As ballots come into mail boxes, Montrose County voters will decide now through November whether to renew a property tax that funds the Montrose Regional Library District — and whether to give the district flexibility to keep up with community growth.
The ballot will include two related questions affecting the library: one to renew the existing 0.85-mill levy that provides core funding for library operations, and another to allow the library’s revenue to grow in proportion with the community, despite new statewide restrictions on special districts.
Library officials and supporters say both measures are essential to maintaining services residents have come to rely on, including expanded hours, digital resources, and a growing collection that now reaches far beyond Montrose County.
“It’s really a continuation of the taxes you’re already paying,” said Emily Schneider, a former library board member and organizer for the Love Your Library Montrose campaign. “We have to word it as an increase, but it’s not an additional tax. It just keeps the funding we already have in place.”
Two questions, one goal: continued service
The first measure on the ballot seeks to renew the 0.85-mill levy originally approved by voters eight years ago. That tax provides the Montrose Regional Library District with roughly 25% of its annual budget and is set to expire in 2027.
If approved, the renewal would allow the district to continue collecting the same rate. For a home valued at $500,000, the cost is about $28 per year. If the measure fails, that same homeowner would pay about $30 less annually, but the library would face significant reductions once the current levy sunsets.
A second question asks voters to remove new state-imposed growth limits on the district’s revenue. Passed by the legislature last year, the law caps annual increases in property tax revenue for special districts — including libraries, fire, recreation, and school districts — regardless of population growth or inflation.
Without local voter approval to lift the cap, library leaders say the district’s funding would stagnate even as Montrose continues to grow, forcing cutbacks in staff, programs, or materials.
What the levy has accomplished
Since voters approved the current levy, the library has undergone one of the most significant expansions in its history.
The Montrose Regional Library District now operates seven days a week and offers programs and services that reach well beyond its main location. The district joined the Marmot Library Network, connecting Montrose patrons to more than 6 million books, movies, audiobooks, and online resources.
Other library services include:
• Passport services, allowing residents to apply for travel documents locally.
• Home delivery of books and materials for patrons unable to visit the library.
• A “library of things,” offering items such as musical instruments, games, small appliances, and power tools for checkout.
• Digital resources like e-books, language learning modules, and streaming access to newspapers such as the New York Times and Wall Street Journal.
“The library is doing more than ever before,” Schneider said. “You can stream movies, download audiobooks, take online classes, or even borrow ‘things’.”
Accountability and stewardship
Schneider emphasized that the library has been a careful steward of taxpayer dollars, using the levy to expand access and maintain facilities without raising tax rates. Before the levy passed, the district relied heavily on interlibrary loans to fulfill requests, a process that was often slow and limited in scope.
“We had a small collection and a lot of barriers,” she said. “The funding we’ve had since then has let us modernize and keep up with what our patrons need.”
What’s at stake
If the renewal and growth-cap measures fail, the library district could have to reduce hours, cut programs and shrink its collection over time. The district could also lose momentum on projects that have helped make the library more accessible to rural residents and students.
In a statement, the library noted that maintaining current funding would “ensure continued seven-day service, support for early literacy and lifelong learning programs, and access to physical and digital resources for all residents of Montrose County.”
Supporters of the measures argue that the library’s success has paralleled Montrose’s own growth and that renewed investment is essential for keeping pace.
“We’re just asking the community, can we grow along with you?” Schneider said. “When the community grows, we want the library to be able to grow too.”
How to learn more
The library district has created an informational campaign, Love Your Library Montrose, which outlines both ballot measures and provides taxpayer impact examples. The campaign notes that the renewal will not increase taxes and that the growth-cap exemption simply preserves the district’s ability to adjust revenues alongside the local tax base.
Voters can read more at LoveYourLibraryMontrose.com or contact the library for details. Ballots for the Nov. 4 election will be mailed to registered voters beginning next week.
Justin Tubbs is the Montrose Business Times editor. He can be reached by email at [email protected] or by phone at 970-765-0915 or mobile at 254-246-2260.
