Copies of the document have already been sent to the state's 23 county library systems. The statistics are a tool for Wyoming libraries, but Lesley Boughton, state librarian, cautioned that they do not necessarily tell the entire story. I would like to see more validity in the way we use statistics.
Some services are difficult to track accurately.
Library hours are easily counted, but patron visits may be more difficult. Not every library uses the same reporting techniques. Reference questions pose another problem. One complex inquiry may require as much time to answer as 10 simple questions. Each library system is unique to the communities it serves, and the numbers can reflect that.