Franklin City library finance committee reviews 2026 budget, flags subscription and facilities costs

The Franklin City Library Board Finance Committee reviewed the draft 2026 budget at a meeting on June 11, 2025, focusing discussion on subscription costs, energy and building-maintenance assumptions, and the city's interdepartmental charge. Committee members asked staff to revise line items and deliver an updated spreadsheet for the board packet ahead of the next meetings.

Committee members began by approving the minutes from the July 22, 2024 finance-committee meeting. The committee then proceeded line-by-line through the draft budget for funds 15 and 16, identifying items they said need revised placeholders or confirmation from city or consortium staff.

Why it matters: the committee said several recurring costs'subscriptions, digital content and the city's interdepartmental billing'are rising or uncertain, and those assumptions determine how much the library can allocate to materials, programs and capital items in 2026.

On collections and subscriptions, committee members flagged digital-content costs (Hoopla and similar services) as likely to be higher than the 2025 budget. The group noted actual spending of roughly $19,000 year-to-date on Hoopla and discussed raising the subscriptions line from about $33,000 to between $35,000 and $36,000 for 2026 to reflect rising costs and database fees. The committee also reviewed library-materials funding across funds 15 and 16 and agreed a combined materials budget near $92,000 is a reasonable planning target, while acknowledging future price increases could reduce purchasing power.

Staff reported the library will pay an approximately $10,004 e-book invoice at the June meeting; the committee treated that as a one-time/annual billing item and discussed whether the 2026 placeholder is adequate. Committee members said they will continue work with the regional consortium to explore alternatives to Hoopla to reduce costs.

Energy and building-maintenance assumptions were a second focus. The committee noted the library's solar system has received permission to operate and that recently contracted HVAC and boiler replacements through Johnson Controls should improve efficiency. Members compared prior electricity baseline figures (roughly $91,995 in the most recent accounting) and discussed applying a 25% reduction to the electricity line as a planning assumption, yielding a placeholder near $70,000 for 2026. The committee also considered reducing building-systems maintenance to reflect new equipment warranties, with several members suggesting a $10,000 line for building maintenance systems rather than larger historic amounts that reflected one-time major repairs.

The committee reviewed the interdepartmental charge the city posts for city services and facilities. Committee members said the reported current charge runs near $4,004.90 per month in the records they saw, and debated using a placeholder of $80,000 for 2026; some members suggested $70,000 as an alternative while acknowledging the city will provide the final number.

Other operating-line adjustments discussed included smaller items such as software maintenance (possible reduction to $100 where appropriate), postage (left near $350), office supplies (discussion about actuals vs. budget and leaving a conservative amount), equipment rental (copier, shredding and similar services), and janitorial/cleaning changes after the end of the Dust Free contract. The committee agreed to keep a modest contingency for furniture and fixtures and discussed possible replacement of meeting-room chairs and staff desks in 2026, with an internal suggestion of using fund balance to cover larger one-time expenses.

Actions and next steps: staff was directed to update the spreadsheet with the committee's adjustments and circulate it for inclusion in the next board packet. Committee members said they expect the city and consortium (Hoopla/consortium billing) to supply confirmatory figures later in the budget process; the staff contact identified as Steve was expected to send updated numbers when available. The committee scheduled related calendar items: a joint library board/foundation meeting on June 16 at 6:30 p.m. and the next finance-committee meeting and packet deadline ahead of the June 23 board meeting.

The meeting opened with attendance called and concluded with a motion to adjourn that was moved, seconded and approved. The committee adjourned at 6:58 p.m.

Ending note: committee members emphasized these 2026 numbers are preliminary estimates and that final budget lines will be set after city cost allocations and consortium-subscription contracts are confirmed.