Discussions continue this week about ways to permanently reduce our annual operating budget by approximately $425,000, which is the combined total of our need to plan for up to a 5% permanent reduction ($325,000) in our budget in response to declining state support, and the projected serials inflation hole for FY18 of approximately $100,000. Following this week’s meetings, culminating in a Library Budget Committee on Friday morning (beginning at 9:00 a.m. in the Library Conference Room — everyone is welcome), Dean Peters will finalize the plan and send it to the Provost sometime on Tuesday, February 21st. We probably will learn how much money will be removed permanently from our FY18 operating budget in late March after the next meeting of the Board of Governors on March 23-24 in Kansas City.