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Dallas library board hears e-content surge, budget shortfall; Hoopla checkout limits adjusted
Summary
Interim assistant director Sally Lockhart and collections manager Andrew Wright told the Dallas Municipal Library Board that digital checkouts have surged while publisher licensing and limited budgets strain access; the board approved ministerial minutes and staff described a recent reduction to Hoopla checkout limits to stretch funds.
The Dallas Municipal Library Board received an overview of the library system's digital collections on Tuesday, learning that e-content use has surged and that funding limits are constraining access to popular titles.
"We just exceeded 1,600,000 checkouts on the overall platform last year," said Sally Lockhart, interim assistant director for technology and strategic direction, describing long-term growth in OverDrive and Hoopla usage and the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on demand.
Lockhart told the board that year-over-year increases on OverDrive have ranged about 25% to 32% in recent years and that Hoopla use rose at comparable rates during the pandemic. She said licensing models and publisher pricing are a key constraint: some e-audiobooks are offered under metered or time-limited access while newly released e-books can cost libraries hundreds or thousands of dollars to acquire enough copies to meet hold demand.
The presentation noted several concrete figures: OverDrive had a record month of about 51,000 checkouts in January; in the last 30 days the system logged roughly 43,800 OverDrive checkouts and a total of 67,373 current holds with an average wait time of about 61 days, Lockhart said. She cited a single title'the Onyx Storm fantasy romance series'that had more than 1,000 hold requests for its e-audiobook and about 960 holds for the ebook to illustrate publisher-driven scarcity.
Lockhart and Andrew Wright, senior manager for collections, explained operational changes the library has made to stretch the materials budget. Wright described shifting spending away from lesser-used platforms to concentrate on OverDrive and Hoopla and reducing physical-copy purchases except for prioritized children's materials. Lockhart said the system has deliberately reduced Hoopla checkout limits to stop daily budget exhaustion and make the service more consistently available throughout the day: "Since February 13, we have not had to stop people because the budget has not been exceeded," she said.
Board members asked for comparative data on physical holds. Wright said staff can compile figures for physical holds and holds ratios. He noted the library's hold ratio for physical books is typically about 7-to-1 and said demand for DVDs and media has declined compared with a decade ago.
Lockhart described the Hoopla pricing model as pay-per-circulation, with per-checkout costs that can range from $0.99 to $3.99 depending on the item. She contrasted that with OverDrive's multiple purchasing models, including metered access for some e-audiobooks (for example, a $174 purchase could provide 100 one-time uses), and said those publisher-set terms shape what the library can afford to buy.
On funding, Lockhart said the system's materials budget has barely kept pace with inflation and proposed that the city consider a dedicated e-content budget. "Realistically, we need, I would say, probably another $20,000 a month for OverDrive," she told the board, adding that Hoopla would require "2 to 3 thousand dollars a month more" to meet current demand; she summarized that as roughly a $260,000 to $300,000 annual ask to restore capacity.
Lockhart and Wright emphasized equity concerns: not all Dallas neighborhoods have consistent internet access or devices, and about 60% to 65% of library users still check out only physical materials, they said. The presenters said the library is working on "purpose statements" for physical collections to justify retained print holdings for patrons who need tactile materials, early-literacy supports and those with lower digital access.
Board members and staff discussed other tactics the library uses to manage resources, including weeding older physical materials to improve on-shelf visibility, paying an annual subscription for access to thousands of digital magazine titles, and targeted outreach to increase unique e-content users.
The meeting also included routine business: the board voted to approve the minutes from the Jan. 14, 2025, municipal library board meeting with a condition that spelling corrections be made. The motion to approve, moved by a commissioner whose name was not specified in the transcript and seconded by Commissioner O'Brien, carried.
Lockhart said staff will continue to monitor circulation and holds data and will provide additional figures on physical holds on request. She also asked the board to consider advocacy for an expanded, dedicated e-content materials budget given the sustained growth in demand and the constraints of publisher licensing.
