One of the nation’s busiest and best public libraries is right here in Champaign. The Champaign Public Library has once again been named among America’s top public libraries by Library Journal magazine.

Earlier this week, the magazine released its second annual list of “America’s Star Libraries.” Out of 7,268 libraries rated, only 258 — less than 4 percent — earned star ratings. For the second time, the Champaign library earned three stars.

Library Journal is the oldest and most respected publication covering the library field. Its rating system, called the LJ Index of Public Library Service, looks at four measures of library service per capita: number of checkouts, library visits, program attendance, and public Internet use. To compare libraries only with their peers, the ratings group them by budget range, then assign the top libraries in each category a 3- to 5-star rating based on their overall score.

The first round of star ratings came out last February. New ratings were announced early due to more timely release of data from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. This year’s ratings are based on numbers from 2007. Since that time, the number of items checked out in Champaign has grown 40 percent. During the fiscal year that ended in July, the Champaign library checked out 33 items per capita — nearly three times the national average of 11.5. Children’s books were checked out at a rate of 50,000 per month, and 2,300 people visited the library daily.

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