The Great Falls Public Library board voted unanimously during their Nov. 26 meeting to approve a new management agreement with the City of Great Falls that maintains the existing seven mills in the current budget and reduces general fund support by half over the next four years.

City Commissioners voted 4-1 during their Nov. 19 meeting to terminate the 1993 agreement that had provided seven mills to the library annually, with Commissioner Shannon Wilson dissenting because she was concerned about terminating the existing agreement without a new one in place.

Commissioners voted 4-1 to approve the new five-year agreement, with Commissioner Rick Tryon dissenting.

The reduction of 3.5 mills equates to about $420,000, using current fiscal numbers, according to the library.

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Under the new agreement, library board to appoint the library director and set the director’s salary, which is not the current practice. The director would report to the board and be responsible for the management of the library and execution of library policies as set by the board.

In recent years, it’s been a complication of the existing arrangement as the library director reports to the library board and the city manager as a department head.

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Under the new agreement, the library director would be the administrative liaison to the city manager’s office.

The proposed agreement also maintains city services such as human resources, payroll, finance, accounting and other services under the same internal service charge structure that applies to other city departments and currently exists for the library. The library, like other city departments, pays internal service charges for those services.

Library employees will also remain as city employees under the proposed agreement.

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The proposed agreement would expire June 30, 2029 and could be extended for successive one-year renewal terms only upon mutual written agreement of the parties prior to the expiration of the original term or any renewal term. Either party may request a review of the agreement prior to the end of the original term or any renewal term, according to the city.

During their Nov. 26 meeting, the library board discussed that if the management agreement were extended for a year, it would maintain the 3.5 mills.

Anne Bulger, library board member, asked what value was in the language of the city committing to 3.5 mills when a few years ago they agreed by consensus to continue the seven mills.

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Bill Bronson, a former city commissioner who served as legal counsel for the library board during the negotiations, said that during their discussions Commissioners Susan Wolff and Joe McKenney were clear that their intent was for the 3.5 mills to continue for an extended year term.

Susie McIntyre, library director, said the fiscal impact will depend on the value of the mills annually, but the new agreement equates to a cut of half of the library’s base funding from the city.

She told the board that if they approve the agreement, she’ll come back to the board with recommendations for a new organizational structure and budget to absorb those cuts, but “it will be up to the board where you want to cut.”

It’s been a difficult process, McIntyre said, and she knows many people are disappointed that they’re looking at a cut, but she said she believed the new agreement with 3.5 mills over the next four year budget years “is the best deal we can get.”

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She told the board she was concerned that if they didn’t approve the new agreement, the city would be looking at just the termination of the 1993 agreement and the library would lose all seven mills with the library’s organizational structure within the city “questionable.”

McIntyre said they’ve held off on hiring an assistant director and planning for training, programming and maintenance while the agreement was being discussed.

The discussions have been “very stressful for staff,” who are concerned about the elimination of positions, she said.

Noelle Johnson moved to approve the agreement.

Sue Warren, president of the Great Falls Public Library Foundation, said she understood the need to compromise with budgets and management decisions, but now that a decision had been made, she said leaders had the “opportunity” to lead their teams to success.

“It’s time to move forward to rebuild our vibrant library for the community and the citizens it serves,” she said.

Bill Tacke said he understood the importance of making a decision but was concerned with the lack of public awareness of the library funding structure.

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He said the seven mills in the 1993 agreement were essentially to turn the lights on and maintain the basics and the levy was intended to add services and programs.

“They’re taking away money that was used for those basic services,” Tacke said in a decision that pulls the commission back from the library that was about as old as the city itself.

Valeria Gibson, wife of town founder Paris Gibson, played a major role in establishing the city’s first library, which was named for her, in the late 1800s.

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The city “took over operation and funding of the library,” in 1892, according to a history of the library written by former library director Kathy Mora. A city ordinance passed in 1910 established the library board and that ordinance was last updated in 2016.

Tacke asked if the commission would pull back city support of the library further in the future.

Richard Irving, who has regularly been critical of the library board in recent years, said he lives behind the library and is a regular patron.

He told the library board that their effort to get the library levy passed made it impossible for the public safety levy to pass.

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He said insurance rates were increasing because the public safety levy failed.

Great Falls Fire Rescue officials have been warning for years of the increased insurance rates because of lack of certain public safety resources.

Anne Bulger, library board member, was part of the negotiating process.

She said initially the city’s offer was to take all seven mills back and it was a “long, hard process.”

“It makes me sad. It’s a cut, there’s no question about it,” Bulger said, but that she believes the library board and staff will work with the resources they have.

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She said one positive outcome is that the public now knows more about the library than in the past and “people are paying attention.”

Jessica Crist, library board member, said she was disappointed and “it really does feel like a slap toward the library. We’re sort of cursed with having always been able to pull things together with duct tape and bailing wire.”

Noelle Johnson, library board member, said that with the 1993 agreement of seven mills, plus the existing two voted mills, plus the additional 15 mills voters approved last year, the library had 24 mills.

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She said even with the loss of 3.5 mills, the library has 20.5 mills, which is more than what it had previously.

Whitney Olson, library board chair, said that Johnson failed to mention that when they pursued the levy, they did it knowing the $350,000 general fund subsidy was ending, but that city commissioners had looked at them and told library team that they’d maintain the seven mills in the 1993 agreement.

“It saddens me that we live in a city that doesn’t want nice things for its community. Hopefully we’ll make a change in the future,” Olson said.