A new poll shows that a majority of Kern County residents are opposed to the privatization of the county’s public library system.
The Board of Supervisors commissioned the poll by Price Research of 600 county residents to gauge overall support for the library system. Earlier this year a budget crunch led county leaders to explore a number of possibilities for the system, including handing operations over to a private company.
According to the poll, while 52 percent of county residents support the possible privatization of some county services, the same percentage opposes privatization for libraries. The poll also asked people if they would support a new ⅛ cent sales tax that would maintain and expand library services, the tax also generated 52 percent in support.
Three quarters of respondents report that they or someone in their household used the library system at least a few times in the past year.
While libraries remain popular, the county service respondents most want to see increased spending on is roads, with two-thirds of respondents in support.
