Ohio libraries could lose 5% in state funding if the budget proposed by John Kasich, Ohio governor, is implemented.

Joyce Klingelsmith, director of the Archbold Community Library, said she is pleased it was only 5%.

“Libraries fared better than some other agencies,” she said.

The Kasich budget made cuts in several areas to fill an $8 billion gap in the budget without raising taxes.

Ohio libraries receive funding based on a portion of state general tax revenue.

When the state economy faltered in 2008, state offi- cials began cutting library funding.

Klingelsmith said, “It’s important to remember the cumulative effect of reductions we have taken over the years.

“We are now operating on the same level (of funding) we did in 1996.”

“Where we are and where we should be are vastly different,” she said.

“It will be difficult at best to manage with reduced income. We will continue to add as much as we can (to the library’s inventory) that is cost-efficient,” she said.

Klingelsmith noted there is still a lot to learn about the budget, and said it may be changed as it works its way through the state legislature.