Butler County voters to decide two library systems levies

The annual cost of this levy would be $43.75 per $100,000 of property value, he said.

Bautz said the 1.25-mill replacement levy would be “more in line with the operational needs” of the library system that has earmarked $3 million for improvements the next five years.

Also, he said, Issue 11 is a continuing levy that Bautz hopes reduces voter “levy fatigue.”

The Lane Libraries, with locations in Fairfield, Hamilton and Oxford, are looking for a .75-mill renewal that won’t raise taxes, said Carrie Mancuso, public relations manager. She said the library needs Issue 10 to pass to offset some of the state funding that was reduced years ago.

The levy passed in 2010, was renewed in 2015 and is scheduled to expire in 2025, she said.

Mancuso said if Issue 10 fails, the issue would be placed back on the ballot. But she believes voters, who understand the importance of a library that “contributes to the overall health of a community,” will approve the renewal.

“Their support allows us to support them,” she said.

If Issue 11 passes, Bautz said the funds would allow the library system to expand its operating hours by six hours per week; provide year-around Sunday hours; increase convenience options with additional lockers and bookmobile stops; additional materials; grow technology access and makerspace; and provide free meeting space and well-maintained facilities.

It’s important for voters to realize that the levy wouldn’t take effect until 2025 after the other levy expires. There would be “no double dipping or overlapping,” he said.

“We don’t want to take more than we need,” he said.

MidPointe Library System is the 12th largest of the 251 library systems in the state, Bautz said. The summer reading program is the 11th busiest in the state, he said.

Bautz compared some of the library statistics from 1983 to 2023. The library open hours jumped from 3,380 to 9,577 and material circulation increased from 551,676 items to 2 million items, he said.

From 2010, since the passage of the current levy, to 2023, the library has seen drastic increases in programs, program attendance and eBooks in the collection, according to Bautz.