Bernard Bellin

OPERATING AUTHORITY AND PURPOSE

The Lakeshores Library System was established under Sec.43.15, Wisconsin Statutes in January 1983 by action of the Racine and Walworth County Boards. Only the residents of those towns and villages in the two counties that are without their own libraries pay into each county’s special levy for library services.

The residents of the cities of Burlington and Racine, the villages of Union Grove, Waterford and Rochester (Village and Town) are exempt from the county library levy because they tax themselves locally at a higher mill rate than that of the County as provided for in Sec. 43.64, Wisconsin Statutes. The Lakeshores Library System board distributes county tax revenues to provide cash reimbursement to libraries for serving residents located outside their municipal boundaries, to help them expand their collections and for providing other services to Lakeshores Library System residents.

All funds appropriated by the county are distributed to individual libraries in order to lease library services for county-taxed residents. No county funds are used for the system's administrative or support services; these activities are state funded.

This state aid is used to provide services to the systems various member libraries, including interlibrary exchange of material (delivery), back up reference and services from the resource library. The resource library provides specialized services on a contract basis.