Garfield County Commission Chair Tom Jankovsky moved swiftly through Monday’s meeting agenda after listening to a woman talk about the library budget during the public comment period. She and Trish O’Grady, who spoke to the Commissioners (BOCC) at the beginning of the month, are now trying to draw attention to the district’s budget, including Executive Director Jamie LaRue’s pay raise.

In fact, LaRue, who was on-hand to present the library’s 2025 budget, was able to use the BOCC forum to clarify his salary and his thoughts about what he considers to be bullying.

“A few years ago now, a small group of local residents, originally John Lepkowski, then Trish O’Grady, began a campaign of misinformation, insults and threats,” he began. “They obsessed about books that were never aimed at children and that children didn’t use. They lied about what was in the books and sometimes called for their burning.”

He continued, “They called library staff and board members — their neighbors and fellow church members and parents — they called them pedophiles and groomers,” he added. “Sometimes they wanted to defund the library, all while saying that 92 to 98% of what we did was fine. Why then the anger and name calling and threats?”

“I want to make something perfectly clear,” he said. “When a small group of people starts telling other people, or other people’s children, what they cannot read or what they must now say in public, that’s not patriotic. That’s bullying. That’s the attempt to deny others the liberty guaranteed by our Constitution. But we will not be bullied into breaking the law.”

“We are neither a partisan political body nor a religious inquisitor,” LaRue explained. “We are advocates for literacy rooted both in law and an abiding passion for understanding and for our community.”

Kevin Hettler, chief financial officer for the library district, answered questions about the 2025 budget, stating that the $25,130,779 fund balance for the end of 2025 is a result of “saving for a rainy day.” Those complaining about the budget state that the money should be returned to taxpayers, clearly not understanding why the library district wants to maintain a large reserve.

Hettler explained that in 2022, oil and gas valuation spiked due to the conflict in Ukraine, which indicated two more years of revenue from the industry. “At the same time we were talking about the [remodeling] schedules with our buildings,” he said. The district decided to collect the money approved by Garfield County voters through mill levies and reserve it for the building projects scheduled to begin this year.

“We also have that reserve in there for when oil and gas continues to show volatility,” he added, harkening back to 2017 when the library district had a 30% budget cut that it was not prepared for. “So, it’s been to protect us from the 2017 era,” he explained. “And to help us continue to maximize the use of our buildings, make them attractive and proud centers that our public can come in and use.”

Hettler added that a little over $12 million would be the minimum fund balance after the building remodels are finished.

Interestingly, there were no comments from the public after the library budget presentation. The BOCC voted unanimously to accept it.

In other news, the BOCC, unhappy with the Canadian gray wolf releases in Pitkin and Eagle counties over the weekend, signed a letter to Governor Polis, the Parks and Wildlife Commission and CPW director Jeff Davis, calling for a permanent pause in further wolf reintroduction. “It’s not fair to the wolves,” said Commissioner Perry Will. The BOCC was also concerned that current release sites were not what Coloradans voted for; although at a press conference later on Monday, CPW’s Eric Odell said that the sites were still on the Western Slope but more focused.

You can watch the entire meeting at the Garfield County website.