(1) Eligible political subdivisions include:

(a) A county that establishes or maintains a library or that gives or receives free library service by contract with a municipality or nonprofit library corporation or association within such county;

(b) A county that joins with one or more counties to establish or maintain a library or contracts with another county, a special district, a special tax district, or one or more municipalities in another county to receive free library service;

(c) A special district or special tax district that establishes or maintains a library and provides free library service; or

(d) A municipality that establishes or maintains a library or that gives or receives free library service by contract with a nonprofit library corporation or association within the municipality.

(2) The library established or maintained by such political subdivision shall:

(a) Be operated under a single administrative head who is an employee of the single library administrative unit and who has completed a library education program accredited by the American Library Association. The single administrative head shall have at least 2 years of full-time paid professional experience, after completing the library education program, in a public library that is open to the public for a minimum of 40 hours per week.

(b) Expend its funds centrally.

(c) Provide reciprocal borrowing, and other library services pursuant to interlocal agreement, to residents of all political subdivisions within the county which receive operating grants from the state.

(d) Have at least one library or branch library open for 40 or more hours per week.

(e) Have a long-range plan, an annual plan of service, and an annual budget.

(f) Engage in joint planning for coordination of library services within the county or counties that receive operating grants from the state.

(3) Any political subdivision establishing public library service for the first time shall submit a certified copy of its appropriation for library service, and its eligibility to receive an operating grant shall be based upon such appropriation.

History.—s. 5, ch. 61-402; s. 1, ch. 72-247; s. 3, ch. 72-353; s. 1, ch. 73-138; s. 3, ch. 83-24; s. 53, ch. 2000-171; s. 1, ch. 2001-263; s. 5, ch. 2003-2; s. 1, ch. 2003-126.