Minnesota libraries warn federal cuts may hurt services
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For library staff in central Minnesota’s Great River Regional Library system, recent moves from the Trump administration are calling into question the future of beloved library services.
“Right now, we're in a position of a lot of uncertainty,” said Karen Pundsack, executive director of the six-county system. “My staff are worried about how are we going to provide services to the public if there's a funding shortfall … how can we do this well when we don't know what's going to happen tomorrow. Are our jobs safe?”
An executive order in March from President Donald Trump called for eliminating the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the main federal funder of museums and libraries.
The move threatened more than $3 million in federal funding of library services to Minnesota — money that pays for the interlibrary loan service, access to online databases, telehealth services, translations and materials for people with visual impairment and supports library storytimes for children and summer music programs.
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A federal judge’s temporary restraining order last week to consider the case has stopped the process for now, but local librarians say it would be a significant financial hit if it came to pass.
‘Cautiously optimistic’
Most public library funding in Minnesota comes from state, county and city governments, and the state has a history of embracing libraries. That’s helped buoy library supporters here as they wait to see how the federal cuts play out in court.
“We are cautiously optimistic about this temporary restraining order, because it says basically anything that wasn't already dismantled prior to when that came out on May 1, things are paused,” said Sarah Hawkins, assistant director of the Anoka County Library system and legislative chair of the Minnesota Library Association.
“We're in a different situation than some states, in that we have a strong ecosystem where the federal government isn't the only player in providing strong library services,” Hawkins said. “We have people fighting for library services in Minnesota, bipartisan folks, people on both sides of the aisle, especially at our state Legislature, that care about Minnesota libraries.”
Hawkins said that support, along with the temporary court order, have her hopeful federal funding will remain the same through mid-fall, when Congress will look at appropriating money for the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
But in places like St. Cloud where the Great River Regional Library system operates, there’s still a lot of uncertainty.
Pundsack said she’s thinking about the ripple effects of what federal changes will mean.
“Libraries historically see an increase in activity when the economy gets tight,” Pundsack said. “We see decreased funding when we have our highest usage, and that's one of the things that I could see on the horizon happening if things don't change at the federal level soon.”
At a recent Stearns County meeting, Pundsack said she listened to local leaders discuss what would happen to their budgets if state and federal plans move forward to slash spending on Human Services.
“The ripples are really wide and deep with what's happening at the federal government, because so much of how Minnesota works is tied together collaboratively,” Pundsack said.
“It's really important to realize that there's a reason we have so many different funding sources,” she added. “It's because we're trying to maximize taxpayer dollars and provide services. And we do that very well, but when something happens at the federal level, the tails just go all across the state.”
Regardless of what happens, “Minnesota librarians are going to step up and do what needs to be done to do the best possible job they can with the resources they're given,” Pundsack said. “But with less resources, will come less services, and I don't know if people will realize that those services are important to them until they're gone.”