County Library and Cost-Efficient Use of Taxpayer Funds

I appreciate Kevin Cuddeback’s passion for Samuels Library. However, I feel it’s important to address some key inaccuracies in his recent letter.

Firstly, establishing a public library board to oversee publicly-funded services is not about censorship or “removing books.” This narrative, frequently emphasized by Samuels, has not been a point of contention for the Board of Supervisors since July 2023, when an approach to managing sexually-themed books in the children’s section was accepted. This ongoing misrepresentation distracts from the central issue: ensuring appropriate governance of public funds and improving cost efficiency. A public library board is a standard and widespread practice in Virginia and across the country, designed to align public funding, which constitutes 94% of Samuels’ budget, with public oversight.

Secondly, the claims regarding “privatizing,” “cutting hours,” or a “private company focused solely on profit” are unfounded. On the contrary, the proposal received by the county through the standard Request for Proposal (RFP) process offers an additional $275,000 in value and services while maintaining a flat county budget for the next five years. This tangible evidence supports the findings of the BOS Library Report, which indicated that Samuels has not operated with comparable cost efficiency to other regional public libraries.

Samuels Library declined to participate in the standard RFP process, which would have provided them an opportunity to demonstrate their value and efficiency. Instead, they have asserted claims of a permanent monopoly on the building lease and supposed ownership of library contents – assets largely acquired with taxpayer money. (They even voted to funnel saved money away from the county and its citizens who were taxed to acquire this money in the first place.)

The Board of Supervisors has a fundamental responsibility to implement standard governance practices for all publicly-funded services. This decision is not about imposing a specific viewpoint or limiting access; rather, it is about ensuring fiscal responsibility and proper oversight of the public funds that support our library system.

By establishing a public library board, consistent with nearly every other county in the state and nation, the county is aligning the public financing of library services with public governance. Samuels’ decision not to participate in this fair, transparent, and competitive procurement process has resulted in a proposal that offers a 28% increase in services per county dollar at no additional cost to taxpayers. The evidence clearly demonstrates that competitive procurement benefits all county residents.

Meanwhile, a political action committee has raised around $12,000 to “Save Samuels”; literally to “save”  one private company that wants to keep a monopoly on public services and block another private company from competing for the job, and which we now know is offering substantially more value for the taxpayer dollar. Apparently, the only way to keep spending more to get less is for Samuels to reinstate its patrons to the Board of Supervisors, where they will vote as they are told.

Maria O’Brien
Fork District
Warren County, VA

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