Germantown Public Library, Oakwood’s Wright Memorial Public Library and Washington-Centerville Public Library will also have to function with less next year.
Overall, state funding going to the county’s public libraries is down 11.24%, according to Montgomery County Auditor Karl Keith.
“This is a result of what’s going on in the economy,” Keith said. “The downturn of the economy is a result of the pandemic.”
The data was shared at a Thursday meeting of the Montgomery County Budget Commission, which approved the 2021 distributions for state library and local government funds. The $17,377,996 going to local jurisdictions is down 11.8%, or $2,330,223 from this year, according to an Ohio Department of Taxation estimate.
The drop in funding comes as more people turn to area libraries to stay informed and help educate their children during the coronavirus pandemic, Farrell said.
“It is unfortunate that decreases in budget come when the public needs and depends on us more than ever,” she said.
Library administrators said it’s too early to know how the decrease will impact operations next year.
“We just received this information. The fiscal officer and I really haven’t had a chance to go through and see where we’re going to have to make adjustments, said Liz Fultz, director of Washington-Centerville Public Library.
Washington-Centerville Public Library will see its funding from the state drop about $353,000. The funds this year accounted for about 30% of its revenue this year, Fultz said
Dayton Metro Library relied on the funds for 50% of its $33 million budget last year, according to the library, which furloughed staff to half their hours in early May. In early July the furloughs moved to 20%, where it remains, Farrell said.
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Credit: STAFF
Credit: STAFF
Dayton Metro Library will move swiftly to formalize a plan to address the decrease in revenues, Farrell said.
“Clearly, it will be top priority for us to make sure that we can maintain a high level of service for this community while operating within the budget restrictions that we’re given,” she said. “I would anticipate that conversations will begin immediately.”
The Public Library Fund is an allocated 1.7% of the state’s general revenue fund, of which about two-thirds come from income and sales tax receipts, according to the county auditor.
Without an operating levy, Germantown Public Library relies entirely on the state funding, which will drop nearly $74,000.
“It will have an effect, but not an unexpected one,” said Director Gillian Izor.
Izor said the library has always been frugal, but was bracing for a 20% decrease.
“Libraries traditionally have always been very good stewards of the tax dollars we receive,” she said. “The librarians and myself are doing what we can to make sure that isn’t felt quite so acutely by our patrons.”
Kristi Hale, director of Wright Memorial Library, said the Oakwood library started preparing in the spring for a coming shortfall.
“We have been tightening our belts,” she said. “We immediately looked for ways to cut costs on supplies and maintenance and anywhere that we could find.”
The state funding amounts to about 70% of Wright Memorial Library’s $1.8 million budget this year, Hale said. The percentage will be less next year when the library begins receiving revenue from a new levy passed by voters, which will generate an additional $475,000 a year.
Like all libraries, Wright Memorial expanded its online and digital resources for those who could no longer go into the building due to the pandemic. While now open on a limited basis, the library also offers curbside pickup and home delivery, Hale said.
“It’s been very disruptive in more than ways just economic.,” she said. “But we are still serving our community. We have adapted very quickly. I think that we’re more than ever an essential community asset as people find new ways of reaching out and need different services.”
But the digital offerings are no replacement for what patrons can find on library shelves, Hale said.
“Our bread and butter is still our physical collections,” she said. “If you think about children’s materials, kids really need a physical book. They need to see the pictures and turn the pages.”
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