Pennsylvania Code › Title 22 - EDUCATION › Part IX - State Library and Advisory Council on Library Development › Subpart A - State Library › Chapter 131 - GENERAL PROVISIONS; STATE AID › PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS › Section 131.1 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 28, July 13, 2024
The following words and terms, when used in this subpart,
						have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
						otherwise:
Additional State aid
-Aid to be paid in
						addition to other amounts provided for by The Library Code (24 P. S. §§
												4101-4503), up to 50¢ for each dollar
						expended by the local library in excess of the financial effort equal to $.0005
						times market value or $2 per capita for the direct service area, whichever is
						less. However, total additional State aid may not exceed 25¢ per capita for
						each person residing in the direct service area.
County library
-A local library or
						division of a local library which derives income from the commissioners of a
						county for the express purpose of making its resources and services available
						without charge to all the residents of the county, and to bring direct library
						service to those county residents not served by other local libraries located
						within the same county. For the purposes of this subpart, a local library
						operating a distinct county division shall be considered as two agencies,
						namely, a local library and a county library which are merged or
						conjoined.
County library merged or conjoined with a local
						library
-A county library shall be considered merged or conjoined with
						a local library if one or more of the following conditions exist:
(i) The county library is operating as a
					 department or division of a local library, and the county library service and
					 the local library service are administered by one head librarian under one
					 board of library directors.
(ii)
					 The county library and the local library share staff, library collections and
					 physical facilities but have separate library boards which plan to replace
					 themselves by a single board of library directors for the county and the local
					 library services after 5 years of participation in State aid.
(iii) The county library exists by virtue of
					 a contract for county library service between the county commissioners and a
					 local library board of directors.
(iv) The county library constitutes the sole
					 local library service in the municipality in which its headquarters is
					 located.
(v) The county library and
					 the local library have entered into an agreement to merge or conjoin the two
					 library operations and submit for approval by the State Librarian a plan to
					 replace the two library boards by a single library board of directors within 5
					 years of participation in State aid.
Direct service area
-The municipality to
						which the governing body of a library is responsible for extending its services
						without charge. The governing body of a library will be judged to have assumed
						responsibility for a municipality when it grants free services to the residents
						of that municipality.
District library center
-A library
						designated as such by the State Librarian and receiving State aid for the
						purpose of making its resources and services available without charge to all
						the residents of its district, providing supplementary library services to
						local libraries within the district, coordinating the services of local
						libraries within the district which by contract become part of the district
						library center system, and exchanging, providing or contracting for library
						services with other district library centers.
Financial effort
-The sum expended
						annually by a local library for the establishment, operation and maintenance of
						library services in its direct service area, which derives from local taxes,
						gifts, endowments and other local sources, as may be provided under rules and
						regulations adopted by the Advisory Council on Library Development, and which
						is used to determine eligibility for State aid. Local financial effort shall be
						based upon the last market value figures published by the Pennsylvania State
						Tax Equalization Board prior to the calendar year in which the library applies
						for State aid. The use of market value in relation to State aid is intended as
						an equitable yardstick and may not be construed to mean that a tax on market
						value, or a property tax of any sort, is a necessary condition for eligibility
						for State aid. When the population of a municipality changes as a result of a
						special census the year in which the census was conducted shall coincide with
						market values issued for that year in determining local financial
						effort.
Financial effort equal to one-half
						mill
-The financial effort equal to $.0005 times the market value of
						taxable property, as determined by the Pennsylvania State Tax Equalization
						Board, in the direct service area of a local library.
Financial effort equal to one-quarter
						mill
-The financial effort equal to $.00025 times the market value of
						taxable property, as determined by the Pennsylvania State Tax Equalization
						Board, in the direct service area of a local library.
Fiscal year
-A library's fiscal year
						shall end on either December 31 or June 30.
Local library
-A free public nonsectarian
						library, whether established and maintained by a municipality or by a private
						association, corporation or group, which serves the informational, educational
						and recreational needs of all the residents of the area for which its governing
						body is responsible, by providing free access (including free lending and
						reference services) to an organized and currently useful collection of printed
						items and other materials and to the services of a staff trained to recognize
						and provide for these needs.
Municipality
-A county, city, borough,
						town, township or a school district of the second, third or fourth class, which
						establishes or maintains a local library.
Per capita
-Amounts determined on the
						basis of the latest official United States Census reports. Per capita is a unit
						of measurement for library expenditures or the payment of State aid derived by
						dividing a given sum of money by the total population of a municipality.
						Special census reports of the United States Census Bureau issued between
						dicennial censuses are also regarded as official.
Per capita State aid
-State aid granted
						at a per capita rate as provided in section 303(1),(3) and (4) of The Library
						Code (24 P. S. §
												4303(1), (3) and
						(4)).
Percentage State aid
-State aid granted
						to a county library as a percentage of the county appropriation as provided in
						section 303(2) of The Library Code.
The Library Code (24 P.S. §§
														4101-4503) was repealed by the act of
						  November 1, 2012 (P.L. 1683, No. 210) and replaced by 24 Pa.C.S. Chapter 93
						  (relating to Public Library Code).