Letter to the editor: Library Scrooges raise property tax revenues for 2021 even with huge surplus?

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The average Fort Vancouver Regional Library homeowner pays $200 a year in property taxes for the library’s operating budget and the capital facilities fund (causing renters increased rent also).

My comment is based on their 2020 budget as reflected in November’s meeting.

The day before December’s meeting it appears they hastily amended the budget on their website to remove or hide over $4,000,000 in revenue coming from reserves and reimbursements, so now, rather than show an excess of revenues at year end in the $6,000,000 range and not increase tax revenues or heaven forbid lower them, they feel justified in increasing tax revenues. In their haste to move numbers around the amended 2020 budget on their website showed 24 calculation errors (to which the library board had no comment). Due to their creative accounting, property taxes now fund 93 percent of the budget as opposed to only 80 percent prior to removing these revenues, many of which were discretionary.

Actual 2020 expenses compared to the original 2020 budget through October shows they only spent 63 percent of their budget but are 83 percent through the year; however, they are increasing collections from taxpayers for 2021 from this year's $24,969,789 to $25,120,107.

No one knows how long COVID-19 restrictions will keep the library closed and offering little to no services. No one thought in March that the library would remain closed over nine months later. We do know it will remain closed for the foreseeable future into 2021.



Even after removing these revenue streams the library is still projected to have a surplus close to $2,000,000 at year’s end. Rather than pay it forward and give struggling taxpayers a needed reprieve, the library is increasing tax revenues in 2021 (although the levy rate is going down slightly, increased home valuations will more than make up the difference resulting in taxpayers spending more for property taxes in 2021, to forcibly pay for a library that remains closed).

Also, our library supports Drag Queen Story Hour, where a fully dressed drag queen reads gender confusing books to a target audience of 3 to 8 year olds. 

The library is by law allowed to increase tax revenues by 1 percent annually and since they are only raising it by .6 percent they signed a resolution to raise .4 percent sometime in the future. How thoughtful. The rich get richer and can add to their $6,000,000 surplus while the struggling taxpayer or renter trying to provide for themselves and their family are hit with more debt to pay. The Bob Cratchits of the Fort Vancouver Library District pay more while the Fort Vancouver Regional Library Scrooges add even more to their coffers even with projected millions of dollars of surplus from this year. It’s Merry Christmas and Happy New Year for our closed library, not as merry and happy for the rest of us forced to foot the bill for their excess.