This series relates to funding from federal, state, local, and all sources and the distribution of funds from the Service to county and regional libraries. Funding from all sources is illustrated by a financial report to the Board for fiscal year 1968 and a block graph depicting sources of funds from fiscal years 1971 through 1974. The subseries on federal funding consists primarily of reports and memoranda from the Director to the Board, librarians, and other friends concerning the status and/or proposed cuts of funds from the Library Services Act and the Library Services and Construction Act. Also included is a brochure which gives an overview of the impact of federal funds on state public libraries as of 1977. In relation to state funding, the bulk of the material concerns a legislative campaign about the 1973 biennium budget request for improved library service. A packet consisting of charts, tables, fact sheets, and other documents which gave budget request summaries, critical needs study results, proposed state aid projections, fund distributions by source, state support figures, library user characteristics by age and profession, major recommendations, etc., was mailed to trustees of public libraries, members of the legislative committee, and concerned citizens. Serious consequences were predicted if the request was not met. Some of the data in the packet came from the Battelle report. Harold Katz, Chairman of the Trustees and Friends Division of the state library association, wrote a cover letter which advised of actions to be taken. Other material includes a brochure which shows the status of library service and the state's ranking as last in terms of state support in the southeast in 1974. Another folder lists ways of working with legislators. The local funding subseries contains various proposed referenda and related propaganda which would allow local governments to vote on a library tax, and a table of per capita local appropriations for public libraries by county for 1971-1972. The State Aid program files contain a description of the importance of State Aid to systems and counties, a report of plans, handbooks of policies governing State Aid, tables of proposed and actual appropriations to counties and systems, and a register of members of the State Aid, Library Development Committee. In summary, the series documents the agency's concerted efforts to obtain, keep, and increase funding from governmental sources and thereby improve library services in the state.
