SR487: SR487 Ray City Community Library; membership in state-supported public library services; support

The Ray City Community Library has operated as a municipal library for more than 20 years without support from the Georgia Public Library Service, a unit of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. This resolution states the Senate's support for the library becoming a full member of the Coastal Plain Regional Library System, which covers Berrien County where Ray City is located. Membership in the regional system is described as necessary for the library to access services like interlibrary loans, the PINES shared catalog, facilities planning help, and professional development, as well as to become eligible for state and federal funding. The resolution urges the Board of Regents, the Regents Public Library Advisory Committee, the Georgia State Library System, and the relevant library boards to approve full membership for the library, and directs the Secretary of the Senate to distribute copies of the resolution to those parties.

• Formally states the Senate's support for the Ray City Community Library joining the Coastal Plain Regional Library System.
• Urges the Board of Regents, the Regents Public Library Advisory Committee, the Georgia State Library System, and local library boards to approve full membership for the library.
• Recognizes the library's contributions to preserving local heritage and its role in the community.
• Directs the Secretary of the Senate to distribute copies of the resolution to the Board of Regents' advisory committee, the state librarian, the regional library system, local library boards, and elected officials.
• Does not itself grant membership or funding; it is a statement of support urging other bodies to act.

The Ray City Community Library and its patrons in Berrien County, the Coastal Plain Regional Library System and its member boards, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia through the Georgia Public Library Service, and local officials involved in library governance.

If the bodies addressed act on this resolution, the Ray City Community Library could gain access to interlibrary loans, the statewide PINES catalog, facilities planning help, and state or federal funding, potentially improving its collections, services, and building.

• The resolving clauses express the Senate's support for the library's membership in the Coastal Plain Regional Library System to qualify for Georgia Public Library Service support.
• A further resolution recognizes the library's contributions to local heritage and emphasizes its continued growth.
• A further resolution urges the Board of Regents, the Regents Public Library Advisory Committee, the Georgia State Library System, the Regional Library Board, and the Berrien County Library Board to grant the library full membership.
• The final section directs the Secretary of the Senate to distribute copies of the resolution to the relevant boards, officials, and library system.
• Background clauses cite O.C.G.A. § 20-2-305 as the law governing how state and federal library funds are distributed to county and regional library boards.

1. 2025-04-02Senate Withdrawn & Recommitted (Senate)
2. 2025-03-28Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
3. 2025-03-27Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Carden Summers (R, SD-013)Primary sponsor
• Russ Goodman (R, SD-008)
• Sam Watson (R, SD-011)
• Ricky Williams (R, SD-025)
• Lee Anderson (R, SD-024)
• Freddie Sims (D, SD-012)
• Ed Harbison (D, SD-015)
• Josh McLaurin (D, SD-014)
• Marty Harbin (R, SD-016)
• Bo Hatchett (R, SD-050)
• Brandon Beach (R, SD-021)
• Ben Watson (R, SD-001)
• Drew Echols (R, SD-049)
• Colton Moore (R, SD-053)
• Chuck Payne (R, SD-054)

• public libraries
• Ray City
• library funding
• Berrien County
• Georgia Public Library Service