Take Action

Over a thousand library advocates testified in person before the City Council, called in, wrote an email, or sent a postcard on behalf of our libraries.

Because of you, Mayor Gloria’s recently revised FY25 budget reversed proposed library budget cuts that would have devastated the library’s basic ability to provide quality services and returned $300,000 to the city match program and $250,000 for programs. It also added funding for Youth Service Librarians at the Oak Park, Paradise Hills, and Mountain View/Beckwourth libraries and invested $1.2 million to design a new San Carlos Library.

These are positive steps but the revised budget continues the chronic disinvestment trend for our San Diego Public Library system.

The city is falling further behind its Library Ordinance goal of six percent of general funds dedicated to libraries. The library continues to shortchange the community with inequitable distribution of technology and staffing and short changes San Diego in books and materials spending.

Stand up for our libraries and tell your Councilmember and the Mayor to include these library investments in the final city budget:

A full-time Youth Service Librarian (YSL) at each branch. YSLs are the backbone of the library’s relationship with the community. They spark a love of reading in young children, provide a safe afterschool learning environment for teens, and promote year-round learning by managing the popular Summer Reading Program. Five branches – North Clairemont, Allied Gardens/Benjamin, San Carlos, Tierrasanta, and Kensington-Normal Heights — will not have a full-time youth librarian. This creates inequities for the library’s youngest learners. If equity is a priority, ensuring every library location can benefit from a full-time Youth Services Librarian is a must.

$500,000 to create a library maintenance budget. Our libraries are crumbling and the Library Department does not have a recurring maintenance budget to meet ongoing basic maintenance needs. Now is the time to invest $500,000 and create an ongoing library maintenance budget line item. Ensuring the maintenance of city facilities so that every San Diegan can benefit from quality library programs is critical.

A $250,000 Increase in the books and materials budget. Ongoing, recurring materials investments are needed to help the library keep pace with inflation and to creep closer to materials spending levels of San Diego County and other peer library systems. The County of San Diego Library’s materials budget this year is $7.4 million, of which $3.7 million is for digital and electronic resources, compared to SDPL’s entire materials budget of $2.1 million.

Replace aging and non-functioning library computers. Some library computers are eight years past their life cycle and are long overdue for replacement. These computers are essential in communities of need where they are lifeline to essential services and resources.

A library programming staff position. Library staff need a staff member who can coordinate the library’s effective systemwide programs.

Every step of the way, our libraries and library staff have responded to community needs by providing world-class services and resources that change lives daily in every community. They deserve to be prioritized in the city budget as the essential city service they are.

Please follow our links to call your representative, email them, or mail a postcard.