[silentbicycle]

> The problem is that many of these libraries are underfunded.

No kidding. People hate taxes, though.

Public libraries generally aren't going to be interested in stocking extremely niche-y technical books, anyway. (For that, try academic/research libraries.) Individual collections are stocked to meet the needs of the local patrons, and something that is 1) expensive, 2) only relevant for one person, and 3) likely to be obsolete in three years is not a high priority.