The King County Law Library may have to close the branch in Kent due to lack of funding in 2010.    Recently, the King County Executive released his proposed 2010 budget which eliminates the current funding of the law library at the Maleng Regional Justice Center.   In 2009, the County Council added back in half of our year’s funding to help run the operations and they will need to do that and more for 2010.    Nearly 70% of our patrons in Kent are Pro Se and cannot afford an attorney.    If funding is not received from the Council, the branch may close on January 1, 2010.

Other county law libraries around the country are facing similar challenges such as in Indiana.  The Marion County Law Library (IN) is in danger of closing in 2010.   This article describes what services are available and what would be lost if this service goes away.   Service to Pro Se or Self-Represented litigants would be non-existent without the knowledgeable staff at the library in Indiana.