South Bannock Library District asks for first funding increase in two decades
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POCATELLO – A local library district is asking its patrons for its first permanent funding increase in 20 years.
People in south Bannock County will find a “Permanent Override Levy Election” for the South Bannock Library District on their ballot when they arrive at their polling places on Tuesday. If voters choose to support this override levy, according to the district, it would grant it its first increase in funding since 2005, when the last override levy was passed.
“The addition of the extra funding would be helpful for all the libraries (in the district). It would be a more robust programming (schedule) and materials acquisitions would be easier,” said Megan Short, director of the South Bannock Library District.
South Bannock County voters may remember a plant facilities reserve fund levy for the district that passed in last year’s May election, which allowed it to build a new library in Inkom. Short clarified that the district asked for the same amount as it was receiving on the already existing plant facilities levy that is set to expire this September.
According to the ballot language, this override levy would increase the district’s base budget by $100,000, taking the current $423,995 up to $523,995 if passed. This would result in an additional tax of approximately $7.08 per $100,000 in “taxable property value.”
“The purpose of this levy is to increase the operating funds for the South Bannock Library District,” according to the ballot, and “said funds will be used by the District for purposed … including but not limited to staffing costs, programming, operating and maintenance costs.”
Adding the Inkom Library to the district brings additional costs to its budget, which already funds three libraries in Downey, McCammon and Lava Hot Springs as well as a traveling Bookmobile. But an increase in funding from the override levy would help support the whole district, Short said.
“Programming that we’re doing in Downey, we’re planning on taking to Inkom. So anything we develop in Inkom, we could take to our other libraries,” Short said.
If the override levy does not receive the required 55% of the vote to pass, the district might be forced to reduce hours of operation for its other libraries or reduce the programming budget of the existing libraries to even them out across all of them.
“That is not something I want to do. I would try to explore other options. I don’t even know what those other options are, but just anything that I can really do to reduce costs,” Short said.
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