The Library Funding Crisis

Libraries have struggled with inadequate funding throughout history. However, in the last few years, the situation has become particularly acute. According to the American Library Association, "America's libraries are now facing the deepest budget cuts in history. Across the country libraries are reducing their hours, cutting staff or closing their doors - drastic measures that were not taken even during the Great Depression." Public library budgets have been heavily impacted in 44 out of the 50 states, and if your community hasn't been affected yet, there's a good chance it could be in the near future, as long as municipal finance continues to suffer.

The Root of the Crisis

The culprit behind these drastic cuts is not too hard to find. The public library is one of the few cultural or educational institutions in our communities to remain almost entirely dependent on local and state tax dollars for it's operating budget.

Most other cultural and educational institutions in our communities - public broadcasting, museums, zoos, orchestras, and the like - have long-ago learned to rely on diversified funding sources - plural funding - to limit their exposure to downturns in any one area, and to increase their funding by taking advantage of all sources of revenue available to them.

The fundamental question is whether public libraries can follow the lead of museums, zoos, public broadcasters, performing arts organizations and others that view government as a funding partner, not as a sole source. In the Plural Funding Project, LSSI and a number of forward-thinking librarians, library-directors, and directors of library consortia have joined together to try to find the answer to this question - and to develop the tools and strategies libraries will need to pursue more diversified funding models.

This is a multi-faceted, multi-phased project with research, trials, workshops, and other activities going on many different areas and with a variety of different partners. Here's some additional background information including reports, articles and presentations on the plural funding, and a sampling of current and upcoming activities.