Ohio public libraries are pressuring lawmakers to keep funding levels steady and reject a plan to tweak a funding formula that delivers nearly half of all the money used to operate 251 library systems across the state. On the surface, it doesn't seem like much – shaving state funding for the Public Library Fund from 1.7% to 1.66% of Ohio's general revenue fund – but it would amount to a $22 million hit over two years, according to the Ohio Library Council. Data on how that $22 million would fall on each library system was not available, but the Columbus Metropolitan Library estimates it would see a $1.5 million cut over two years.
