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Residents urge commissioners to rescind new library guidelines, cite staffing and censorship concerns
Summary
At the July Columbia County Board of Commissioners meeting, multiple residents urged the board to withdraw recently adopted library guidelines, saying the changes were made without librarian or public input and have contributed to staff vacancies and public distrust.
Dozens of Columbia County residents used the public-comment portion of the Board of Commissioners’ July meeting to demand the county rescind recently adopted library guidelines and to restore input from library professionals. The speakers said the guidelines have driven staff departures, prompted questions about whether the county attempted to leave the PINES regional library system, and empowered politically aligned board members to exert control over library policy.
The complaints were brought by local residents who said they had direct experience with the system. "This board and the county seem to be making a lot of decisions about the library in the dark," said Ashley Keller, of Grove Town, during public comment. "The guidelines were passed without any input from librarians or citizens." Keller said the county’s discussion about leaving the PINES network was uncovered only after an open-records request.
Why it matters: Commenters said the…
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