That means patrons in Philadelphia and the eastern half of the state will have to wait up to a week to receive digital books by mail, according to the Philadelphia library staff.
In a sign of belt-tightening ahead, word of the decision coincided with Gov. Corbett's announcement Wednesday of a $226 million freeze in state spending midway through the fiscal year, the result of December revenue collections that fell $500 million below projections.
The two libraries for the blind now receive $2.7 million in state aid, of which 60 percent goes to Philadelphia, which serves 13,000 clients, and the rest to Pittsburgh, which serves 8,000. Besides the blind, the libraries are used by elderly people with diminished sight, and war veterans and others whose injuries limit their ability to read.
Keri Wilkins, administrator of the Philadelphia regional library, said the shift in state aid will force her to cut 15 positions and at the same time have to handle outreach services to clients across the state, as well as distribution for all braille books.
"We do not have the capacity to provide what we are being told to provide," she said at a meeting Thursday in Harrisburg with state library staff and a dozen advocates - many of whom were blind and attended with guide dogs at their feet.
M. Clair Zales, Corbett's deputy secretary of education in charge of state libraries, defended the decision in the face of dismal economic projections heading into the 2012-13 budget discussions.
"This was not a quick reaction and was not done without a great deal of thought, deliberation," Zales said. "Funding for this program is not going to increase. If there is level funding, it would be a victory."
