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Library director outlines FY2027 budget, cites staffing and collection priorities
Summary
Great Falls Public Library Director Amy Dissmeyer presented the library’s FY2027 proposed budget, noting 82% of expenses are personnel costs, the Assistant Director position was omitted to offset rising benefits costs, and the library plans to pursue collection funding and renew an interlocal agreement with the county.
Amy Dissmeyer, director of the Great Falls Public Library, told the City Commission on July 21 that the library’s FY2027 proposed budget prioritizes frontline service staffing and collection support while responding to higher insurance and bargaining costs. “The proposed budget does not include funding for an Assistant Director position,” Dissmeyer said, a change made to help balance rising health insurance expenditures.
Dissmeyer outlined core services the library provides seven days a week, including public access technology, outreach through a bookmobile and homebound delivery, and specialty circulating items such as a checkout telescope. She said staff deliver extensive programming — more than 180 adult programs and roughly 700 youth programs in 2026 — serving over 22,000 attendees, and that about 82% of the department’s expenses are for staff. Twenty FTEs are assigned to public-facing areas such as Public Services and Youth Services.
On revenues, staff clarified that the library’s primary source is its mills (voter-approved property-tax mills) and the city–library agreement. Dissmeyer said the library also receives intergovernmental funding and plans to renew its interlocal agreement with Cascade County during the coming year. Commissioner McKenney received clarification that the $214,000 shown for intergovernmental income includes about $177,000 in county funding and approximately $30,000 from the state.
Dissmeyer said the Library Foundation and grants currently support much of the library’s programming, and she identified expanded collection spending and the timing of a potential building remodel as future priorities to revisit once staff and community input are further developed. The Commission did not take action; continuation of budget discussions is set for the August 4 work session ahead of a scheduled vote in the regular meeting process.
