Library Happenings

Instead of my regular La ­Conner Swinomish Library column, Jim Airy, who was board chair during much of the 2020-2022 state audit period and I would like to respond to the recent article about library audit findings in the May 15 La Conner Weekly News. The board and the library recognize the importance of accountability and transparency for the operations of our library district and are committed to ongoing improvements to our service and to compliance with state laws and regulations and library policies.

Jim Airy’s response: The recent state audit identifies areas in which the library failed to comply with state procedures for the administration and management of a public institution. Much of this occurred on my watch as chair of the board of trustees and I take full responsibility for those deficiencies.

During this time, the library board was managing fundraising, overseeing a complex construction project and dealing with shortages of labor and materials, a delay of a year and a cost increase of more than $1 million, all resulting from the Covid pandemic. The audit makes clear that the board did not provide sufficient oversight of the administration and management of the library. This is unacceptable. The library director and the board of trustees are already working to address the issues the audit has identified. I want to emphasize that there was no financial malfeasance, no misuse of funds. All the money that our partners and donors generously contributed to building the new library was used to build the new library, on time and on budget after adjusting for the effects of the pandemic.

Library director response: The La Conner Swinomish Library welcomed our recent audit as a roadmap to help us be the best library we can be. 2022 was a pivotal year for the library; we completed the construction project and moved into our beautiful new building. This was also the year when we began to implement new processes and procedures to increase transparency and to create more accountability within the library.

We have begun the process of updating our policies and procedures and have scheduled board training to ensure we are in compliance with open meeting procedures and protocols. We have also purchased new software to provide improved transparency of library strategies, policies and operations, and we have implemented new financial procedures to improve our accountability.

We value the comprehensive review provided by the state auditor and have responded with plans and a timeline to improve our performance. Our goal is to be the best library for our community and we will strive to represent that goal each and every day. We are thankful for the continued support of our patrons.