Library Millage Continuation

No. This is a lower rate continuation of the Library’s expired millage.

The millage officially expired on December 31, 2024.

Voters will be deciding to support childhood literacy, lifelong learning and growth and development of our parish.

The continuation of the Library’s expired dedicated millage. This is approximately 96% of the Library’s budget.

Operational money maintains and operates the Library buildings, pays the staff salaries, and provides funding for Library materials, programming, and technology.

A mill is defined as 1/10 of 1 percent and is multiplied by the assessed value after any exemptions have been subtracted to calculate the taxes.

One whole mill less than what was collected in 2024 (5.35 mills).

We are asking for only 4.35 mills.

We are doing both. The Library rolled back due to reassessment AND is further reducing by one mill.

Over 3 million dollars less each year.

The Library will have paid off the bonds that paid for the construction of the Madisonville Branch and collected the capital money needed for the Lacombe Library replacement and Slidell expansion. Since we no longer need to collect this capital money we will reduce our millage and return it to the taxpayers. If the voters approve our millage we will receive a little less than what we are budgeted to use for operations in 2025.

There are real consequences if the voters say no.

The Library millage is 96% of the Library's revenue.

The Library must win in March to have income for the 2026 budget year.

The Library will have the funding needed to operate for the next 15 years and be able to complete slated projects.

What to look forward to:

• A larger replacement Lacombe Branch with a meeting room and other community requested features that is on the Tammany Trace.
• The Slidell Branch renovation and expansion to meet the growing needs of the Slidell community.
• Continued and no interruption of services that patrons have come to expect of the Library for the last 75 years.

No, there is no mandated taxes for libraries.

The Library receives about 4%-5% of your total property tax bill.

For 2023 (money that was spent in 2024) we received 5.78 mills. We then rolled back due to reassessment, so for 2024 (money that we will spend in 2025), we received 5.35 mills so as not to unduly benefit from the rise in assessments.

This vote reduces your tax bill even further to 4.35 mills.

In 2022, we created our Tiered Juvenile Card System. The State Legislature modeled their legislation*  after our system to be used in libraries across the state, acknowledging that parents and guardians are the decision-makers for what their children see, read and hear.

To find out more about all the Library has done to address concerns please see a full explanation here.

*LA R.S. 25:225.

Shall the Parish of St. Tammany, State of Louisiana (the "Parish"), continue to levy a special tax of 4.35 mills (the "Tax") on all property subject to taxation in the Parish (an estimated $13,510,265 reasonably expected at this time to be collected from the levy of the Tax for an entire year), for a period of 15 years, beginning with the year 2025 and ending with the year 2039, for the purpose of constructing, acquiring, improving, maintaining and/or operating public library facilities, furnishings and equipment, and otherwise supporting the public library system in the Parish?

No. Funding approved by the voters for the Library can only be used to run a parish library system.