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  • Home
  • Fact vs. Fiction
  • Town Hall
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  • Board of Supervisors
  • Important Documents
  • King & Queen's Model
  • Concerns
  • LSS Town Halls

Save King William’s Libraries!

Save King William’s Libraries!Save King William’s Libraries!Save King William’s Libraries!

The King William County Board of Supervisors has voted to leave the Pamunkey Regional Library system and has signed a 10 year contract to pay a contractor from Maryland, Library Systems and Services, to operate libraries in Upper King William and West Point. 


Starting July 1, 2025, all King William residents will lose access to the millions of resources available with PRL, and the interlibrary system that allows for usage and transfer of resources from Hanover and Goochland to King William will end.


Stay informed on what this will mean and how you can make your voice heard!



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Library Systems and Services

KW Board Decides Private Company Will Operate Library

The Board has decided to give Library Systems and Services a contract to operate libraries in King William utilizing tax payer funds. 


Though they stated that leaving PRL would mean "King William would be making decisions for King William,"  The facts simply don’t bear that conclusion out. LSS operates its libraries top to bottom (https://inthepublicinterest.org/when-public-libraries-become-private-who-will-support-them/). 


The county is outsourcing the full operation of this library to a company based in Maryland.  

LSS makes all hiring decisions. 


This means that services are subject to be outsourced to librarians that don’t live here. Not in our county and sometimes not even in our state.

Poor reviews for Library Systems and services

 

We have testimony from libraries that have given contracts to LSS and then had to revoke or not renew them due to everything that’s been mentioned above occurring. 



Santa Clarita City Library cancelled its contract with LSS to save almost $400,000 in the budget (https://signalscv.com/2018/01/council-unanimously-votes-take-back-library-operations/). 


Calabasas Library saved $68,000 by canceling its contract with LSS (https://capitalandmain.com/calabasas-and-other-towns-reject-privatized-libraries-0731). 


LSS also puts lines in their budgets with expenses for “other” and they refuse to say what this pays for; in one library, to the tune of 28% of the funding they were given (https://tinyurl.com/bdpd3b9m). 


Prince William County in Maryland refused to give them the bid because LSS didn’t provide them with the transparency they demand from agencies that take taxpayer funds. And they don’t have to; it’s a company who is in business to make money. 


In the most comprehensive review we could find, Jackson Count Library compiled a study after ten years spent with LSS operating their library system. It detailed failure in financial transparency, a deficiency in staff knowledge and expertise, and a lack of tailoring to community needs: https://www.escondidoindivisible.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Jackson-LIbrary-LSS-Summary-slides.pdf 

https://www.escondidoindivisible.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/JCLS-Performance-Review_Quality-Assessment.pdf


And if you look at the success stories listed on the company’s website, these are large library systems whose budgets exceed $1 million dollars; not two branches that currently only cost $602,907 to operate (https://www.lsslibraries.com). 

Download PDF

As a Comparison: PRL FY2026 Budget Request Presentation

PRL provided the Board of Supervisors with 5 different options that would allow them to continue funding UKW and WP Libraries at varying costs. The Board rejected all offers to remain with PRL, despite cost reductions, citing "lack of control" as their reasoning.


1.   Fund both branches fully at 52 hours each. This would increase the reduced hours currently available at both branches. Cost: $641,310. 


2.   Fund a partial increase at both branches to 48 hours each. Cost: $624,621


3.   Fund a partial increase at both branches to 44 hours each. Cost: $608,367 


4.   Fund the same number of hours both branches each currently receive at 39 hours. Cost: $602,907 (same funding as last year) 


5.   Move the UKW Branch to a county- owned facility which would result in a $33,000 decrease to every number listed above. 


Any increase in funding from King William this year will go *solely* to increasing open hours at UKW and WP Libraries.

Please click below for a link to the full PowerPoint presentation. 

Power Point Presentation

Frequently Asked Questions

Please reach us at Ask@savethekwlibrary.org if you cannot find an answer to your question.

Every patron of either the Upper King William or West Point branch will lose access to Pamunkey Regional Library and any of its resources and will not be able to get a PRL card in the future while they reside in King William. 

This decision affects anyone living in King William, including the Town of West Point. 

If King William wants to run their own library, our taxpayers will be solely responsible for paying for every resource both electronic and physical including: books, tv shows, movies, music, Launchpads, magazines, online databases, and newspapers. 


They will also be responsible for paying for new computers, electronic equipment, supplies, software for records management, transportation and gas to move books between the two branches (if there are two branches), and be solely responsible for paying the salary and benefits for a new library director (at least one staff member with a Master of Library Science to be eligible to receive state funding) and administrative staff. 

You can contact the Board of Supervisors and let them know you disagree with their decision to leave PRL. Here is a link to a template email you can send: Template


You can choose to speak at the Board meetings during the Citizen Comment period, which does require you to sign up ahead of time. You can also attend and speak via Zoom or submit your written comment only, just follow this link: https://www.kwc.gov/FormCenter/Administration-6/PUBLIC-COMMENT-Register-to-Speak-or-Subm-64

Fact vs. Fiction

There is a lot of misinformation about the library and the decision to leave PRL's system. Click below to learn the facts.

Find out more

Board of Supervisors

The Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to leave PRL. Click below to see contact information for each Board member so you can share your thoughts with them.

Learn More

Pamunkey Regional Library

Discover the hundreds of thousands of resources available until June 30.

Visit PRL's website to see all of the resources King William residents will lose access to after the Board of Supervisor's decision to leave the regional system. Following King & Queen's lead, we will lose access to books, eBooks, audiobooks, movies, music, comics, magazines, databases, programs, full use of meeting/study rooms at 8 other branches, and more.

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