Proposed Municipal Library Transition Information
The New Haven Community Library and its Board of Trustees are hoping to make a change from an incorporated library to a municipal library beginning in January 2026. This will appear on the ballot on March 4th. There will be three articles that will need community approval in order for this to happen:
ARTICLE 14. Shall the voters of the Town of New Haven vote to transition the New
Haven Community Library, Incorporated to the New Haven Municipal Library;
beginning in January 2026? By Australian Ballot.
ARTICLE 15. Shall the voters of the Town of New Haven vote to have the Library
Trustees continue to be elected, contingent upon Article 14 passing? By Australian
Ballot.
ARTICLE 16. Shall the voters of the Town of New Haven allow the New Haven
Library Trustees to retain control of their Reserve Funds, contingent upon Article 14
passing. By Australian Ballot.
There are a number of reasons why the Library Board of Trustees is pursuing this change and we have developed some common questions and answers for you to consider prior to voting on this in March.
Please take a look at this fact sheet below we have developed to understand more about this proposed change.
It is important to note that there will be no changes for library patrons or in the daily operations of the library.
If you have further questions about why the Board of Trustees and the Library Director think this change is in the best interest of the library, please don't hesitate to reach out. Thank you so much for supporting our wonderful library!
Kristin Swartzentruber, Chair kristin.geiger@gmail.com
Darcy Cummings, Treasurer Dfcummings@gmail.com
Kim Callahan, Secretary kimcallahan99@gmail.com
Leann Gund, Trustee gundleann@gmail.com
Erika Smith, Trustee epsmithvt@gmail.com
Thank you to everyone who has reached out in support of our library and also to those looking to get a better understanding of what the Library vote means. The two questions that we heard most have been: “why now?” and “how much?”. The Board’s decision to ask for this change is the result of three years’ worth of discussion and increased administrative costs. Below is a breakdown of that.
In 2022, the accounting firm Fraga & Lilja, who had been doing the Library’s accounting for $400 a year, informed the Library that they would no longer provide those services for that amount. The Board has been unable to find a replacement for the same service and same price. The best quote that we received was for $6000/year.
Our previous two Library Directors were both on their spouses’ employer provided healthcare plans, our current Library Director does not have that option. It is also not an equitable or sound employment practice for a job to only be suitable for people with other means of healthcare coverage. We are currently providing a stipend ($3408 for this year) while we find a long term solution. The small group plans we have looked into range from $11,000-$14,000 a year for an individual plan. There will also be an annual expense for administering the plan.
Directors and Officers liability insurance is necessary for any organization with a board and the library should have been carrying this for years. It protects the personal assets of all officers and directors from lawsuits. The cost ranges from $800-$1600/year.
When the Board looked into how much these things would cost, we were faced with the question of how to add over $20,000 to our annual budget! We have been discussing how to minimize these expenses without a reduction in library services for the last three years. The most cost effective way we could think of, would be to share these expenses with the Town, which already has liability insurance coverage, a treasurer and a healthcare plan for municipal employees. As a municipal library, we would also have access to the Vermont League of Cities and Towns, which offers invaluable resources and support on a wide range of issues. There will be an increase to the Town’s overall budget with a switch to municipal, but it will be less than if we remain incorporated.
Fact Sheet About Proposed Municipal Library Transition:
The New Haven Community Library would like to officially change from an incorporated library to a municipal library starting in January 2026. In order for this to happen, the community of New Haven will have to approve this change through a vote by Australian ballot at Town Meeting on March 4, 2025.
There are a number of reasons that the Board of Trustees is pursuing this change and we have developed some Question and Answers for you to consider prior to voting in March. All of the changes will affect the library internally and there will be no changes for library patrons or the day-to-day operation of the library for our community.
What will change? Not much!
The Library is already primarily funded by the Town including: the building itself, most utilities, and some insurances. Currently, around 99% of the Library’s budget comes from the Town. In many ways, the Library currently operates as a municipal library.
- New: The Library Director and other future library employees will be municipal employees.
- New: The Town Treasurer will take over the library’s general accounting.
- New: The Library’s general funds will be held by the Town.
What will it cost?
- The town treasurer would take on the accounting responsibilities of the library. There’s a possibility that their salary will increase with the additional responsibilities.
- The Library Director would become a town employee and eligible for benefits through the Town plans.
***It is important to note that the Library will be able to reduce some costs by eliminating duplicate items such as liability insurances, external accounting and the current benefits stipend paid to the Library Director.
Who will run the Library?
- No Change: The Library Director, Ruth, will still be in charge of day-to-day operations under the direction of the Library Board of Trustees.
Why make this change?
- Municipal libraries can be less costly to run than incorporated libraries because of the shared resources between Town and library.
- There would be some resource savings where there are currently duplicate expenses paid by the town and the library including bookkeeping, tax filings, health insurance stipend and liability insurances.
- There would be greater community oversight and transparency of funds.
- The library finances would be managed by a professional accountant.
- The all-volunteer board can focus more on library planning and governance and less on accounting, insurance issues and other management needs.
- NHCL is a community library for the community; so it makes sense for the library to be ‘owned,’ by the community.
- The change would allow NHCL access to the expertise of the VT League of Cities and Towns resources including governance, legal, insurance, grant opportunities, etc.
- Municipal libraries can access bonding for capital projects through the town if needed.
How many other libraries in Vermont are municipal libraries?
Close to 70% of libraries in Vermont are currently operated as municipal libraries and located in a municipal building.
What would the timeline be for this change?
If this change is approved by voters on March 5, it would go into effect January 2026.
Why is the Library asking to maintain control of a “reserve fund”?
- The Library currently has a reserve fund in addition to our operational fund. The operational fund is used for our normal, budgeted expenses. Reserve funds are used for unforeseen expenses (think new computer, new employer tax responsibility, or a rate increase we were unaware of when we created the annual budget) as well as unexpected decreases in revenues such as donations and grants
- Reserve funds are also used for programming and collection development outside of the budgeted allocation and for other costs the Library Director and Board of Trustees agree would benefit the community, but were not anticipated when we created that year’s budget.
- The Library drafts each budget request more than a year before those funds become the operational budget. A lot can change in a year: sometimes expenses increase and sometimes expenses decrease. Maintaining a reserve fund is the only way that the Library can save surplus funds from one year to another in order to be prepared for unexpected costs and responsive to community needs.