With a potential loss in funding due to Senate Enrolled Act 1 library programs could be reduced or eliminated. Daily Journal File Photo
HOW TO GET INVOLVED
For more information on how residents can help their local library, residents can visit Greenwood Library Foundation’s website, JCPL Foundation’s website, or contact the Edinburgh Wright-Hageman Public Library at 812-526-5487.
For those who need help putting their thoughts into words, the Indiana Library Federation has call-to-action examples to help library supporters craft messages to legislators on their website, ilfonline.org. To find your lawmaker’s contact information, visit ig.in.gov/information.find-legislators.
Another way to support libraries is by donating to their foundation, which raises money to supplement taxpayer dollars in support of local literacy. The foundations also organize advocacy efforts such as this.
A newly passed Indiana law is raising alarms among library leaders who say language could open the door for local governments to slash — or even eliminate — library funding.
Libraries in Johnson County have been following this legislative session closely as a number of bills involving library budgets and funding were moving through the Indiana Statehouse.
In the end, House Enrolled Act 1406 forces public libraries to choose between binding budget review with their fiscal authority or receiving a lower percentage of growth than any other government unit. This also opens the door for a fiscal body to reduce a library’s budget by 100% instead of 10%, a guardrail that no longer exists.
“We are deeply disappointed by the state legislature’s decision on bills affecting Indiana’s public libraries, as well as the process through which this legislation moved through the Statehouse,” said Lisa Lintner, director of the Johnson County Public Library. “During the entire second half of the session, there was no opportunity to voice concerns about the legislation.”
Lintner said the language related to library budgets moved from bill to bill before ultimately appearing in HEA 1406 during conference committee, where the public had no opportunity to provide feedback on significant concerns.
How it started
Senate Enrolled Act 1 of 2025 cuts the amount of property taxes available to taxing units, including libraries.
Indiana has 236 library districts, and this bill is known to impact libraries differently across the state.
Local income taxes currently account for 40% of JCPL’s operating budget. JCPL is already projecting a $900,000 loss in 2026 and $400,000 in 2028. As written, no minimum amount of LIT must be approved for library districts, but there is a maximum that can be approved, Lintner said.
For the Greenwood Public Library, property taxes and local income tax make up about 80% of their budget, which they could see about a $170,000 cut alone. For the Edinburgh Wright-Hageman Public Library, a little over 30% of its revenue could be affected.
With SEA 1 of 2025 looming over local government units and other special taxing districts, Gov. Mike Braun also cut most state departments by five to 10% in 2025, but the Indiana State Library was cut by 35%.
This legislative session, Senate Bill 4, various fiscal matters, included language regarding library budgets and changed the requirements for binding review, meaning a library’s budget would have to be approved by a local governing body. This bill died, however.
Similar language was then added to another bill, SB 8, which would’ve either limited the growth of a library or possibly risked funding of a library entirely. The bill would’ve required libraries to accept a lower growth rate — 50% less than any other government unit —or be subject to binding review by their county or city council.
Many authors of SB 4 were added as co-authors to SB 8, which is when the Indiana Library Federation, a statewide nonprofit lobbying for Indiana libraries, kicked into overdrive to ask for guardrails protecting libraries. Originally, a guardrail that said a fiscal body could not reduce a library’s budget more than 10% was not in the bill, allowing a budget to be reduced up to 100%.
There was a short victory when SB 8 died in the Ways and Means committee, but the language was amended into what is now HEA 1406. The law goes into effect in July of this year once signed by Braun.
The common argument lawmakers have made when supporting more oversight in library budgets is to put taxpayer dollars into the hands of elected officials.
“From what I understand, this change was made because library boards are appointed rather than elected,” Lintner said. “However, there has been no demonstrated problem requiring this action. Library board trustees are appointed by elected officials, and libraries already operate under a clearly defined oversight process through their elected fiscal authorities.”
Who do libraries answer to?
For local libraries, there are several elected officials and bodies at the local and state levels.
One of the entities is the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance, which oversees local government, including libraries, to ensure that budgeting and property tax assessments are conducted in accordance with state law.
Libraries also answer to the Indiana State Board of Accounts, which oversees fiscal integrity and accountability of state and local government entities, including libraries.
Libraries are also guided by residents who represent all corners of each taxing district, who are appointed by elected officials to serve on a library board.
GPL director Emily Ellis said the advantages of special taxing districts, especially a library board, prevent one politician or political party from having undue control over a public library.
“Public libraries need to be for everybody,” she said. “It shouldn’t be swayed by politics. Some want to see more political and fiscal control over libraries, and after the 2026 legislative session, they have completely opened that door.”
Ellis said GPL currently has a great relationship with the city council and is not worried about budget conversations, but another election cycle could change that.
“In theory, a fiscal body could say, ‘I will give you money if you take these books out of the collection or you stop doing these programs,’ which is the most terrifying thought for a librarian because we do truly want to serve everyone. We try to create an environment that’s welcoming to everyone, and we will have our hands tied.”
The reality
After many conversations with local lawmakers, librarians left not only disappointed with the recent legislation, but fired up to vocalize the harm this could cause.
Local librarians went to the Statehouse on Feb. 3 to speak with local legislators and express their concerns about these changes to library budgets and funding, but it seemed to have fallen on deaf ears.
“We had conversations with our representatives and learned a lot about that process,” Ellis said. “It never goes the way you think it’s going to go. You think you have a really good conversation, and then it doesn’t go the way you would like.”
Lintner said language added at the last minute will punish libraries and other local units of government that fail to submit their budgets before the deadline.
“In addition to the language regarding growth percentages, a new, last-minute insertion to HEA 1406 during conference committee creates a penalty structure that is unfairly punitive to libraries that fail to submit their budgets before the deadline,” Lintner said.
In this situation, Lintner said, libraries would face a 50% reduction in their total budget and by comparison, all other government units would see their budgets reduced by 80% if they fail to submit a budget on time.
“While Johnson County Public Library diligently files its budget on schedule, another public library could make one year due to leadership transitions or other circumstances and face an unequal and severe budget cut,” she said.
Due to this recent legislation on top of funding impacts from SEA 1, local libraries have already begun cutting back services as a result.
For GPL, they will begin prioritizing resident cardholders, meaning a majority of their programs will require a GPL library card for registration. A resident library card will also be required to reserve a study room in advance and to extend the time for an additional two hours, and a card will be required to use The Studio Makerspace.
GPL will also be reducing their digital collections such as Kanopy, Hoopla and Libby. JCPL has currently put a hold on plans to renovate the White River library branch in western Greenwood.
“Taken together, these measures make it increasingly challenging for public libraries to maintain the services communities rely on,” Lintner said. “At Johnson County Public Library, we are carefully evaluating how to continue providing essential resources, maintain services and ensure our library buildings remain valuable community assets.”
After this legislative session, local library leaders learned they cannot continue to be quiet.
The county libraries are coming together to brainstorm a plan before the next legislative session to be bold, voice their concerns and get the community involved.
Donita Long, a Johnson County resident, said she does not agree with the legislation cutting the budgets of libraries, stating the budgets are already tight.
“It is important to me that libraries are able to stay open because many of my family members and friends have been able to read books that we might not be able to afford to buy by borrowing them from our different local libraries,” Long said.
From events like the summer reading club, craft days, to historical stories through free programs for families to enjoy, Long said everyone deserves to be able to read books and learn if they wish to.
“I am grateful to the residents of Johnson County who shared their voices with their state legislators and advocated for strong public libraries across Indiana,” Lintner said.
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