 |
|
|
Library Levy
Understanding the Library’s Budget
Why the Levy Matters!
Here’s a fun little quiz to see how much you know about Multnomah County Library’s budget. Learn these basic budget facts and you can impress your friends with your knowledge of the Library’s budget situation!
1. How much is the Library’s current annual budget?
- $15 million
- $32 million
- $48 million
- $66 million
2. Where does the money come from?
- Library Levy
- County’s General Fund
- Fines, fees, grants
- All of the above
(to see the answers)
Here’s how it breaks out:
- The number one source of money for the Library is the library levy.
The current five-year levy supplies just over half of the Library’s operating budget- about $25 million dollars. Multnomah County residents pay the levy when they pay their property taxes.
- The second largest source of revenue-about 35%-is the County’s General Fund.
This portion of the General Fund that supports the Library comes from property taxes, and is under the discretion of the Board of County Commissioners.
- Together the library levy and the County’s General Fund are both based on property taxes and together make up about 90% of the Library’s revenues.
- The last pieces of Library revenue fall into “Other” and “BWB” (beginning working balance)
These two sources typically fund about 5-10% of the Library’s budget.
The “Other” category is for all monies that are library-generated and/or non-tax dollars. The largest amount in this category is $1.95 million in grants received from the Friends of the Library, The Library Foundation, and the Oregon Community Foundation. This money is used to enhance and expand programs and collections in ways that the operating budget alone cannot support. The Beginning Working Balance is unspent money that carries over into the next budget year.
top
|
|
