Rossville officials continue to grasp at possibilities to make up the $52,602 needed for the city’s portion of its library’s budget.

The library can remain open through September with current funds and the $7,500 the city will disburse for the final fiscal 2002 payment, said Diana Tope, director of the Cherokee Regional Library system, during a budget work session Tuesday morning.

Tope said she pared down the 2003 budget to $52,602 — down nearly $8,000 from the previous year — and would work with Rossville officials if they could come close to providing that amount.

The regional library system would have “no choice but to expel the Rossville library” if funding drops below the maintenance of effort level because, under state law, the system would lose all state funding, putting the Chickamauga, LaFayette and Trenton libraries in jeopardy, Tope said. The maintenance of effort level means government agencies must maintain or increase funding for the library each year, she said.

If agencies cut funding, the state will cut off its funds.

Last year, Rossville City Council cut its library funding to $30,000 to balance the city’s budget, so concerned Walker County residents organized fundraisers and made donations to make up the shortfall and keep the library open. Rebecca Gladden, who lives outside Rossville and spearheaded last year’s fundraising efforts, said she could not tackle such a massive project again, but does not want to see the library close.

Mayor Johnny Baker — along with council members, library officials and concerned city residents attending the meeting — expressed their desire to keep the library open.

Tope said invoices produced for labor and materials used on the library could be counted toward the city’s portion of the library budget.

Because about 70 percent of Rossville library patrons do not reside with the city limits, councilman Rick Buff said the city “can’t ask 30 percent of the people to carry 100 percent of the load.”

Rossville resident Ron Shoemake proposed shifting some of the financial burden to the county government and school board to make a more “equitable base of contributions” between the three governments. He also suggested cutting operating hours and counting city expenditures, such as providing and maintaining the library building, toward the total contribution.

“Like a lot of small towns in the state, we’re tight for revenue,” councilman James Crane said.

Crane asked Tope to consider absorbing $35,000 in salary and benefits for the library director, Michael Roach, who recently resigned several weeks ago. The city has used employee attrition to cut costs.

“We have to have somebody in charge at the library,” Tope said, but she does not expect his replacement to earn as much as he did. She will also look at cutting operating hours and staff to reduce operating costs.

Baker said budget talks will continue budget talks Tuesday morning. He expects the city to set its budget this month