Rapid City Library seeks $373,000 from county; commissioners debate levy vs general‑fund appropriation

Terry Davis, director of the Rapid City Public Library, told the June 23 hearing the library requests $373,000 in county support for 2027 and reported more than 4,400 county residents hold library cards; Davis said that the county’s active users represented about 20–23% of overall library usage.

Davis said the library calculated the cost of serving county patrons at about $130 per active user and that providing services to those county users totals roughly $572,000; the county request of $373,000 is therefore “about 35% less than the cost of providing the services,” Davis said.

Commissioners pressed for detail about how many county cardholders live in rural parts of Pennington County and how levy billing is applied across the county. Commissioner Dur urged eliminating the separate library levy and funding the library by general‑fund appropriation, arguing a countywide appropriation would be fairer to communities such as Box Elder that historically were not charged the levy. Library leaders cautioned that immediate cuts last year required service reductions, and asked for clarity and a timely decision so they can plan for the coming fiscal year.

The board asked staff to provide a clearer breakdown of county patron geographies (Box Elder, New Underwood, Hill City, etc.) and the Treasurer/Finance office to confirm levy yields; commissioners signalled that funding and levy mechanics will be a focus in July budget deliberations.

Quote attribution: Terry Davis said the library “has a request for the current year of $373,000 funding from the county” and noted that county patrons are a substantial share of usage.