BATON ROUGE - The Baton Rouge Area Chamber announced Monday they supported renewing a property tax which covers more than 98 percent of the East Baton Rouge Library system's budget.

Voters approved the ten-year dedicated tax in 1995 and 2005. Without it, the library wouldn't be able to stay open past six months.

"In addition to providing greater access to information technology, a quality public library system reflects a region's quality of life, an important component of economic development, business development, and talent attraction," said Adam Knapp, president and CEO of BRAC.

The measure will be on the Oct. 24 ballot as a voter referendum. Early voting began Saturday in Louisiana and goes through Oct. 17 at parish registrar of voters' offices and other designated locations. For more early voting information, visit GeauxVote.com.