Overview
According to Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC), the need factor is a percentage used to calculate additional grant money to be awarded to a municipality, based on comparative need as expressed in income per capita and EQV (equalized property value) per capita data. A grant for the municipality with the highest need factor (or combined rank) will receive an addition of 15% to its base award, while those municipalities with a lower need factor will receive correspondingly less on a sliding scale. The combined factor will be calculated by adding the EQV per capita rank and the income per capita rank as available from the Department of Revenue (DOR). The combined factor is then compared to the greatest combined rank as a ratio, resulting in the combined percentage. The need factor is then determined by multiplying the combined percentage by 15%. The resulting percentage will be used to increase the formula-based grant award for a construction project in that municipality.
The following is an example from the 2016–2017 grant round as provided by MBLC. The communities and their associated ranks for income per capita and EQV per capita are combined and then compared to the greatest combined rank as a ratio. This is then multiplied by 15% to find the increase. In this grant round, Newton had the lowest need-factor, while Springfield had the highest. Springfield’s amount would have been boosted by 14.94% based on its calculated percentage.
Figure 22—MBLC Need Factor Calculation Example
|
DOR Code |
Municipality |
Income Rank |
EQV Rank |
Combined Rank |
Need Factor: Combined Rank / Highest Combined Rank |
Need Factor Percentage of Grant at +15% |
|
207 |
Newton |
9 |
54 |
63 |
0.09025788 |
1.35% |
|
281 |
Springfield |
345 |
350 |
695 |
0.995702006 |
14.94% |