GAINESVILLE - The Executive Board of the Hall County Library System adopted a $2.4 million budget Wednesday night which includes ten unpaid furlough days for library employees.<br />
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The budget includes county funding of $1.7 million, the same as each of the past four years.<br />
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Library Director Adrian Mixson had said that at the end of this fiscal year the fund balance would be $118,000. He pointed out Wednesday night that this fiscal year's budget required $152,831 from fund balance and last year it that funding totaled $167,169. Mixson added the library will need to make changes if county revenue remains flat in the following fiscal year. <br />
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Mixson also reviewed grants acquired since June including $1,000 from the <br />
local Optimist Club; $11,000 from the Friends of the Library for use in re-carpeting the Murrayville branch; $29,733 from the state to purchase <br />
computer equipment; and $17,769 to purchase science books from Georgia <br />
Public Library Services. <br />
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The library system also wrote off $104,325 in deferred revenue from FY2011, <br />
most of it representing fines ranging from $.10 to $9.90 in fines. Any patrons with items out from this time period have been referred to a collection agency. <br />
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"You can't get blood from turnips or send a goon squad out to get overdue <br />
books," Mixson said. "At some point, money you are not ever going to get needs to be taken off the books. It is not revenue (and) 2011 was also at the height of our economic downturn."
