Should Assembly Bill 438 be passed in Sacramento, city councils, like that in Santa Clarita, would have to hold a vote of the people in order to make the decision to privatize city libraries.

A route this city council did not choose to tread as it cancelled its contract with the Los Angeles County Library system without taking the matter to the people and contracted with the private company Library Systems and Services (LSSI).

Mayor Pro-Tem Laurie Ender defended her decision as part of the two-member Legislative Committee (along with Council Member Frank Ferry), to recommend the city not support the measure. She said that contracting a private library system is well within the existing authority and established role of city councils.

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“We all know there are a lot of contracts we enter into with outside companies whether it’s transit, landscape, I mean it could go on. This (AB 438) is aimed at libraries and only at libraries,” Ender said.

AB 438 was introduced by Assembly Member Das Williams of Santa Barbara which would require “that the board of trustees, common council, or other legislative body of any city or the board of trustees of any library district may notify the county board of supervisors that the city or library district no longer desires to be a part of the county free library system, provided that a specified two week published notice is given.”

“In addition, only in the situation whereby the withdrawing city’s legislative body intend to contract library services through a private company, then voter approval would be required at a regularly scheduled election.”

Former City Council Member TimBen Boydston, speaking before the council as a private citizen, said he was “mystified” by the lack of support for AB 438.

“This bill simply calls for an election by the people, if a city wants to privatize their libraries systems. Opposing a bill that gives the public a right to vote seems very wrong to me,” Boydston said.

The Legislative Committee recommended that the city council also oppose the measure due, in part, to the precedent setting nature of requiring extraordinary noticing requirements and referendum of city council actions related to library systems, while other similar administrative actions of the City Council do not have these same requirements.

“This is pointedly aimed at libraries,” Ender said.

One member of the public who spoke to the council did not see an election as extraordinary and suggested a vote on libraries could have been piggy-backed to a regular election.

Another public speaker supported the Legislative Committee’s recommendation and read off a laundry list of unions who support AB 438.

Ender reacted to the union issue.

“There is clearly a union bias in this and so this is just something we didn’t feel we wanted to support.”

The city council agreed with Ender and voted not to support AB 438.