1682                             Laws of Maryland                      [Ch. 770

(c) The State Department of Education may include in its budget

request such sum or sums as may in its judgment be required for

capital expenditures for improvements of existing facilities, additions
to existing facilities or new facilities including furniture and/or
equipment to provide the specialized research and reference services

financed by the State in its section. These capital funds may be

appropriated in advance of expenditure and may be paid according
to procedures established by the State Superintendent of Schools.

170.

(a)    Any two or more boards of library trustees may organize a
cooperative library corporation as set forth hereafter in this section
for the purpose of administering joint library projects within their
respective counties.

(b)    The articles of incorporation shall be executed by boards of
library trustees desiring to enter into joint library projects with
other boards within a given multiple-county area. The corporation
shall be nonstock, nonprofit organized pursuant to Article 23, Sections
132 et seq. of the Annotated Code of Maryland (1966 Replacement
Volume as amended) for the purpose of administering joint library
projects within the jurisdictions of the member boards. The member
boards may be increased after incorporation by including other
county boards, with the consent of all then existing member boards.
The membership of the corporation shall consist of all trustees of the
member boards who shall elect a corporate board of directors to be
composed exclusively of trustees of the member boards in such pro-
portions and numbers as prescribed by the corporate bylaws. The
member boards are hereby expressly authorized to delegate the
powers and duties devolved upon them under this section, in respect
to the intracounty library activities, to the aforesaid corporation to
the extent necessary to fully empower it to effectively carry out and
administer the joint library projects agreed upon by the member
boards.

(c)    A cooperative library corporation and its professional and
clerical employees are subject to and entitled to the benefits of the
following provisions of this subtitle ARTICLE: Teachers' Retirement
System (Section 191); library fund (Section 178(a)); annual audit
(Section 180(a) 173(10)); annual report of the board (Section
180(b) 173(11)); and exemption from taxation (Section 179) AS
PROVIDED IN SECTION 9(72) OF ARTICLE 81.

171.

(a) The board of county commissioners of any county may estab-
lish and maintain county public libraries for the purposes of this
subtitle. The libraries shall in each instance be located in the county
seat, or in any place to be determined by the said board, with branch
libraries and stations in places within the county as the board of
library trustees may deem necessary. The county commissioners
shall levy a sum in support of the library, as provided in this subtitle.

(B) A COUNTY GOVERNMENT, WHICH HAS ADOPTED A
CHARTER PURSUANT TO ARTICLE XL-A OF THE CON-
STITUTION, SHALL PROVIDE BY AMENDMENT TO ITS CHAR-
TER OR BY LOCAL LAW OR COMBINATION THEREOF, FOR