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Borough and city officials flag $249,000 gap in FY27 library request as mill levy falls
Summary
Library director outlined one‑time security and system migration costs driving the FY27 request; borough finance said the FY27 request is $249,000 higher than projected revenue at the current 0.5 mill levy, and members debated restoring the levy to 0.7 or renegotiating the services agreement.
The committee discussed a city request to the borough for fiscal year 2027 library funding after the Ketchikan Public Library director summarized factors behind a roughly 52% increase in the borough’s portion of the library budget since FY2020.
Pat Tully, director of the Ketchikan Public Library, told the committee that wages and benefits comprise about 74% of the library budget and that inflation in utilities, insurance and telecommunications has contributed to increases. Tully identified two one‑time FY27 expenses that contributed to the uptick: replacing aging security gates and cameras (about $54,000) and migrating to a new online library system (about $56,000). Tully said a new system could save a minimum of $15,000 annually in maintenance, but ongoing costs depend on the school district’s participation.
Charlene Thomas, the borough finance director, told the committee the FY27 request is $249,000 more than projected revenue at the current 0.5 mill levy, creating a funding shortfall the borough must address through additional revenue or changes to the services agreement. Thomas said the mill levy was reduced from 0.7 to 0.5 in the prior year after a surplus in the fund balance was used.
Members urged clearer data on circulation trends and electronic resource use; one member said physical circulation appears steady while electronic and outreach services have grown. The library director said physical circulation has not fully recovered from the pandemic but that outreach and homebound services have expanded.
Committee members discussed options including returning the mill levy to 0.7, renegotiating the services agreement, or identifying alternative revenues. Clerk and staff scheduled related assembly discussion for a work session on May 4 so the borough and city can coordinate next steps.
Next steps: the item will come to the assembly for a May 4 work session; staff from the borough and city were asked to meet to explore options that maintain the 0.5 non‑area‑wide mill levy or otherwise resolve the shortfall.
