Council faces library fee rise

BYRON Shire Council will have to fork out an additional $37,400 next financial year for its contribution to the Richmond Tweed Regional Library.

Local councils might have to increase their financial contribution to the Richmond Tweed Regional Library.

BYRON Shire Council will have to fork out an additional $37,400 next financial year for its contribution to the Richmond Tweed Regional Library following Lismore City Council’s controversial takeover of the network last July.

This represents an increase of 4.16% compared with last year’s budget, even though Lismore City Council gave written assurances to member councils in January that there wouldn’t be any “significant surprise costs”.

“The 4.16% increase is certainly a surprise,” Byron Shire Councillor and former Library Committee member, Richard Staples, said. “As far as I’m concerned, we would like a bit more information on how they plan to spend that money.”

Lismore City Council announced in June it would take control of the network, surprising many of the councillors on the Library Committee who said they thought the proposal was still only at discussion stage.

Lismore City Council argued the change would create greater cost-saving synergies for the library as well as bringing the network’s structure in line with the law.

However, Lismore City Council’s finance manager Rino Santin yesterday confirmed contributions from all member councils, other than Tweed, would increase by more than the 2.8% State Government rate cap. While the increase will put Byron’s budget into the red, according to a report to go to its meeting today, Ballina will be slugged an extra 4% and Lismore 3.13%.

“Byron council was advised that the budget would be developed within the confines of the 2.8% rate peg and existing member council contributions formula,” Mr Santin said. “Due to a number of reasons, the increase to 2.8% was not possible.” He said the “reasons” comprised of staff transition costs to Lismore City Council’s salary system, wage indexation and the creation of a Byron area librarian, which came with a $10,000 car allowance.

The role of the proposed Byron area librarian was previously performed by a reader services manager.

“This one position has been made redundant and replaced with four area librarians, with consequent on-costs,” a Byron report says.

Confidential legal advice will also be tabled at Byron’s meeting concerning whether inclusion of the library in its draft budget may be construed as agreeing to the revised network model.

“Some details of the proposed agreement are still not clear,” the business paper also noted. “For example, how Byron Shire Council’s equity in RTRL assets will be identified and accounted for.”

Mr Santin said the draft agreement, which must be signed by all member councils, would be finalised in May.

Originally published as Council faces library fee rise