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Resident urges Lebanon committee not to pare library hours as staff outlines $108,000 operating cost
Summary
Finance staff told the committee the library's operating costs are about $108,000, with roughly $97,000 tied to salaries and benefits; a resident urged keeping current hours and staff during public comment.
Lebanon's budget review included a focused discussion of the town library's operating budget, with finance staff providing preliminary totals and residents pressing the committee to preserve service hours.
Finance staff said the library's total operating expense is about $108,000, of which roughly $97,000 reflects salaries, wages, employer taxes and pensionable costs. The staff assessment also accounted for building costs such as utilities, cleaning and supplies.
Committee members examined small subaccounts and suggested options to trim nonessential spending, reduce hours or reassign part-time wage lines, but several members cautioned that cutting operating dollars now reduces funds available in future budgets. One member flagged that a single cent on the levy equals about $93,000, putting the library figures in context when balancing services against levy targets.
During public comment, resident Jan Gibbous urged the committee not to reduce library hours and described the library as an important community resource used by many residents: "It doesn't sound like you're talking about closing it again... it's an asset to the community," she said, recommending staff-level adjustments before eliminating services.
The committee agreed to place the library line on the agenda for the upcoming meeting with the library advisory board and to return with refined subaccount details and options for modest savings rather than service elimination.
