A late amendment to a motion to reduce the Guelph Public Library budget will instead see the budget reduced by just $1.
Coun. Cathay Downer introduced a new motion to add $99,999 into the Guelph Public Library budget after council voted previously in favour of a reduction of $100,000.
Coun. Downer said new information lead to her wanting to amend the motion.
As this is an amendment to the full budget motion, there is no need to introduce a motion to reconsider as the final budget has yet to be finalized.
The amendment to the motion passed 8-5.
Coun. Dominique O’Rourke moved a motion to add $99,999 to the Guelph Public Library budget to phase in over two years or $49,999.50 in 2022 and $49,999.50 in 2023.
This motion failed with council voting 4-9.
Coun. Dan Gibson questioned the motion, which would retroactively reduce the library budget by $1.
Cam Guthrie spoke to the earlier vote calling it 'petty' in his opinion and unnecessary.
He continued saying there have been items in the past that have come up which are not helpful to the unity that council is striving for on these matters.
He said he should not have voted in favour of the previous motion, and instead for unity and respect council should look to put that aside.
Coin. Gibson questioned the term ‘petty’ and said that it is not reflective of those who voted in favour of the original amendment.
Guthrie replied that he felt his own opinion on the matter was petty and was not speaking for others.
Earlier in the budget meeting, Guelph City council voted to reduce the Guelph Public Library budget by $100,000 by a vote of 8-5.
The original motion on the floor from Coun. Mark MacKinnon was for a library amendment to the budget for a reduction to the tune of $175,000.
The move drew criticism from Coun. James Gordon who pointed out this is roughly the same figure that the library is looking to reduce from its revenue with the elimination of late fees in the new year.
Coun. Gibson countered the point saying the library board determined they wanted to go ahead with the cancellation of late fees, which means the library will have the onus of finding the budget to cover that decision.
After a discussion on the matter, an amendment was put forward to reduce the library's budget by $100,000 which passed by an 8-5 vote.
Mayor Cam Guthrie said council has no say in what an outside board does, and it should not be tied to anything, rather allow the outside board to decide what to do with the budget afforded to them.
The Guelph Public Library board passed the motion to remove late fees in September, with the move expected to eliminate $175,000 in revenue, which would need to be replaced by taxpayer funding in order to maintain services.
The move to reduce late fees is intended to eliminate financial barriers for users and allow staff to redirect their efforts toward providing meaningful interactions with the public and reduce barriers for those looking to expand their learning.
