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. Note that Lulu prices for the paperback and hardback versions are now lower.
While the 537 profiled libraries in Texas (27 omitted) are distributed throughout spending levels, most are on the low side, with 44% in the bottom two brackets and 71% in the bottom four (compared to 39% overall). Median benefit ratios are consistently above 4.3 without adjusting for Texas’ 90.5% cost of living, and only one bracket falls just below 4 (to 3.95) adjusted.
Circulation is on the low side, with 22% circulating at least eight items per capita (compared to 50% overall). Only 30% of the libraries report at least five patron visits per capita (compared to 54% overall), only 35% report at least 0.3 program attendance per capita (compared to 54% overall), and PC use is better but still somewhat on the low side, with 32% reporting at least 1.3 uses per capita (compared to 43% overall).
Libraries by legal service area
| LSA | Count | % | Outliers |
| <700 | 5 | 0.9% | 5 |
| 700-1,149 | 15 | 2.8% | |
| 1,150-1,649 | 25 | 4.7% | 3 |
| 1,650-2,249 | 27 | 5.0% | 1 |
| 2,250-2,999 | 27 | 5.0% | 3 |
| 3,000-3,999 | 49 | 9.1% | 2 |
| 4,000-5,299 | 39 | 7.3% | |
| 5,300-6,799 | 37 | 6.9% | 1 |
| 6,800-8,699 | 43 | 8.0% | 1 |
| 8,700-11,099 | 43 | 8.0% | 3 |
| 11,100-14,099 | 25 | 4.7% | 3 |
| 14,100-18,499 | 31 | 5.8% | |
| 18,500-24,999 | 32 | 6.0% | |
| 25,000-34,499 | 34 | 6.3% | 2 |
| 34,500-53,999 | 42 | 7.8% | 3 |
| 54,000-104,999 | 24 | 4.5% | |
| 105,000-4.1 mill. | 39 | 7.3% |
Circulation per capita and spending per capita
Circulation per capita correlates strongly (0.67) with spending per capita.
Circulation per capita plotted against spending per capita
Circulation per capita (rounded) occurrence by spending category
