Face to face: Jackson County meets Fontana board amid library controversy
The Jackson County Board of Commissioners (left) met with the Fontana Regional Library Board of Trustees (right) on June 19.
Cory Vaillancourt photo
Finally face to face amid a simmering standoff over library governance and subjectively inappropriate material in a regional library system that’s served locals for more than 80 years, Jackson County commissioners spent nearly three hours in a joint meeting with the Fontana Regional Library Board of Trustees on June 19 learning just how much they don’t know about running a library.
It was billed as a joint meeting. It ended up more like a joint reckoning.
The unusual confluence came about after months of debate and public comment over Jackson County’s continuing membership in the Fontana Regional Library system, which also includes Macon and Swain counties.
Eight regional library systems dot the landscape of rural North Carolina, founded decades ago to help small counties muster the combined resources to provide library services to impoverished residents. Counties provide the cash and the buildings and by ceding administrative functions to a regional library board receive shared infrastructure and turnkey local operations provided by trained professionals.
Opponents, many standing behind their own Christian ideology, say the FRL system is pushing LGBTQ+ ideology and offering indecent content to minors.
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Supporters raise a host of objections which began as allusions to discrimination and homophobia but have increasingly come to center around censorship and potential First Amendment violations.
This isn’t an isolated issue; across the country, lawsuits are mounting in response to book bans and restrictions, many of which are aimed at LGBTQ+ content, racial themes or materials labeled “sexually explicit.”
In South Carolina, the ACLU filed a federal suit against the Greenville County Library for removing LGBTQ-affirming books, citing systemic discrimination. In Tennessee, plaintiffs are challenging the ban of more than 100 books by a local school board, alleging viewpoint discrimination. Then there’s Idaho. And Tennessee. And Minnesota. And Iowa. Even military schools are involved — families have sued the Department of Defense over the removal of hundreds of books on race, gender and sexuality.
In North Carolina, House Bill 636, titled “Promoting wholesome content for students,” passed its second Senate reading on April 16 and is likely headed to Gov. Josh Stein’s desk. The bill would prohibit school library content deemed sexually explicit or “pervasively vulgar” for any age group, but if other states are any indication, the bill also appears to be headed headlong into a lawsuit.
Regionally, residents of Yancey County are prepared to file suit over the county’s withdrawal from its regional library system last year over similar concerns.
The Jackson County debate intensified at a packed public meeting on June 3 at Southwestern Community College, where roughly 200 people entered through metal detectors. More than 50 people spoke for the second meeting in a row, both for and against FRL — but mostly for.
As that meeting drew to a close, Commissioner Todd Bryson was joined by Chairman Mark Letson in calling for a joint meeting with the FRL board — one last-ditch effort to compromise, or to save face in light of some damning financial data presented by County Manager Kevin King. King didn’t say it outright, but withdrawing from the library would likely cost the county about $500,000 annually on top of the $1.4 million it already spends, due to the loss of shared resources. In essence, the county would be entering the library business, alone, for the first time in more than 80 years and by doing so would also incur around $300,000 in start-up costs.
Jackson County commissioners postponed adopting their $107 million fiscal year 2025–26 budget on June 17, citing concerns about a substantial property tax increase. The delay comes with growing demands from residents of the rural county, which is grappling with aging infrastructure and tight funding like almost everywhere else in Southern Appalachia. Commissioners emphasized the need to balance capital projects — including schools —with essential services in an economic climate that’s become increasingly unfriendly to the working poor.
The library debate compounds fiscal planning challenges. Economic impacts arising from the withdrawal of the FRL system would be included in the 2026-27 budget, above and beyond the property tax increase.
In a May 30 email sent by Commissioner John Smith to members of the Jackson County Library Board, he opined that “Jackson County could provide the same level of library services for less tax dollars.”
Smith has not publicly revealed why he believes the county could run the library for less money, even as his own county manager provided evidence to the contrary — but he and other commissioners would eventually get the opportunity to learn what it would take to provide the same level of services. And it’s a lot.
Prior to the joint meeting, Letson had a long conversation with Cynthia Mason Womble, acting chair of the FRL Board.
A North Carolina native, Womble holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from N.C. State University and retired from the Navy as a Captain after 28 years of service. She also earned a master’s degree in operations research from the Navy Postgraduate School and another master’s degree in national security and strategic studies from the Naval War College. Womble’s final 15 years in the Navy were spent as deputy director of human resources for Fleet Forces Command and commanding officer of the Navy Manpower Analysis Center, among other high-level roles.
During that time, Womble briefed members of Congress and congressional subcommittees, so she’s not new to high-pressure, high-stakes meetings.
Initially, commissioners said that there would be no opportunity for public comment at the joint meeting, which troubled Womble; the FRL’s bylaws state that a public comment session must be provided at each FRL board meeting. Womble told The Smoky Mountain News that, if it were her meeting, she’d have allowed it; however, many agreed that everything that could be said about the situation had already been said during the seven-plus hours of public comment dating back to May.
There also wasn’t much of an agenda for the meeting. Womble said she’d only received one the day before, and she found there were no specific concerns or discussion points listed. Jackson County commissioners have faced growing scrutiny over transparency following an SMN investigation that found they likely broke the law by failing to publicly deliberate the removal of decorative plaques from a Confederate monument at the library. At the time, King said there were no public records — texts, emails, memos or other communications — showing any such deliberations among commissioners.
Letson and Womble both described their conversation as positive and agreed on a few ground rules. No votes would be made. No actions would be taken. No books would be reviewed for content, because there’s an existing process for that.
At the meeting’s outset, Letson explained the situation to the 60-some attendees who’d gathered in a courtroom at the Jackson County Justice and Administration Center.
“We've asked Fontana Regional Library Board to come here, and we're not taking questions tonight. We're trying to get information. That's the purpose of the meeting, and we appreciate Fontana coming and helping us navigate this process,” he said. “Really, what we're here for is opening conversation, dialog between Fontana Regional Library Board to learn some of the processes that are that are in place, to gather some financial information.”
Letson said he wanted to know more about how taxpayer money is managed in the FRL system, and he asked for civility from all parties during the meeting.
“We are here to learn,” he said. “We’re not here to criticize.”
After introducing her board, made up of three people from each member county, Womble noted that the FRL is a nonprofit chartered by the state and, as such, must comply with transparency laws, as well as all state and federal requirements for nonprofits. All FRL policies are available on its website, fontanalib.org, as are audits and budgets.
The most recent tax information available from FRL, published June 1, 2024, shows a tight operation — revenue of $4.03 million against expenses of $3.98 million. Salaries, compensation and benefits for its 81 listed employees account for $2.85 million of that, although FRL administration only has four full-time employees and two part-time employees. The rest work at the six libraries that are part of the system.
FRL spends about 82% of its revenue on program-related costs — a common metric in the nonprofit world that places FRL among elite company in terms of financial management and efficiency.
Funding for FRL comes from its member counties, which together account for more than $3 million in revenue. County funding for each county library system is not comingled — Jackson County money stays in Jackson County — and is based on the size of the library and the staff, as well as the services provided. The costs of shared services are split between the counties in proportion to the size of the library.
The rest of FRL’s funding comes from donations and grants, including from the North Carolina Community Foundation, the Community Foundation for Western North Carolina and Dogwood Health Trust. The Federal Communications Commission has also given substantial grants to FRL for rural broadband access.
The Jackson County Library provides more hours of service than any other library in the FRL system, driven by customer demand.
Beyond simply lending books, the library provides a wide range of services. These include free internet access, technology training and one-on-one help with tasks like setting up email accounts, writing resumes and applying for jobs. Staff handle thousands of reference questions annually, all reported to the State Library of North Carolina. The library also conducts outreach to local organizations such as the Department on Aging, Circles of Jackson and area schools.
Educational programs are extensive, including story time, toddler activities, art and even cooking classes. Services generally align with the library’s mission to offer educational, recreational and informational support to the community. The library also rents out community rooms for events at nominal rates — sometimes even for weddings.
In her opening statement, Womble said she wanted it noted that since becoming acting chair of FRL in January, she’d not had any specific feedback from any commissioner from any county about the system.
“I’ve not had a single phone call, email, text, memo or letter addressing any concerns or issues related to Fontana Regional Library,” she said. “So I welcome the chance to be able to find out exactly what your concerns are that are so severe that it’s brought you to consider removing yourselves from the Fontana Regional Library.”
As of July 1, the FRL Board will have seen significant turnover. Only two board members — Womble and Tony Monnat, of Swain County — will have served longer than a year. This rapid change prompted the board to plan a retreat for September aimed at educating new members on the system’s policies, finances and operations across all six libraries and headquarters.
“I would say it's a rebuilding year, if I was a football coach,” Womble said.
Despite the transitions, the board has remained active over the past two years, reviewing and updating several important policies. The board also launched a juvenile library card program on May 1 after extensive coordination with the State Library. The board plans to formalize its finance committee, which has operated informally in the past to explore ways to improve budget efficiency and maintain responsible financial stewardship.
An example of that financial stewardship that goes back nearly two decades pertains to the role of regional director. In 2006, the FRL board decided to “dual hat” one of its three library directors as part-time regional director — a move Womble says she doesn’t agree with from an HR perspective.
“They did it solely to save money, not because it was the right thing to do or the most efficient or effective course of action,” she said.
Currently, Tracy Fitzmaurice performs those two roles as director of the Jackson County Library and regional director FRL, for which she’s paid nothing near what she deserves, says Womble. According to FRL’s 2024 tax filing, Fitzmaurice earned $87,000.
Womble explained that the FRL’s six administrative employees include the regional director, a state-mandated finance officer, a finance assistant, an information technology director, a courier and an administrative assistant, which prompted the first of Commissioner Jenny Hooper’s curious statements to the FRL board.
“What is [the administrative assistant’s] job?” Hooper asked.
“The same as an administrative assistant in any organization. They do everything that nobody else does,” Womble said.
“Walk me through their day,” Hooper insisted.
“Why do you need me to walk you through an administrative assistant’s day? I think that's a detail level that should be done offline, because we can provide you their position description if you'd like that,” Womble replied. “I think that's a waste of time, quite honestly.”
Bryson replied that the commissioners were there to learn, which prompted Womble to wave a sheet of paper.
“This is the agenda I got,” Womble said, holding the blank agenda.
Letson gaveled for order and said that, before the meeting, he’d reviewed job descriptions online.
“If I had been told that was a topic of discussion tonight,” Womble said, continuing to harp on the lack of detail in the agenda, “we could have brought them and provided them all to you.”
Admitting a distinct lack of preparation, Hooper said, “Well I didn’t know what I was gonna ask; I just happened to think of this.”
Hooper has been a frequent target for criticism during the FRL debate for her offhand remark earlier this month that one option to settle the library dispute was to simply close the library altogether. Some believe that Hooper shouldn’t be a member of the commission at all — ambiguity in her residency has prompted a group of citizens to ask County Attorney John Kubis to clarify how she can serve on the commission despite not being allowed to vote in the district she represents.
Talk then turned to the FRL’s five-year strategic plan, which runs though 2027.
The strategic planning process for Fontana Regional Library includes a comprehensive needs assessment involving input from county commissioners, library patrons, staff, advisory boards and community partners like the health department, sheriff’s office, social services and nonprofits.
Local library boards contribute ideas based on specific community needs. While the structure of strategic planning is similar across systems, specifics vary depending on the intended goals. The next strategic planning process is expected to begin sometime in 2026.
“How does the needs of the county change, like in the next five years?” Hooper asked. “Like, what would be different that they would need, that you don't already have?”
“Not real sure,” Womble said. “I mean, that's part of the planning process … I know that the strategic planning process would inform that as we got feedback from our partners and our customers.”
Letson shifted gears, attempting to get closer to the reason they were all gathered there — books that some believe are obscene or inappropriate for certain age groups.
The Fontana Regional Library system has a clear and legally vetted process for challenging books alleged to be indecent, outlined in its collection development policy. That policy, updated twice in the last two years, stresses intellectual freedom and is available online and at all six library front desks. “Access is provided readily and equitably to users, regardless of race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, age, disability, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status or political views,” it reads.
Patrons can file a formal request for reconsideration using a form that initiates the review process. Often, concerns are resolved informally at the desk, according to Fitzmaurice, but if a formal challenge is filed, it goes to the library director, who reviews it and passes it to the regional board regardless of outcome.
The policy, reviewed by legal counsel, ensures compliance with state and federal laws and guarantees that decisions aren’t made unilaterally.
All challenges are documented and reviewed by the nine members of the FRL board, who read the book in question before voting.
Hooper attempted to portray the multi-level process as dictatorial, saying “there’s only one opinion there,” despite the participation of at least 10 individuals.
“If a librarian, no matter who you are, decided that it didn't need to be looked at any further, and they just put it back on the shelf, would it stop there?” she asked.
“No,” several FRL Board members answered in unison.
“Okay, if it goes to the director and they decide, does it stop there?” Hooper asked.
“No,” several FRL Board members again answered in unison.
“It’s very clear in the collection development policy,” Womble said. “It follows the chain of command.”
Fitzmaurice said that no books had been formally challenged for at least a decade prior to 2022 but that five books have been challenged in the last four years, four in Macon County and one in Jackson County. All were brought to the board for consideration. None were removed.
One example involved then-Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s 2022 biography, which came out before the Republican became entangled in a tawdry pornography scandal that contributed to his shellacking in the 2024 governor’s race. The board voted to keep Robinson’s book in the collection.
“I think that says something to the policy — that it’s fair,” said Monnet, who chaired the committee that drafted the policy’s most recent update.
At this point in the meeting, Jackson County Commissioner Michael Jennings, who said in the June 17 meeting that he was likely to vote for withdrawal from the FRL, entered the room more than 45 minutes late, offering no explanation for his tardiness.
Commissioner Todd Bryson, who’d called for the joint meeting, moved on to discuss how new books make it into the library.
“That’s in the collection development policy,” Womble said, before asking Fitzmaurice to elaborate.
In Jackson County, for instance, both the children’s and adult departments have designated staff responsible for choosing books, using peer-reviewed journals, patron requests and staff recommendations to guide selections. While individual staff members place orders, suggestions are welcome from any library employee or patron. Front desk staff regularly relay community input, and NC Cardinal, a statewide consortium, helps supplement local collections by allowing interlibrary borrowing from 63 other counties.
Books are periodically reviewed and removed through a process called "weeding," which eliminates outdated or unused materials. This is especially important for medical, legal or financial works that must remain current so as not to become misleading.
Items not checked out in three years are typically removed, meaning those who borrow LGBTQ+ books to prevent others from accessing them — as has happened in Yancey County — are actually prolonging their shelf life and possibly generating new sales if the books don’t come back.
Donated books are evaluated according to the same collection development policy. Books that are outdated, damaged or irrelevant are declined, while appropriate items are added, recorded and reported to the state. Donations can also include designated funds or materials, and libraries ensure those are used exactly as intended.
“Friends of the library”-type groups and individuals may donate funds or materials, but they don’t purchase books independently for the system.
This year to date, Jackson County has purchased roughly 4,700 books. Bryson asked if there was any way the Jackson County Library Board could review new additions. Fitzmaurice said no — and not just because of the logistics of a nine-member volunteer advisory board having to review an average of 26 books a day, every single day of every single year.
“They are not trained,” she said. “They do not have an MLIS or other training that the library folks have.”
Training is ongoing for all staff involved in collection development and purchasing, ensuring adherence to professional standards. Though routine, the process is transparent and well-regulated, combining local input with professional expertise to maintain a balanced and responsive collection that minimizes exposure to legal liability for discrimination.
“What does MLIS stand for?” Hooper asked. A master of library and information science degree is generally required to become a librarian in North Carolina.
After a recess, Letson asked about the reclassification process. In library terms, reclassification refers to changing how a book is categorized, shelved or labeled within the library’s system — not removing it, but relocating it to a different section based on subject matter or intended audience.
Since 2020, the Fontana Regional Library system has reviewed a total of six books for possible reclassification. When a reclassification request is made, it follows the same formal challenge process as any book appeal; the requester completes a form and submits it to the librarian, triggering a review and eventually a full FRL Board vote. Any decision to move a book applies system-wide, although not all libraries may own the title in question.
The lone reclassified book, “Let’s talk about it,” is an illustrated guide to sex education written in 2021 by Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan.
Womble mentioned that the FRL currently has no pending requests for reconsideration.
In Jackson County, only one book — “It’s perfectly normal,” written by late educator Robie Harris in 1994 — has been formally challenged for reclassification. After review, the Fontana Regional Library Board of Trustees voted to keep the book in its original location, citing its age-appropriate content and the fact that it had been on the shelf for more than a decade without prior complaint.
When Bryson asked why the decision was made, Womble stepped in to preserve the integrity of the powers granted her board in the 2024 interlocal agreement signed by Jackson County last June. A terse exchange between Bryson and Womble followed.
“The Fontana Regional Library Board of Trustees voted on that … you're questioning the decision of the Fontana Regional Library Board of Trustees, most of whom are no longer on the board,” Womble said. “We could go back in our minutes, we could watch the video from that that meeting to see that, but quite honestly, I don't think it's appropriate for you to be questioning that.”
“I think it’s 100% appropriate,” Bryson shot back. “It’s Jackson County’s tax dollars.”
“The Fontana Regional Library agreement delegates that authority to the Fontana Regional Library Board of Trustees,” Womble replied.
“And that’s why we’re here tonight, ain’t it?” Bryson said.
“I don’t know. We’re here tonight because y’all demanded a meeting and picked a date,” said Womble, eliciting chuckles from the audience.
“The Fontana Regional Library Board of Trustees chose not to move a book,” Bryson offered as the real reason for the meeting. “It’s classified for what age — it’s written for 10 years old? And it should not be.”
“One book?” Womble replied incredulously. “So you’re serious? The reason we’re here spending this time is because one book two years ago didn’t get moved?”
After the meeting had approached the two-hour mark, Jennings finally chimed in.
“I think part of the reason that there's been only one book challenged is because even if you're taking your kid into the children's section, you're not going to look at every book there,” he opined. “They don't know what all’s in there. Nobody knows every book that's in the library, I'm sure.”
Jennings’ comment speaks to the heart of an argument brought up often by FRL supporters — parents have an obligation to parent their children and, legitimate obscenity notwithstanding, cannot demand any library censor any work that might possibly be the slightest bit offensive to anyone, anywhere, at any time. Jennings went on to ask that images from some of the books he wants moved be displayed in the meeting. A large projection screen behind him showed a folder containing the filenames of several unopened images.
“That’s not the process and the policy of Fontana Regional Library, to do it this way,” Womble said. “The forms need to be filled out so that we can follow the process and the policy.”
Fitzmaurice said that when a book is moved to an area it wasn't published for, the library opens itself up to censorship challenges.
“You also move a book that was written for children into a different section, if it's in an older section, those children are being led to be around books that are written for older age groups,” she said. “The library in Greenville, South Carolina, did just that, and they are under heavy litigation now — and that is, again, something I need to avoid.”
Bryson jumped right back into it.
“And I’m absolutely going to ask about a book that is in question, Ms. Womble,” Bryson said. “I’m elected by Jackson County, by the majority of Jackson County, so I will ask about the books, and you’re not going to stop me.”
Bryson was not elected by the majority of Jackson County’s 45,000 residents, or even the majority of Jackson County’s 29,751 registered voters. He received exactly 7,700 votes in the 2022 General Election, besting his Democratic opponent Gayle Woody by 309 votes.
“I'm not going to stop you from asking, but I will ask you to please fill out one of the forms so that we can properly address the book,” Womble said, prompting loud applause from the gallery and some energetic gaveling by Letson, who again called for order.
Jennings, however, pushed for his slides to be displayed. Womble again demurred, saying it would violate both FRL policy and the deal she’d made with Letson prior to the meeting.
Fitzmaurice, revealing the breadth of her industry-specific expertise, warned that judging a book by its proverbial cover — or just an image, or a few paragraphs — would create legal exposure for the FRL.
“That’s almost like saying it’s illegal to judge a person by one act they did and committed murder,” Hooper offered, prompting more derision from the audience.
Fitzmaurice explained that such decisions are made in accordance with the “Miller test.”
The Miller test, established in 1973 by the U.S. Supreme Court in Miller v. California, determines whether material is legally obscene. It asks if the work appeals to prurient interest, depicts sexual conduct offensively and lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value based on community standards in context.
Rady Large, FRL’s pro-bono attorney, eventually explained in greater detail and offered a remedy.
“The FRL board is not trying to be non-transparent by saying there's really not any good that can come from [displaying the images] in this meeting,” Large said. “Just showing select images to this board that cannot take action at this time, just really it would just be kind of, ‘Okay. You've shown us some pictures in a book that you guys don't agree with,’ right? Before you … is the form that you can use to challenge the piece of work that you guys want to challenge — you, individually, as a member of the community, can walk into the library with that form, fill it out online, whatever you want, and then there'll be a full hearing in which the board will discuss that piece of work.”
Drawing from the discussion she’d already heard, Womble said it sounded like maybe the concerns brought by commissioners were related to the collection development policy and that a review of the policy could be initiated in the coming weeks. Any revisions would in turn have to be reviewed by an attorney specializing in the First Amendment.
Commissioner John Smith, who had been critical of FRL in previous meetings and decried FRL’s unwillingness to cooperate in activities that would violate the First Amendment asked if the “Parents bill of rights” passed in 2023 would apply. Absent a court challenge, the bill doesn’t mention public libraries at all — only schools, students and school libraries. The bill might apply if Jackson County offered a student access card for library services, but it does not.
Bryson again challenged Womble on the slides and, this time, earned support from two Jackson County FRL board members, Deborah Smith and Marva Jennings — alleged in multiple Facebook posts to be Commissioner Michael Jennings’ sister — but was again referred to the procedure in the collection development policy.
“If y'all are not willing to look at this, then maybe the meeting’s a waste of time,” Bryson said in frustration.
The final major topic of the evening was the physical security of library patrons, especially children. The FRL’s safe child policy was last updated in 2023 and sets clear guidelines for parental supervision based on a child’s age.
Children under 8 years old must be physically accompanied by a parent or guardian at all times. From ages 8 to 12, a parent must be present somewhere in the library, though not necessarily at the child’s side. Once children are over 12, they may use the library independently, but only with the permission of a parent, legal guardian or caretaker and in accordance with all library policies.
The policy aims to balance safety with flexibility, responding to parental feedback — particularly from those who wanted their children to participate in supervised activities like story time or crafts while they used other parts of the library. Staff acknowledged that teens also need a degree of autonomy in the library setting.
Additionally, the juvenile limited card restricts children 15 and under to materials in the children’s section unless otherwise allowed by a parent, reinforcing that access to materials is a parental choice.
Despite commissioners running into dead end after dead end for more than two hours while trying to poke holes in FRL’s financial, administrative and operational policy, performance and governing agreements, no clear evidence of FRL’s noncompliance with the interlocal agreement was ever presented by anyone.
As the meeting wound down, discussion from Bryson, Hooper and Jennings proceeded to circle back to topics that had already been discussed and prompted explanations that had already been provided.
Like Macon County conservative activist Jim Gaston had in the past, Hooper took a final opportunity to smear the library by bringing up the issue of sex offenders that had been caught there — but failing to note that it was library workers who caught them.
“I think we found four or five sex offenders in the library before,” Fitzmaurice said. “We've reported every one of them immediately. We've had them arrested. We keep a very close watch, and if anyone is acting in a way that we deem concerning, we immediately report it.”
Library staff take active measures to prevent registered sex offenders from entering facilities, as they’re legally prohibited from being on library premises. Signs on every library door proclaim the ban and employees remain vigilant, especially near children's areas.
When someone acts suspiciously, staff reference the sex offender registry and compare names, even photos, if needed. If a match is found, they do not confront the individual, but instead immediately contact the sheriff’s office. Law enforcement has responded swiftly, Fitzmaurice said, and library employees have even been subpoenaed to testify in related court cases.
“I think one of the good things about having local citizens who work in our libraries and being in small towns is that you do tend to know who the local sex offenders are, because it's in the newspaper; it's something that's talked about in the community,” said Womble, who lives in Swain County. “The people who work there are watching because they want to keep our children safe, and we want to identify those people, and if they are violating the law … we want them to be caught and to properly adjudicate that because we don't want them to re-offend. We don't want them around.”
With that, Fitzmaurice unknowingly closed the face-to-face meeting with perhaps a plainer truth than anyone else who’s spoken publicly on the issue.
“I would like to say one thing — that the library is a very, very safe space. We watch out for the children. We want the best for the children, and we work closely with the parents,” she said. “We have a lot of happy people come into the library. We have books in the library that represent our entire community. Everyone in the community has to be represented in our library.”
Commissioners have scheduled a meeting for 6 p.m. on Tuesday, June 24, where they’ll again attempt to pass a budget with a substantial property tax increase. But they’ll also resolve the FRL issue, once and for all.
If they decide to withdraw, they will disregard overwhelming public support, discard a high-performing nonprofit, jeopardize grant funding, imperil technology access, weaken strategic planning created with broad public input, risk expensive First Amendment lawsuits, threaten essential services like job training and ultimately replace professional, transparent operations with an unproven, politically motivated alternative that commissioners themselves admit they do not fully understand — all because of a disagreement on one book, two years ago.
It will be about a year until the formal withdrawal is complete.
It will be about a year until library patrons start noticing diminishing access to shared assets and reduced service efficiency.
It will be about a year until the extra $800,000 hits taxpayers’ wallets.
It will also be about a year until Jackson County commissioners find themselves face to face with voters — or attorneys.
