Public commenters tell board proposed state-library cuts would hit school services

Community speakers at the Yankton School District 63-3 meeting told the board that Governor Noem’s proposed budget cuts to the state library would meaningfully reduce services used by district students and staff.

A library representative who identified herself as Mary Pat Beyerly and a school librarian described services that could be lost if the state library’s appropriation is cut by the amount discussed in public testimony. The presenter said the governor’s proposed cut to the state library was “just over a million dollars,” and that because the state library’s federal funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services is tied to state appropriations, the combined reduction would amount to “over $2,400,000” to the library’s operating budget.

Speakers said the proposed reduction would eliminate about 12.5 staff positions at the state library and end services that include reference support, digitization, library outreach, interlibrary loans and a statewide catalog called “South Dakota Share-It.” The presenter said those services include a courier system and databases relied on by the district; she estimated maintaining the district’s 19 currently used subscription databases would cost the district roughly $27,000 annually if the state stopped paying for them.

Board members and local trustees in the public comment urged constituents to contact appropriations committee members and to tell personal stories about how the state library supports classrooms and research. A community library trustee at the meeting said legislators had responded strongly when residents emailed appropriators during a recent public hearing.

The board did not take formal action on the state budget during the meeting; speakers requested that the community and district stakeholders reach out to state appropriators before committee decisions are finalized.