Another post commenting on Chapter 20 of Give Us a Dollar and We’ll Give You Back Four (2012-13)–now available as a $9.99 Kindle ebook or $21.95 paperback with ISBN 978-1481279161 on Amazon, along with the usual Lulu options.
Sixty libraries are profiled; 21 are omitted. No libraries are in the top two expenditure brackets and only 17% spend $31 or more per capita (compared to half the libraries overall). Benefit ratios are very high, with median 5.12 or above after adjusting for the 95.1% cost of living. No library is in the top bracket for circulation or patron visits. Most libraries are in the lower midrange of circulation, with only 8% circulating 13 or more items (compared to 25% overall). PC use is distinctly low, with only 12% having 1.7 uses or more per capita (compared to 43% overall).
Libraries by legal service area
LSA | Count | % | Outliers |
<700 | 7 | 11.7% | 9 |
700-1,149 | 10 | 16.7% | 8 |
1,150-1,649 | 11 | 18.3% | 1 |
1,650-2,249 | 5 | 8.3% | |
2,250-2,999 | 7 | 11.7% | |
3,000-3,999 | 2 | 3.3% | |
4,000-5,299 | 2 | 3.3% | 1 |
5,300-6,799 | 1 | 1.7% | |
6,800-8,699 | 2 | 3.3% | 1 |
11,100-14,099 | 2 | 3.3% | |
14,100-18,499 | 2 | 3.3% | |
18,500-24,999 | 3 | 5.0% | |
25,000-34,499 | 2 | 3.3% | 1 |
34,500-53,999 | 1 | 1.7% | |
54,000-104,999 | 3 | 5.0% |
Circulation per capita and spending per capita
Circulation per capita correlates strongly (0.51) with spending per capita.
Note that this graph goes to $55, more than the highest actual spending.
Circulation per capita plotted against spending per capita
Circulation per capita (rounded) occurrence by spending category