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Davis County library seeks bigger collections budget, $50,000 for marketing amid surge in digital use
Summary
Library staff told the Davis County Budget Committee they—re asking for increased collections funding to keep up with rising digital checkouts and proposed roughly $50,000 for marketing support after presenting staffing, facility and technology updates.
Davis County—s library leaders on Oct. 2 told the county—s Budget Committee that rising demand for digital materials and expanded services will require a modest boost to next year—s budget and a targeted investment in outreach.
Josh Johnson, the library—s presenter, said the library has been holding open five circulation positions through attrition (four already unfilled) while creating a librarian career ladder to promote internal advancement and reduce turnover. He also said the department has implemented background checks for employees and volunteers using two platforms, which generally return results "in a couple of days."
Ellen Peterson, who spoke for collections and materials, said a 2023 public survey showed the community values collections most. She highlighted the rapid growth in digital use: "Our Overdrive, we hit almost a million checkouts, last year, and we're on course to go over a million this year," she said, and added that a newer service, Hoopla, "exploded" in use this year and required the library to draw on fund balance and place caps to control costs.
The presenters walked the committee through circulation and expenditure trends, noting combined physical and digital circulations have climbed substantially over the past five years and that digital formats (ebooks and audiobooks) are displacing some legacy physical media. Johnson said the library is often paying more for leased digital copies than patrons pay as consumers, and that publishers— licensing practices drive recurring costs.
To respond to demand, the library asked for an increase to the books and materials line; Johnson said adding roughly $1 million to that line would move collections back toward about 10% of total spending (it has declined from around 15% historically). Peterson said the immediate need is to maintain digital collections that patrons are using.
On outreach, library staff told the committee their program/outreach manager is overburdened and proposed hiring marketing support to promote services, estimate roughly $50,000 based on conversations with the county—s economic development partners. Johnson said the library would prefer a countywide marketing solution but, if the countywide effort is delayed, the library would like to proceed sooner rather than wait.
Capital and operational updates included an RFP-driven rebuild at the Bountiful/Battle branch, facade work, HVAC repairs, carpet replacement and lighting upgrades; project managers are exploring ways to lift shelving to replace carpet under stacks. The library also plans to add another 3D printer in the south end of the county by year-end to expand makerspace access.
On fees and technology, presenters recommended removing the $1 replacement fee for physical library cards, noting many patrons can use the library—s app and digital barcodes instead. They explained residency verification for cards requires proof of residency and that automated reports flag accounts inactive for five years so records can be cleaned.
The library presented several performance benchmarks comparing Davis County to other Utah counties, noting some counties have higher per-capita collection spending often supported by past tax increases. Josh Johnson described the library—s budget as generally healthy: "we're about 7.7 coming in this year," he said, while explaining transfers and allocations will change some line items, and that the department typically returns personnel savings annually.
There were no formal motions or votes during the presentation; staff asked the committee to consider the collections increase and marketing support as part of the upcoming budget deliberations. The committee closed the segment after questions about interlibrary loan reimbursements (about $17,000 projected next year) and variance reconciliations.
The library presentation concluded with a reminder that the department is balancing the need to finish current projects while carefully considering new initiatives.
Ending: The Budget Committee wrapped the library segment without taking an immediate vote; staff will carry the requests forward into the county—s budget process for further consideration.
