in the county.
Libraried communities are those served by a local, joint or consolidated library, Pytleski said. Invoices from other counties for services to unlibraried communities are shouldered primarily by the property taxpayers in those communities.
The six libraries in Oconto County are independent of each other but get some funding from the county. Oconto, Oconto Falls and Gillett all have municipal libraries. In recent years Lena, Suring and Lakewood have formed joint libraries with surrounding towns, reducing the number of unlibraried municipalities and increasing the burden on taxpayers in those towns.
Currently there are 17 libraried communities where the municipalities tax directly for services, and the county collects property taxes for the 10 unlibraried municipalities. In 2010, the count was 10 libraried municipalities and 18 unlibraried, so the county tax for unlibraried community services has been spread among a smaller and smaller group.
The new plan will require annual reviews to make sure the burden does not shift unequally as circumstances change, Pytleski said.
“(In the past), we didn’t look at the plan and make adjustments as we went, when we saw there was writing on the wall,” she said. “We’re going to make sure that we do that going forward.”
The matter has become an issue because of the annual invoice from Brown County for services to residents from unlibraried municipalities, a six-figure expense the county levies among that shrinking group.
Vreeke said they’re called cross-county payments.
“In Oconto there’s a large portion of the county on the southern end that’s unlibraried,” she said. “A lot of those people utilize the Brown County libraries for various reasons — they may go to school in that area or work in that area.”
Pytleski clarified that the “bill” from Brown County is a request for reimbursement for services rendered at a discounted 70% rate.
“Brown County sends an invoice every year that says, ‘We have 37,000 – I’m rounding numbers – checkouts from Oconto County residents for Brown County Library services,” she said.
Oconto and Brown counties work together in quite a few areas.
“Our child support services director is shared with Brown County,” Pytleski said. “We have historically worked with Brown County for library services in the past — they use our reference materials, also — it’s not just a one-way street — training opportunities, our libraries work well together.”
She added that more than 30 Brown County inmates are currently housed at the Oconto County Jail, and Brown County gets an invoice from Oconto County for the use of those beds.
Vreeke said Oconto County has done a good job this time around of updating its five-year library plan, which is required by state law.
“They did a lot of process work, and they really picked it apart and discussed and put a lot of time and effort into it,” said Vreeke, who served as an adviser to the ad hoc committee.
After the informational meetings and public hearings, the final plan will be recommended to Administration Committee and then the full county board.
County Board Chair Alan Sleeter has served on the committee and called it an educational experience.
“It’s a big item to get your head around, and a lot of complications going forward,” Sleeter said.
County Board Supervisor Pat Scanlan encouraged residents from unlibraried municipalities to get to the public hearings to learn the information and make their voices heard.
Vice Chair Dennis Kroll suggested that the Library Planning Committee consider holding a meeting in the southeast corner of the county, home to the biggest unlibraried municipalities — the towns of Little Suamico and Chase.
wbluhm@newmedia-wi.com
Five-year library plan update almost completed
