Libraries urge Ohio to preserve dedicated funding
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Ohio libraries are banding together in hopes of maintaining dedicated state funding House Republicans propose to eliminate.
Why it matters: Libraries stand to lose $100 million in funding over the next two years, a figure the Ohio Library Council says "could jeopardize the vital services that our communities rely on."
State of play: The state's Public Library Fund (PLF), established in 1985, originally directed a share of state income tax to fund local libraries.
- Starting in 2008, Ohio set a new funding baseline at 2.22% of the state's total general tax revenue.
- That share has declined since, dropping to 1.7% in the current 2024-25 budget.
Zoom in: PLF makes up about 17% of the Columbus Metropolitan Library's budget, per Kristin Sutton, the system's government relations manager.
- Smaller libraries rely more heavily on this funding, Sutton tells us.
Between the lines: The fund provided $483 million to libraries last year, nearly the same as in 2000 ($484 million), with no adjustment for inflation.
Driving the news: Gov. Mike DeWine proposes upping that figure to 1.75%, while House Republicans want to eliminate the dedicated funding.
- Their budget plan would make library funding a line item appropriation.
- The new allocation would be $980 million over the next two years, according to the Library Council, or $100 million less than the $1.08 billion expected under DeWine's plan.
Threat level: Sutton says the funding cuts would be "significant," but worries even more about the "short-sighted" option of eliminating the PLF.
- Instead of an "ongoing and reliable source of funding," Sutton tells Axios libraries would have to lobby the state for money each budget cycle — adding administrative burden and uncertainty and potentially putting a de facto cap on funding.
- "That $485 million is insufficient to meet the needs of today's library. Ten years from now, how will we ever see growth in that number?"
Zoom out: Possible state cuts come as federal library funding is under threat.
- President Trump signed a March 14 executive order seeking to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services, which distributes millions of dollars annually to the State Library of Ohio.
What's next: Led by the Library Council, libraries from across the state have posted pleas for their supporters to contact state lawmakers and ask to restore the PLF.
- "This is really the first time we've come together to do advocacy in this way and engage our customer base since budget debates in 2008."
- A full House vote on a budget plan is expected next week before the spending plan heads to the Senate, Ideastream reports.