Opinion: Ledger & Others Support Library Mill Levy

This voting season brings candidates for County Commissioner and County Sheriff, as well as a variety of mill levies. While some are hotly debated (see Letter to Editor on page 3), others feel needed due to years of unchanged budgets.

The Jefferson County Library system has not had a budget increase since 2004. In those eighteen years, so many things have changed in the libraries that it is hard to note them all. The Whitehall Community Library alone receives over 80,000 visits per year; imagine what the entire system hosts...on a 2004 budget. Not only that, but the value of mills has decreased by $10,000 due to the recent GSM shutdown.

As levies are based on your annual assessed home value, what will this levy cost in the long run? In short, not very much. A $50K home would add $4.05 a year to their annual taxes, an $100K home: $8.10, and a $200K home a total of $16.20 per year.

The Whitehall Ledger is dedicated to the written word, news media, arts, and culture and wholeheartedly supports the upcoming proposed mill levy, as do many others. In the upcoming weeks, The Ledger will be sharing quotes and anecdotes from library patrons and mill levy supporters. Please take each into consideration when you make your choice at the polls.

I am in favor of the Library Mill Levy because...

• This June, the voters of Jefferson County will be asked to consider a mill levy increase for the Jefferson County Library System. This will be the first library mill levy increase since 2004. In that time, the number of patrons served by the libraries doubled from 40,000 visits to 80,000 visits. The number of programs, computers, resources, and services has also substantially increased. Without the mill levy, the libraries will no longer be able to sustain the current amount of services.

I have been a patron of the Whitehall Library for several years, and feel it is a vital resource to our community. However, I did not realize how vital until becoming a member of Friends of the Whitehall Community Library and beginning to volunteer at the library in the fall of 2021. My eyes and heart were opened to the number of community children this library serves on a daily basis. The library is a "safe" place for children during after-school hours, on Saturday mornings, and during summer vacation. The library staff and volunteers provide learning activities for all ages, ranging from story hours to crafts to the ongoing Holocaust project.

During the Christmas Stroll, the library is a distribution center for winter coats, caps, gloves, socks, and scarves for anyone. These are donated by local organizations and individuals. It was heart-warming for me to see the joy in children's eyes (and also parents) to realize they could have warm winter clothing, without cost and no questions asked.

For these reasons and so many more, I ask that you join me in voting YES for the Jefferson County Library mill levy. -Roselle Hanson, Whitehall

• I want the library to keep its level of services and to increase its programs and hours. - John Moulton

• I think our library does amazing work with our youth, seniors, and the general public. The staff is also amazing and I think they deserve a lot of credit and recognition! - LaDonna Knox