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Director says library is underfunded per capita; board to include funding context in budget
Summary
Director Steve told the board West Bend's municipal per-capita library funding is about $35, below state and regional averages, and urged a cover letter to explain funding needs in the upcoming budget submission.
The library director warned the West Bend Community Memorial Library Board on July 21 that the library's municipal per-capita funding is well below state and regional averages and urged the board to include explanatory context with the budget submission.
Steve, the director, said the library's municipal funding is about "$35 per person" compared with a Monarch regional average of about "$53.42" and a state average of "$59.91." He said the shortfall constrains the library's ability to support its physical and digital collections and exacerbates reliance on volunteers. "The only reason we can operate at this is because of our volunteers," he said.
Board members asked Steve to add a cover letter and supporting documentation to the budget package showing how West Bend compares with peer libraries and to quantify volunteer hours and the services the city charges back to the library (accounting and HR fees). Steve agreed to prepare a spreadsheet showing capital and operating offsets and said he would draft the cover letter for board review.
The board scheduled budget discussion for upcoming meetings and noted director evaluation timelines (closed sessions in October and November) connected to staffing and compensation decisions.
