The fourth of 49 notes on Chapter 20 of Give Us a Dollar and We’ll Give You Back Four (2012-13), this time on the public libraries of Arizona.
With 85 libraries (and eight omitted), you’d expect a somewhat uneven expenditure distribution in any case, but it’s not all that unusual (although nearly 18% of libraries spend $21-$25.99, compared to just under 11% overall). Median benefit ratio in all spending categories is at least 4.21 (4.4 adjusted). While circulation is fairly typical, patron visits are on the high side, with 41% having at least seven per year (compared to 33% overall). Half of the best-funded libraries circulate at least 24 items per capita; half of the best-funded (not necessarily the same libraries) have at least 21 visits per capita, a very high number. (Nationally, half of the best-funded libraries have at least 13 visits per capita.) PC use is notably high, with 45% of the libraries having at least 1.7 uses per capita (compared to 30% overall).
Libraries by legal service area
| LSA | Count | % | Outliers |
| <700 | 4 | 4.7% | 1 |
| 700-1,149 | 7 | 8.2% | 2 |
| 1,150-1,649 | 1 | 1.2% | 1 |
| 1,650-2,249 | 5 | 5.9% | |
| 2,250-2,999 | 3 | 3.5% | |
| 3,000-3,999 | 8 | 9.4% | 1 |
| 4,000-5,299 | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 5,300-6,799 | 7 | 8.2% | |
| 6,800-8,699 | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 8,700-11,099 | 7 | 8.2% | 1 |
| 11,100-14,099 | 4 | 4.7% | 1 |
| 14,100-18,499 | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 18,500-24,999 | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 25,000-34,499 | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 34,500-53,999 | 10 | 11.8% | |
| 54,000-104,999 | 3 | 3.5% | 1 |
| 105,000-4.1 mill. | 12 | 14.1% |
Circulation per capita and spending per capita
While circulation per capita correlates strongly with spending per capita (0.56), the correlation is lower than for some other states. For the line graph, circulation was rounded to the nearest five per capita to make the graph more readable.
Circulation per capita plotted against spending per capita
Circulation per capita (to nearest five) occurrence by spending category
