Tell the Ohio House: Don’t Cut Ohio Libraries!
Tell the Ohio House: Don’t Cut Ohio Libraries!
Ohio’s libraries are facing an unprecedented challenge in the Ohio House of Representatives, and we need your help. On April 1, the Ohio House introduced their version of the proposed state budget, which drastically reduces the amount of funding going to Ohio’s public libraries. Contact District 53 Representative Joe Miller and House Speaker Huffman TODAY and urge them to restore the Public Library Fund to the amount designated in the Governor’s proposed budget.
How will the House’s version of the budget impact Ohio libraries?
- The Ohio House of Representatives’ biennium budget proposal eliminates the Public Library Fund, a mechanism that has funded 251 public library systems and independent public libraries for four decades.
- Ohio House Members plan to replace the Public Library Fund with a lump dollar amount for all Ohio libraries, representing a $100 million reduction in library funding, compared to Governor DeWine’s proposed budget. This shortfall will result in cuts to libraries across the state.
- Ohio’s libraries are currently funded at the same level we were in the year 2000 with no adjustment for inflation.
- The proposal for the unprecedented elimination of the Public Library Fund comes at a time when libraries across the state already saw a $27 million shortfall in state funding in 2024.
In our community, the Public Library Fund makes 75% of all Amherst Public Library operations possible (the remaining 25% comes from a local property tax levy passed by our community). If you want your tax dollars to come back from Columbus to support our community and public libraries across Ohio, let your representatives know how much our communities value our libraries and the services that they provide.
Take action now!
Tell our lawmakers to restore the Public Library Fund to the amount designated in the Governor’s proposed budget and share how important the library is to you and your family. Click here to contact District 53 Representative Miller’s office or call 614-466-5141. Click here to contact Speaker Huffman’s office or call 614-466-6344.
If you live outside of Amherst, you can find your state representative’s contact information by searching your home address on the Ohio House of Representatives District Map (https://ohiohouse.gov/members/district-map).
