NEWMAN – Sweeping budget cuts proposed by the Stanislaus County Library would leave the Newman branch open just three days a week.

County officials announced the cost-cutting moves Thursday, citing a projected 12 percent decrease in the sales tax revenue which accounts for most of the library’s operating budget. The proposed cutbacks are subject to approval by the Board of Supervisors.

It approved, the reduced hours would be effective June 30.

“We will see a very significant reduction if this is approved,” commented Newman branch manager Barbara Alexander. “Right now it is just a proposed cutback. Everything is in the hands of the Board of Supervisors.”

The Newman branch is currently open five days a week, from Tuesday through Saturday. If the changes are approved, the library would be open only on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.

Officials said the schedules are designed so that a nearby branch is open all days other than Sunday. For example, the Patterson branch would be open on the days Newman is closed, and vice-versa.

In addition to the reduced hours, the Newman branch would lose a 15-hour-a-week library page position if the cuts are approved.

City Manager Michael Holland said he is trying to arrange a meeting with county library officials to discuss the planned reduction in local hours and review the methodology behind the cutbacks.

Supervisor Jim DeMartini said the board has previously been briefed on the budget-cutting plans.

“The problem is that libraries are financed by sales tax revenue, which has dropped about $4 million this year,” DeMartini explained.

A one-eighth cent sales tax generates 85 percent of the library’s annual revenue.

In addition to the projected dip in sales tax revenues, the library and other county departments are being asked to cut spending 3 percent across the board to help the county balance its budget.

DeMartini noted that no libraries are being closed altogether. The Modesto library branch will close one day a week (Sundays), and each other branch would lose two days a week, he pointed out.

“The way libraries are funded, there really isn’t much else we can do with this,” the supervisor added. “We have to balance our budget. We are going to have to make do with what we have.”

DeMartini said he has asked staff to provide the actual daily costs of keeping each library branch in his district open another day each week. The cities willing to support the library financially may be able to fund additional operating hours, he explained.

Holland, though, said the city is facing its own budget challenges and may not be in a position to lend financial backing for library services.

While the local library has its regular users, Alexander said, the branch is not as busy as it once was.

She attributes part of the decline to the relocation of Yolo Middle School and to improved school libraries.

“We get a lot of computer useage, but we just don’t get a lot of families bringing their children in,” Alexander reflected. “A lot of people don’t make the time to bring their kids to the library. This should be one of the first places a parent brings their child. Now hopefully people will realize how important the library is. It is sad that this is happening, but maybe this is a wakeup call.”