A public library is one of the best investments that a community can make. This disassociation between the actual costs of providing services and the pervasive library = free mentality keeps tax payers from understanding how much it costs to provide these services.Ĭommunities invest in libraries and save money by supporting publicly owned services that can be shared. Keeping staff trained on the latest technologies, and being able to provide theses services for the public to learn on, takes both an investment into employees as well as to physical inventory. Many services need employees to manage and the master’s degree necessary for most librarian level positions is not inexpensive. Paper books can be cheap, as can DVDs, but databases and eBooks are very expensive and are becoming increasingly more expensive. Most taxpayers do not understand how much public libraries pay in order to provide services. When we say that library books, programs, and services are free, we are hiding the costs that these essential services incur.

This creates an expectation of on-demand hand holding through complicated government sites with no guarantee that the public librarian knows the website either, with patrons who are dependent on getting these government services. In fact, many patrons come to the library specifically because another government agency requires them to fill out online forms and they are told that the library will help them do that. In addition to its original purpose of providing information to the public, public libraries are now expected to provide early literacy and school readiness programs, free computer and Wi-Fi access, and digital literacy programs. The reality is that tax dollars are spread thin and every government department has to struggle to get enough funds. In addition, every library was supplemented with federal funds and every library struggled financially to meet the needs of their patrons.

I have worked for independent libraries supported by local municipalities, city-employed public libraries paid for with millage, and county wide systems, also supported by tax dollars.

Public libraries are paid for by their community in order to create services for said community. This idea that “public libraries are free” sounds very enticing and makes a great soundbite, but it’s not true. It’s paid for with your tax dollars.” I am beginning to believe that how we think about public library services as free directly impacts how public libraries don’t get funded. My co-worker chimes in, “and the best part is that it’s free!” I frowned and said, “it’s not free. I was in the library’s media lab helping a patron with Microsoft Publisher, and I recommended she learn how to use Publisher with an online course provided through the library.

Free public online library