(a) Regular financial effort required.--To qualify for quality libraries aid, a local library or library system shall make a minimum financial effort of $5 per capita for each person residing in the municipalities that will be part of the direct service area in which the library is applying for aid.

(b) Exception for economically distressed municipalities.--A local library or library system which applies for State aid on behalf of an economically distressed municipality, as defined in section 9340(b) (relating to equalization aid), shall expend a minimum of $2 per capita for each person residing in the municipality.

(c) Standards.--To receive aid under this section, a local library or library system shall meet the following basic standards:

(1) The local library or library system shall participate in the Access Pennsylvania Statewide Library Card Program, as provided by rules and regulations promulgated under this chapter.

(2) The local library or library system shall lend materials free of charge on a reciprocal basis to all types of libraries in this Commonwealth.

(3) The local library or library system shall provide interlibrary loans free of charge to residents of the library's direct service area.

(4) Unless the State Librarian promulgates rules and regulations after the effective date of this section that require different hours of operation, the local library or library system shall be open for service for the following minimum number of hours:

(i) At least 26 hours per week during those times best suited to the needs of residents of its service area, including at least six hours during the weekend period beginning on Saturday and ending on Sunday.

(ii) Weekend hours may be reduced to four hours during time periods as community-use patterns warrant, for a maximum of ten weeks per year.

(5) The library director of the local library or library system shall annually attend at least eight hours of continuing education programs approved by the Office of Commonwealth Libraries.

(6) The local library or library system shall participate in the county library plan for the coordination of countywide services. In the absence of a county library, the local library or library system shall participate in the development of a coordinated county services plan with the district library center serving the municipalities in which the local library or library system is located. The State Librarian may on a case-by-case basis grant a waiver of participation in certain provisions of the plan.

(d) Allocation method.--Quality libraries aid shall be allocated to qualifying local libraries and library systems on a per capita basis in the following manner:

(1) The annual allocation of funds available for quality libraries aid shall be divided by the total population on which all libraries and library systems qualify for State aid to yield a per capita amount of quality libraries aid.

(2) The per capita amount of quality libraries aid calculated in paragraph (1) shall be multiplied by the total population residing within the municipalities served by a library or library system which qualifies for aid.

Cross References. Section 9334 is referred to in sections 9302, 9311, 9333, 9335, 9336, 9337 of this title.