Madison libraries are at risk of losing programming, hours and staff in 2025

Tana Elias stepped into her new role as Madison Public Library director on May 12. Just three months later, she's facing possible funding cuts that could reduce library programming, hours and staff next year.

On August 20, the Madison Common Council will vote on placing a property tax referendum on the November ballot in hopes of balancing the city's $22 million budget deficit. If this measure (which proposes raising property taxes by $20/month) fails to pass, city services could be put in a vulnerable position. The public library system, for example, depends on the City of Madison for 80-85% of its funding.

Many individuals and families use Madison’s nine public libraries as community gathering spaces, resource centers and free spaces to comfortably rest on hot summer days. “They use our libraries to register their child for school or to do homework, to apply for a job or to connect with their grandmother in a different state by email,” Elias says.

This summer, city agencies were tasked with preparing 5% budget reduction plans for mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway to consider. MPL put forth three scenarios in priority order based on the impact they would have on library visitors and staff.

The first option would save $120,292.63 by cutting Sunday hours at the three libraries where they are currently offered: Central Library, Goodman South Madison and Lakeview. Sundays at Central Library are quite popular, but ultimately receive less traffic than other days of the week. This measure would also avoid staff layoffs.

The second option would reduce programming by 15%, saving $323,793.35. This measure would cut into the library's diverse range of more than 4,500 programs, which include book talks, art workshops, computer trainings and tax assistance classes. Supplies and contractors would be reduced, and at least three programming positions would be cut.

Library staff are currently identifying which programs will be targeted if this plan moves forward.

The third option would save $644,205.12 by reducing evening hours at all library locations and cutting up to 17 positions. This significant measure would move all libraries to an eight-hour shift model and reduce service by 16%, or about 100 hours per week.

“And that's 100 hours that people can't go to their local library and check out materials or use the computers or attend a program or make connections to the community that they need,” Elias says.

The decision of which hours to cut will be weighed carefully using visitor data, she says. Daytime hours receive more traffic on average, but evenings are important to residents who work during the day. While libraries receive more daytime visits, those who come in the evenings may be staying for longer chunks of time.

No matter the funding cut, Madison’s most vulnerable residents will be most impacted. MPL’s Imagination Center at Reindahl park — a potential tenth library to serve a growing and under-resourced area of Madison — is still waiting for operational funding. As Madison’s population increases, Elias ultimately wishes public libraries had the resources to dream of and actualize growth.

Despite continual funding cut scares, she remains sure of the libraries' importance to the community.

“It's, you know, lifelong learning. It's helping children learn to read and find the skills that they need to be successful,” Elias says. “It's providing connections and basic services to a majority of our residents that don’t have them or can't find them in other places.”

Zella Milfred is an editorial intern at Madison Magazine.

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