The Great Falls Public Library board voted 3-1 during a special meeting Sept. 5 to approve the library negotiation team’s proposal for a new five-year management agreement, essentially rejecting the city’s proposal that would eliminate the current seven mills after two budget years.

Noelle Johnson voted against the library’s proposed agreement.

Great Falls voters approved a ballot issue in June 2023 to amend the city charter to increase library funding from two mills to 17.

When the proposal was approved for the ballot, that increase was projected to generate about $1.5 million in additional revenue for the library.

That increase, according to library staff and board members, was predicated on the city maintaining the existing seven mills of funding that was established in a 1993 management agreement. Under that plan, which was discussed in multiple public meetings, the city cut its $350,000 annual subsidy to the library after the levy passed.

City proposes cutting library mills; library board set special meeting Sept. 5

The seven mills under the agreement are levied annually as part of the city’s general property tax levy that goes into the general fund.

In the current fiscal year, which began July 1, the seven mills through the agreement are projected to generate $842,8000 for the library, or 27 percent of the library’s budget.

Last summer, the Montana Department of Revenue reappraised properties statewide, causing property values to increase for many.

For the budget year that ended June 30, the 15 mills generated $1,889,670, or $211,543 more revenue than initially estimated, but library expenses also increased significantly, according to library staff.

But those numbers don’t account for tax collection rates or tax protests. Calumet has filed a significant tax protest that equates to about $1 million in tax revenue not available to the city during the last budget year and continuing this year, until the protest is addressed.

City’s public safety committee sends recommendations to commission

In November 2023, voters rejected a $13 million public safety levy and a $21 million public safety infrastructure bond.

In January, Commissioner Rick Tryon proposed taking those seven mills by agreement from the library and redirecting them to public safety needs.

Initially, other commissioners didn’t support that proposal but eventually directed staff to discuss the management agreement with the library board.

In March, negotiating teams for the city and library began meeting to review the existing agreement and on Aug. 28, the city’s team presented their “last, best, final offer,” according to the library.

In an Aug. 31 email, the library shared the details of the proposals.

The city’s Aug. 28 offer cuts the seven mills in the existing agreement to 3.5 mills for the next two fiscal years and then eliminates those mills for the library. The offer names the library director as an administrative liaison, removing the position as a city department head.

City Commission approves tax increase, budget

In their documents for the library board’s Sept. 5 special meeting, the library negotiating team wrote, “we are disappointed by what appears to be the view of a majority of the current city commission to ignore the will of the voters. This decision by the city commission is a bait-and-switch. They told the voters that these mills would be used to increase the library’s hours and programs, but now they are retracting their promise and using these funds to shore up their budget, knowing that the take-back will not be sufficient to address their stated public safety needs. With this proposal, the library will not be able to meet its promises to voters because the commission is reneging on its commitment to the library and the Great Falls community. There is no doubt that it will lead to cuts in services, hours, and programs.”

Public safety committee continuing discussion of city’s funding options, needs

The city is operating under the existing agreement this year and has budgeted the full seven mills for the library in the current budget.

The library’s team presented a proposed agreement during the Sept. 5 special board meeting that would reduce the city’s support from seven to 4.5 mills for the duration of the five-year agreement.

That reduction would equate to about $301,000 plus the annual $350,000 general fund subsidy for the library already returned to the city since the levy’s passage, would equate to about $650,000 annually for the city to use to address other needs, according to the library.

Further reducing those seven mills by agreement to 3.5 for two years and then eliminating that support entirely would cause personnel and programming cuts at the library, according to library staff.

This summer, the library increased operational hours with funding through the levy to be open seven days per week, the first time since 2014, when the library, and other city departments, were cut significantly to adjust for the bankruptcy settlement from the city’s failed Electric City Power venture.

Great Falls Public Library to open seven days a week in June, for first time since 2014

Bill Bronson, the library board’s legal counsel for the negotiations said that he’d contact the city attorney to inform him of the board’s vote and discuss next steps.

During the Sept. 3 City Commission meeting, roughly 70 people attended the meeting and about half offered public comment on the proposal to cut library funding.

Most asked commissioners to maintain the funding saying they would otherwise undermine the will of the voters.

The city’s public safety advisory committee met over the summer and recommended that the redirect those seven mills to public safety. The committee chair briefly reviewed the committee’s recommendations during the commission’s Sept. 3 work session.

At the end of the regular commission meeting, Commissioner Rick Tryon said that the levy ballot language didn’t mention the seven mills by agreement and that he was surprised by the people who showed up to speak about it since commissioners weren’t taking action that night.

Mayor Cory Reeves said that they’d go in depth about those recommendations and the seven mills but wouldn’t make decisions until at least mid-October.

“This is a tough one,” he said.

Library levy goes to city ballot June 6 [2023]

Reeves said he was getting two different stories regarding whether the seven mills were staying in place as the levy was developed.

Ballot language has specific state law requirements and often doesn’t go into exhaustive detail about the question.

During the Sept. 5 meeting, Library Director Susie McIntyre said the November public safety levy ballot language didn’t specify the existing funding sources for public safety.

In the current budget that commissioners adopted in July, the police budget is $17,612,949 and the fire budget is $11,575,536 for a combined public safety budget of $29,188,485.

The city is projecting $26,018,186 in tax revenue for the general fund, leaving a $3,170,299 shortfall between property tax revenue and those two budgets alone, according to city officials.

The city’s budget this year is $3,161,675, according to library data.

During the library board’s meeting, McIntyre reviewed video footage of a December 2022 commission work session when commissioners opted for a library levy option that placed 15 mills on the ballot and the library retained the seven mills by agreement and returned the $350,000 subsidy.

City moving forward with plans to send library levy to May ballot [2022]

During that meeting, Tryon and other commissioners said they were happy to see the $350,000 made available for other needs but did not mention eliminating the seven mills by agreement or renegotiating the agreement entirely. They did not raise concern with the seven mills in the 1993 agreement during their Feb. 21, 2023 meeting when they voted to send the library levy to the ballot.

In October 2022, McIntyre told commissioners “the big question there is whether or not the mill levy funding will supplement our current funding or replace our current funding or do a mixture of that.”

She walked commissioners through their current funding structure in that meeting and the estimates of their levy ask depending on their existing funding at that time.

During that meeting, Tryon asked if the levy would free up the $350,000 subsidy or the seven mills through the 1993 agreement.

McIntyre said during that meeting that if they kept all existing funding, they’d ask for about 10 mills.

If they lost the general fund subsidy, they’d ask for about 13.5 mills.

She told commissioners that if they wanted to renegotiate the 1993 agreement and take away the seven mills, “we would have to ask for $2 million” or about 20 mills.

City adjusting plans for proposed public safety levy [2023]

McIntyre told commissioners in October 2022 that she was requesting input from commissioners on whether they wanted the levy to supplement or replace existing library funding.

McIntyre’s slide presentation for that meeting also details those funding options, including the seven mills by agreement.

During the October meeting, direction from commissioners was not to put the library on the same ballot as their potential public safety levy which they were planning for November 2023.

They also discussed the possibility of establishing a countywide library district, but McIntyre said that wasn’t likely an option since the other two libraries in the county had said at the time they were not interested in that option.

Library board to discuss levy options [2022]

By the Dec. 20, 2022 work session, the library foundation had completed polling and McIntyre presented those details to commissioners as well as the library board’s recommendation to pursue asking voters for a 15 mill increase, keeping the seven mills by agreement and returning the $350,000 subsidy.

Those details are included in her slides for that meeting.

She said their polling data did not support asking voters for more funding and replacing the seven mills by agreement.

Commissioners said they liked the library’s proposal to put 15 mills on the ballot and returning the $350,000 subsidy but did not mention taking back the seven mills.

At that point, commissioners were simultaneously discussing the possibility of a public safety and the Dec. 20, 2022 work session agenda included updates on both the public safety and library levy proposals.

The city has struggled to fund public safety needs for years, and many requests from police and fire have gone unfunded in commission adopted budgets.

Officials looking at options for library funding structure [2021]

In 1969, voters approved a $1.96 million bond to build the existing fire stations and training center.

The tower at the training center is condemned and currently unusable.

Great Falls Fire Rescue Chief Jeremy Jones has said during multiple meetings over the last several years that the city needs two new fire stations.

In 2009, voters rejected a public safety levy for police and fire.

City considering improvements to GFPD, GFFR; public safety levy [2022]

The public safety levy as proposed to voters in November was for an estimated $13.6 million annually, in perpetuity.

Commissioners also sent a $21.17 million public safety infrastructure bond to voters in November 2023.

Both failed.

In 2022, voters approved a roughly $2.5 million levy for county public safety, mainly funding for deputy and county attorney salaries and a pre-trial program that officials are working to implement this fall.

Library looking at funding structure options, possibility of levy [2021]

The library’s proposed agreement, as approved by the board during their Sept. 5 meeting would equate to about $650,000 annually for the city to use toward public safety.

During this year’s budget process, Great Falls Fire Rescue asked for $217,614 in additional funding for a new deputy fire marshal and associated office costs, certification pay for two additional paramedics, a 10 percent market adjustment for administrative staff to address compression issues, office furniture to replace hand me downs, a concrete pad for burn cells at the training center and proximity dispatching.

City takes first look at proposed budget, mayor floats idea of public safety levy [2019]

The city manager’s budget proposal, and the budget adopted by commissioners, did not fund those requests.

The Great Falls Police Department requested $386,874 in additional funding to include three sworn officers for the investigations bureau and associated training and equipment costs for $346,588.

The city manager’s proposed budget adopted by commissioners did not fund those requests, but funded $40,286 for recruiting and increasing costs for the state law enforcement academy tuition costs, additional funds for towing of abandoned and recreational vehicles, more funding for an online investigative tool, and additional funds for travel for training needed due to turnover.

The seven mills for the library generate $842,8000 in the current budget.

Those GFFR and GFPD requests that weren’t funded in the current city budget total $951,076.

City continuing budget discussions, options for funding operations

The city budget funds $40,000 for a case management software in the city prosecutor’s office and $1,000 for office supplies in Municipal Court.

The commission’s adopted budget doesn’t fund the jury clerk or court office clerk for Municipal Court, that were requested in the public safety levy.

City makes health board appointment; approves park leases; changes to weapons code; accepts COPS hiring grant [2021]

The budget does include funding to keep the three GFPD officer positions added with a federal grant that the city accepted in December 2021.

“The Great Falls Public Library is incredibly grateful to have the support of our community. We know times are tough for many, and they passed the Library levy anyway. We don’t take that lightly. We are doing everything we can to treat those resources with the care they deserve. We quickly implemented the programs and services our friends, neighbors, and business community asked for and needed,” according to the library’s team.