State aid, also known as the Public Library Subsidy, is paid to libraries that meet standards found in the Statute (24 PA. C.S. Education. Chapter 93) and the Regulations (22 PA Code § 131; § 141.)
The state aid allocation formula (§9334 – §9340) has not been in use since 2003 when significant state budget cuts occurred. As a result, laws are enacted each year that outline how state aid is distributed (e.g., school code language for 2023-2024).
During each state fiscal year (July – June):
See below for the general timeframe in which libraries can expect to enter and submit reports and data that are part of the state aid process. Specific open and due dates will be released to libraries as available.
State aid is paid annually to libraries via direct deposit. Libraries must be sure that the state has up-to-date bank account information before payments are made.
Library bank account changes and updates are made using the Commonwealth of PA Direct Deposit Form through the state's Payable Services Center.
Please notify the State Aid office, RA-StateAid@PA.GOV, of any banking changes as well.
Each year the Office of Commonwealth Libraries compiles public library statistics based on data that's submitted via the Pennsylvania Public Library Data Collection.
This information is used to determine eligibility for state aid and is submitted to the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services national data collection program for public libraries.
The state aid allocation formula (Public Library Code §9334 – 9340) has not been in use since 2003 when significant state budget cuts occurred. As a result, laws are enacted each year that outline how state aid is distributed (e.g., school code language for 2023-2024). In the examples listed below, 2002-2003 is used as that was the last time the formula was calculated and run.
Eligibility
How is it calculated?
Eligibility
How is it calculated?
The purpose of County Coordination Aid is to implement a plan for countywide services for county residents. County funding guarantees that all residents of the county receive free library service. The amount of appropriated money from a county is proportionally matched with State Aid Funds. See the Statute (§9337) for full reference of the law.
Eligibility
How is it calculated?
| Class | Percentage Match |
|---|---|
| 2 | 5% |
| 2A & 3 | 30% |
| 4 | 50% |
| 5 | 50% |
| 6 | 100% |
| 7 | 100% |
| 8 | 100% |
Use of Funds
District Centers are public libraries across the state that have significant collections and are able to provide services to local libraries. Services include interlibrary loan, reference, delivery, and advisory services. There are 29 District Centers in Pennsylvania. See the Statute (§9338) for full reference of the law.
Eligibility
How is it calculated?
There are four major research libraries in the state that provide assistance and to local libraries. Services include interlibrary loan, reference, electronic reference, and digitization. See the Statute (§9339) for full reference of the law.
The following four libraries equally divide the funding in this category:
Eligibility
Any library designated by the State Librarian to serve as a Statewide library resource center shall qualify for additional State aid under this section.
How is it calculated?
The purpose of Equalization Aid is to provide special funding for libraries in economically distressed areas of the state. See the Statute (§9340) for full reference of the law.
Eligibility
How is it calculated?
Equal distribution grants provide an equal share of funds per qualifying districts and eligible. See the Statute (§9336) for full reference of the law.
Due to the formula not currently being in use, the Equal Distribution Grant will remain at $2,088.37 unless otherwise notified. This is the number that will be used to calculate the Quality Aid standard of collection expenditure. That standard is referenced as twice the amount of the previous year's Equal Distribution amount which is 2 x $2,088.37 = $4,176.74.
Eligibility
How is it calculated?
(4) Unless the State Librarian promulgates rules and regulations after the effective date of this section that require different hours of operation, the local library or library system shall be open for service for the following minimum number of hours:
(i) At least 26 hours per week during those times best suited to the needs of residents of its service area, including at least six hours during the weekend period beginning on Saturday and ending on Sunday.
(ii) Weekend hours may be reduced to four hours during time periods as community-use patterns warrant, for a maximum of ten weeks per year.
Libraries that receive Quality Aid must be open at least 26 hours per week (Monday – Sunday). Six of the weekly hours open must occur on the weekends (Saturday – Sunday). If the libraries are meeting these minimum standards, they may be eligible to reduce their weekend hours for a period of ten-weeks.
The ten-week reduction period is only available to libraries currently meeting the hours standard AND the library still maintains the weekly hours of 26 after the reduction. There is no ability for Quality Aid libraries to request permission from the state librarian to reduce their weekly hours (Monday – Sunday) below 26 hours.
Examples:
Purple Library is open a total of 26 weekly hours. Four (4) of those hours take place on Saturdays. Since the library is currently not meeting the hours standard, they are not eligible for the ten-week reduction period. The library will need to apply for a waiver since they do not meet the hours standard.
Yellow Library is open a total of 20 weekly hours. Six (6) of those hours take place on Saturdays. Since the library is currently not meeting the hours standard, they are not eligible for the ten-week reduction period. The library will need to apply for a waiver since they do not meet the hours standard.
Green Library is open a total of 26 weekly hours. Six (6) of those hours take place on Saturdays. The library can reduce their weekend hours to four (4) if they shift the two (2) hours between Monday and Friday. By shifting two hours during the ten-week period, they are still maintaining the 26 weekly hours (Monday – Sunday) requirement. No waiver is needed if hours are shifted to maintain the 26 weekly hours stepping.
Blue Library is open a total of 30 weekly hours. Six (6) of those hours take place on Saturday. The library may reduce their weekend hours to four for a ten-week period. The library will still be meeting the 26 weekly hour requirement as they will be open for a total of 28 weekly hours during the ten-week period. No waiver is needed since they still maintain the 26 weekly hours standard.
(3) Unless the State Librarian promulgates rules and regulations after the effective date of this section that require different hours of operation, the local library or a member library within a library system shall be open for full services for the following minimum number of hours:
(i) At least 45 hours per week during those times best suited to the needs of residents of its service area, including at least seven hours during the weekend period beginning on Saturday and ending on Sunday.
(ii) Weekend hours may be reduced to four hours during time periods as community-use patterns warrant, for a maximum of ten weeks per year.
(iii) A local library or member library within a library system may reduce total weekly hours by three hours per week during the ten-week period of reduced Saturday and Sunday hours if approved by the State Librarian.
Libraries that receive Incentive Aid must be open at least 45 hours per week (Monday – Sunday). Seven of the weekly hours open must occur on the weekend (Saturday – Sunday). If the libraries are meeting these minimum standards, they may be eligible to reduce their weekend hours for a period of ten-weeks.
The ten-week reduction period is available to libraries currently meeting the hours standard AND if the library will still be maintaining the weekly hours of 45 after the reduction.
Examples:
Purple Library is open a total of 45 weekly hours. Five (5) of those hours take place on Saturdays. Since the library is currently not meeting the hours standard, they are not eligible for the ten-week reduction period. The library will need to apply for a waiver since they do not meet the hours standard.
Yellow Library is open a total of 35 weekly hours. Six (6) of those hours take place on Saturdays. Since the library is currently not meeting the hours standard, they are not eligible for the ten-week reduction period. The library will need to apply for a waiver since they do not meet the hours standard.
Green Library is open a total of 45 weekly hours. Seven (7) of those hours take place on Saturdays. The library can reduce their weekend hours to four (4) if they shift the three hours between Monday and Friday. By shifting three hours during the ten-week period, they are still maintaining the 45 weekly hours (Monday – Sunday) requirement. No waiver is needed if hours are shifted to maintain the 45 weekly hours standard.
Blue Library is open a total of 50 weekly hours. Seven (7) of those hours take place on Saturday. The library may reduce their weekend hours to four for a ten-week period. The library will still be meeting the 45 weekly hour requirement as they will be open for a total of 47 weekly hours during the ten-week period. No waiver is needed since they still maintain the 45 weekly hours standard.
In extra ordinary cases, the state librarian may grant permission for libraries to reduce their weekly hours requirement to 42. Requests for permission should be emailed to RA-StateAid@pa.gov which will be forwarded to the State Librarian for review. Within the request, the library will need to provide reasoning for the reduction. Reasons can be related to library usage, more reliance on outreach that is outside of the library, or any other reasoning that a library has to justify the reduction. Please provide as much information or data as possible to support the request. The information provided will be reviewed to see if the justification is sufficient.
Banking Changes - If you receive payments from the state, via state aid, grants, etc. you will need to make sure you update your banking change with the Commonwealth.
Certification - Library directors are required to meet certain educational requirements as part of the standards associated with state aid.
Compendium - Please subscribe to stay up to date with all things related to OCL. This is our main point of contact for broad topics related to libraries within Pennsylvania.
Library Directory - This is a publicly accessible database of state aided libraries within Pennsylvania. Please verify that the information is correct for your library. If an update is needed, please fill out the Library Information & Personnel Update form that can be found on the home page of LibPAS after logging in.
Q. What patrons are we to provide library cards with Access PA Stickers to?
A. Access PA stickers should only be placed on the cards of patrons that reside within your service area.
Q. One of my libraries will be paying more in shipping of materials this year (formerly free.) They want to know if shipping counts toward their 12% Collections spending or needs to be tracked separately. Any advice on this?
A. Shipping charges associated with material purchases seem reasonable to include in the collection expenditure line, as it is part of the cost of obtaining the materials for the collection.
Q. Is there a suggestion on how to manage the reduction of hours and still be in compliance with the standards?
A. Please see the Library Hours Section of this LibGuide for further information.
If you have any questions about any of the material on this LibGuide, please contact the State Aid office.