To the Editor:
The Princeton Public Library represents the third-largest expenditure in the municipal budget, following the Police Department and Public Works/Sewer. While the dedicated library tax levy is set at $3.82 million, 8.86 percent of the total municipal tax levy, the town’s total proposed library funding for 2026 is $4.98 million. This includes an additional $1.15 million from the municipal operating budget, bringing the library’s total share of the tax levy to approximately 11.5 percent, or about $600 annually for the average household.
This figure does not include the Municipality’s funding for capital improvements, representing millions of dollars in additional investment in the library. Other support from the town includes 50 employee parking permits for the Spring Street garage, at an estimated cost of $108,000/year, and a $150,000 annual subsidy for the library’s two-hour parking validation system. Princeton’s level of municipal support for its library is the highest in New Jersey and appears unmatched nationally.
The library also benefits from significant private resources, including an endowment of more than $17 million, from which it draws approximately 4.5 percent annually. These funds are used exclusively for collections and programs, rather than the full spectrum of expenses associated with library operations, a discretionary decision made by the Library Friends and Foundation. However, last week, the Foundation covered the costs for an advocacy mailer requesting a 3 percent increase in the library’s operating budget for 2026.
As part of an overall effort to contain costs throughout the Municipality, in the fall the mayor, who represents the Municipality on the library board, conveyed that it was unlikely there would be an increase in their operating budget in 2026, and they should prepare for that. In recent years, library budget increases have averaged 4.75 percent annually, with the exception of one Covid year. Despite this request, the library proposed a 3 percent increase (approximately $149,000).
Municipal officials sought to work collaboratively with the library’s leadership team to identify ways to close this gap through a combination of fundraising, strategic use of endowment funds, operational efficiencies, and potential revenue enhancements. The library had already reduced hours, a measure which the town did not suggest or encourage.
Municipal officials engaged in extensive discussions with the library’s leadership, including a two-hour working session in March, to explore practical solutions. These included adjustments to parking policies, such as reducing underutilized employee permits and addressing the use of taxpayer-subsidized parking validation for non-residents which was never intended.
It was mutually agreed with library leadership that the Municipality would collect parking validation data for the past several years. As a result, the library was presented with several options to increase funding without further burdening taxpayers. However, after Friday’s library board meeting the board indicated they no longer wanted to discuss those options.
The Municipality fully recognizes and values the library’s vital role in the community and takes pride in its contributions. At the same time, we have a responsibility to ensure fiscal fairness for taxpayers and to ask the difficult but necessary questions that come with that responsibility.