Status Report on Wisconsin's Public Libraries (Part 2A: Where Does the Money Come From?)

For the purposes of this post, I'll make two observations about Table 1:

• Community population appears to have a direct correlation to the percentage of revenue received from local sources, i.e., from municipalities and counties in the case of the Institute of Museums and Libraries (IMLS) recordkeeping.  Generally speaking, the smaller the community, the lower the percentage of local revenue.
• Conversely, community population -- under 100,000 in this case -- appears to have a direct correlation to the percentage of revenue received from other sources, such as gifts, donations, interest income, fines, fees, and grants.  Generally speaking, the smaller the community, the higher the percentage of other revenue.

TABLE 1  (State revenue includes direct payments to public libraries only.)

IMLS note: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.

Using the most recent (2010) data, how do Wisconsin public libraries compare to the national averages?

TABLE 2  (State revenue includes direct payments to public libraries only.)

Source: Wisconsin Public Library Service Data 2010.

Observations:

• Wisconsin shows a similar correlation with the IMLS numbers in the "municipal appropriation" column but not with the "county appropriation".  And the county appropriation isn't enough to make up the difference for libraries located in communities of less than 5,000 population.
• Wisconsin's "all other income" column shows a similar trend line with the IMLS table.

Bar graph 1:  Wisconsin public library revenue by source (2010):  municipal, county, all other

Pie Graph 1:  Wisconsin Public Library Revenue by Source

Pie Graph 2:  

Perhaps the most instructive visual is Bar Graph 2, which show a noticeable difference in per capita support above and below the 5,000 population level.

Bar Graph 2:  Public Library Per Capita Support

I haven't done enough research to do a deep-dive analysis of the data I've presented.  At this point, though, I will conclude with a quote from the introduction to "Rural U.S. libraries: serving populations and meeting challenges" by Greg S. Borman.

Rural libraries in the United States must contend with a number of obstacles while attempting to provide relevant services to the populations that they serve. One significant challenge involves recruiting degreed librarians who wish to work in remote areas. Also, taking on projects that might help to better serve those who live in rural areas can be onerous. These libraries often use their limited resources so that they can continue to operate at a very basic level, leaving little room for developing appropriate and effective services for various population groups. While current economic conditions have exacerbated the difficulties that many libraries across the U.S. face, rural libraries have struggled with major personnel and financial challenges for some time.  [My emphasis]

Not that this quote should take away anything from the challenges that all public libraries face today.

Next time -- or one of these next times -- I want to look a little more at "all other income", particularly as it relates to the developing concept of "sustainable funding" for public libraries.

Related posts:
Status Report on Wisconsin's Public Libraries (Part 2: Where Does the Money Come From?)  {11/22/2011)

Status report on Wisconsin's public libraries, part 1.  (11/19/2011)
Wisconsin public library staff, 1990-2010.  (10/5/2011)

Wisconsin public library programs and attendance, 1991-2010.  (10/6/2011)