Petition signature gatherers have hit the streets in hopes of convincing the Nevada County Board of Supervisors against contracting operation of the public libraries to a private company.

The petitions will eventually be presented to the board, according to Madelyn Helling, former county librarian who is working to keep the libraries under county management.

“It will give us a sense of people caring,” Helling said Tuesday.

Both the Friends of the Nevada County Libraries and the Friends of the Truckee Library say the outsourcing could drive off dedicated employees during a recession, and fear an out-of-area private company would not care about local needs.

County officials have been looking for ways to address an estimated $400,000 library budget shortfall that is expected to get much worse in the next two to three years as sales taxes continue to dwindle. One option being explored is to contract with a private company to manage the library operations, a move designed to save money through lower operating costs. Two companies have expressed an interest in operating the libraries and are expected to make proposals by the Thursday deadline. There are an estimated 67,000 library card holders in Nevada County.

In the meantime, the Nevada County Library Foundation has also joined the Friends clubs in an attempt to slow the process, without taking a formal stance for or against outsourcing.

The Friends of the Truckee Library would like to scrutinize those numbers as part of their concerns, according to an opinion piece written for the Sierra Sun newspaper by club members Ruth Hall and Pam McAdoo.

“We really feel as though the county librarian can come up with a belt-tightening answer,” McAdoo said Tuesday. “We feel we could lose the professionalism of our staff.”

In a side concern, the Truckee group fears a proposed western county idea to increase the one-eighth cent county sales tax to bolster the libraries could detract from the future there.

“We're looking to build a new library up here,” McAdoo said. “The tax proposal could be confusing to our people. It could cloud the issue.”

Library Foundation board member Tom Dunham said the panel had recently contacted county officials asking them to take more time before making a decision.

“We were assured by the county that the public will have plenty of time to review the offers and proposal information,” Dunham said.

The Citizens Oversight Committee for the library cannot take a position on the outsourcing because it will be included in the scrutiny of the proposals, according to chairwoman Christine Trussler.

“I'd like to keep us out of the political part of this,” Trussler said.

Assistant County Excecutive Officer Laura Matteson this week warned that there is some urgency to address the budget shortfall before it worsens. Nevada County Librarian Mary Ann Trygg recommended closing both the Bear River and Doris Foley Historical libraries earlier this year, but county supervisors balked after hearing from several library advocates.

The Friends of the Nevada County Libraries group has made an initial offer to help operate the Doris Foley Historical Library as a last resort.

To contact Senior Staff Writer Dave Moller, e-mail dmoller@theunion.com or call 477-4237.