Where does public library money come from?
Local government pays for most of it. Across the 8,533 profiled systems that reported every revenue source, local governments supplied 85.5% of the $17.5 billion in operating revenue for FY 2024. State governments added 6.7%, the federal government 0.5%, and other sources such as fees, gifts, grants and endowments 7.4%.
Four sources of operating money
The survey splits each library's operating revenue into four parts: local government (city, county, library district or school district taxes and appropriations), state government, federal government, and everything else. Capital money for buildings is reported separately and is left out here. Overdue fines and fees, where a library still collects them, count as other revenue, as do donations and interest. The mix matters because it shows who a library's budget depends on: a system funded almost entirely by a local levy answers to local voters, while one with a large state share moves with the state budget.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other
Federal money is small and often absent
Of the 8,533 systems, 6,660 (78%) reported no federal operating revenue at all. State money is more widespread: 6,825 systems reported some, while 265 relied on local government for every dollar of operating revenue.
Two states that work differently
Hawaii runs one statewide system, funded 93% by the state government. Ohio is the other outlier: its state government supplied 43% of operating revenue across the state's 248 profiled systems, the highest share among states with more than one system. Texas sits at the opposite pole, with local government providing 96%. States reporting no state operating revenue at all include the District of Columbia and Wyoming.
Revenue mix in every state
The table is sorted by the state government's share. Percentages may not add to 100 because of rounding.
| State | Local | State | Federal | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 0% | 93.5% | 3.3% | 3% |
| Ohio | 48% | 42.8% | 0.1% | 9% |
| West Virginia | 67% | 21.4% | 1.4% | 10% |
| Nevada | 76% | 19.7% | 1.6% | 3% |
| Rhode Island | 63% | 18.5% | 2.3% | 16% |
| Georgia | 76% | 18.2% | 0.1% | 5% |
| Maryland | 71% | 16.7% | 1.2% | 11% |
| Pennsylvania | 63% | 16.5% | 0.5% | 20% |
| Delaware | 74% | 16.2% | 2.7% | 7% |
| Mississippi | 79% | 13.1% | 0.9% | 7% |
| New Mexico | 85% | 6.7% | 0.6% | 8% |
| Virginia | 93% | 6.5% | 0.0% | 1% |
| South Carolina | 90% | 6.4% | 0.1% | 3% |
| North Dakota | 88% | 6.1% | 0.1% | 6% |
| North Carolina | 88% | 5.8% | 1.6% | 5% |
| Illinois | 87% | 5.7% | 0.4% | 6% |
| Massachusetts | 85% | 5.2% | 0.3% | 9% |
| Indiana | 86% | 5.0% | 0.2% | 9% |
| Alabama | 88% | 5.0% | 0.9% | 6% |
| Arkansas | 91% | 4.4% | 0.3% | 4% |
| New York | 81% | 3.9% | 0.4% | 14% |
| Idaho | 87% | 3.7% | 0.4% | 9% |
| Minnesota | 89% | 3.2% | 0.4% | 8% |
| Michigan | 91% | 2.7% | 0.1% | 6% |
| Kansas | 86% | 2.6% | 0.1% | 11% |
| Missouri | 88% | 2.3% | 0.9% | 9% |
| Montana | 89% | 2.1% | 0.3% | 9% |
| Florida | 94% | 2.0% | 0.2% | 4% |
| Kentucky | 92% | 1.9% | 0.1% | 6% |
| California | 94% | 1.8% | 0.5% | 4% |
| Wisconsin | 86% | 1.6% | 5.1% | 7% |
| Vermont | 74% | 1.5% | 1.0% | 23% |
| Iowa | 93% | 1.5% | 0.3% | 6% |
| Louisiana | 91% | 1.4% | 0.4% | 7% |
| Tennessee | 94% | 1.1% | 0.2% | 5% |
| Alaska | 96% | 1.1% | 1.4% | 2% |
| New Jersey | 96% | 0.9% | 0.4% | 3% |
| Oklahoma | 91% | 0.8% | 0.6% | 7% |
| Nebraska | 94% | 0.6% | 0.1% | 5% |
| Connecticut | 83% | 0.6% | 0.5% | 16% |
| Maine | 73% | 0.6% | 0.0% | 27% |
| Colorado | 90% | 0.5% | 0.2% | 9% |
| Washington | 94% | 0.5% | 0.2% | 6% |
| Arizona | 94% | 0.4% | 1.1% | 4% |
| Utah | 96% | 0.4% | 0.2% | 3% |
| Oregon | 94% | 0.3% | 0.2% | 5% |
| Texas | 96% | 0.0% | 0.4% | 3% |
| New Hampshire | 94% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 6% |
| South Dakota | 97% | 0.0% | 0.8% | 2% |
| District of Columbia | 96% | 0.0% | 1.8% | 2% |
| Wyoming | 91% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 9% |
Does size change the mix?
Only a little. The median system's local share is 92% among systems serving a million or more, 91% at 25,000 to 49,999 people and 83% in the smallest class,, where state and other revenue make up a larger part of the budget.
Revenue per resident
Dividing each state's combined operating revenue by its unduplicated service population gives a figure that runs a little above spending per resident, since revenue also covers money set aside or carried into the next year. Colorado records the most revenue per resident ($113.99), followed by District of Columbia ($110.62) and Ohio ($96.01). At the other end are Mississippi ($18.36), Georgia ($23.21) and Tennessee ($24.75).
Fully local funding and federal money by size
The table shows, for each size class, the share of systems that took every dollar of operating revenue from local government, and the share that reported any federal operating revenue at all.
| Population served | Systems | All revenue local | Any federal revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 million or more | 35 | 0% | 83% |
| 500,000 to 999,999 | 60 | 2% | 58% |
| 250,000 to 499,999 | 122 | 2% | 48% |
| 100,000 to 249,999 | 358 | 2% | 44% |
| 50,000 to 99,999 | 559 | 2% | 34% |
| 25,000 to 49,999 | 963 | 2% | 27% |
| 10,000 to 24,999 | 1,691 | 3% | 22% |
| 5,000 to 9,999 | 1,406 | 4% | 19% |
| 2,500 to 4,999 | 1,195 | 4% | 17% |
| 1,000 to 2,499 | 1,350 | 3% | 15% |
| under 1,000 | 794 | 4% | 13% |
Where state money matters
In most states the state government's share of library operating revenue is small. Among the 49 states with more than one system, 9 reach 10% or more: Ohio (43%), West Virginia (21%), Nevada (20%), Rhode Island (19%), Georgia (18%), Maryland (17%), Pennsylvania (17%), Delaware (16%) and Mississippi (13%). In the others, state money is a supplement on top of a locally funded budget: the median state share across these 49 states is 2.3%, and in 23 of them it stays below 2%.
Libraries that depend on other income
The fourth source, other revenue, covers fees, fines, gifts, foundation and friends-group support, endowment income and grants that do not come directly from a government. In all, 1,175 systems drew a quarter or more of their operating revenue from these sources, and 899 of them serve fewer than 10,000 people. In a small budget a single gift or grant moves the share by several points, so the figure for one small library can change a lot from one year to the next. Where a system page shows a large "other" slice, the ledger above it gives the totals.
Local share and the size of the budget
Does a library that relies almost entirely on local money spend more or less per resident? Among the 1,880 systems serving 25,000 to 249,999 people with a full revenue report, the 570 that took 95% or more from local government spent a median $44.05 per resident, against $26.30 for the 490 that took less than 80% locally. The figures describe the two groups; local tax bases, state aid rules and service areas all differ between them, so the gap is not evidence that one funding model works better.
Where to look next
Each system page with a complete revenue report shows its own mix beside the combined mix of its state. The peer check includes the local share for every system, so you can see whether similar-size systems lean on local money to the same degree. For what the money buys, see spending per resident.