The Senate Enrolled Act 1, signed into law by Governor Mike Braun on April 15, is changing how Indiana cities and counties collect property and income taxes. These changes have affected public libraries across Elkhart County that depend on property and income tax for annual budget funding. 

Due to the SEA 1, the Goshen Public Library is expecting to lose out on $913,000 that it could otherwise have collected in 2025. This has limited the resources of the library, including programs and services offered to Goshen College students.

Grace Thomas ’16, development and community engagement manager for the library, said the SEA 1 is changing how the public library “plans for the future.” 

While their expected operational budget has increased from $3,066,125 in 2024 to $3,188,769 in 2025, this does not allow for the library to maintain its current offerings at a growing rate conducive with the economy. 

The problem with library funding ultimately comes down to “circuit breakers” in the property tax policy, a tax relief program that helps alleviate a property owner’s ability to pay their share. 

The Indiana property tax system is broken down into three tiers: household properties, commercial rentals like agricultural land, and commercial properties like manufacturing plants. 

Back in June, WSBT 22 reported that Mayor Gina Leichty was worried about the city’s ability to offset new expenses while maintaining their level of services. 

Last year, local income taxes made up approximately 32% of the public library’s operational budget. These cuts also affect Thomas’s work life.

Thomas started her position in February of last year. “I always tell people that this is the best job I’ve ever had,” she said. “Last year in particular, it has gotten more difficult for libraries based on funding and legislation challenges that have been facing, particularly in Indiana. So that makes our job harder.” 

The library has been providing GC students, staff and faculty with online ebook and audiobook databases like Hoopla and Libby. GC ID holders also have access to the movie streaming platform, Kanopy, through the library. 

All of these as well as library internal services that help with email, phone and text notifications are subject to cuts. 

The library has shown its support for GC in more ways than one. They collaborated with the Latino Student Union for their Dia de los Muertos event last year. Thomas described the experience as awesome. “We’ve had some professors partner with us on certain parts of our programming as well,” she said.

Clara Lind, a senior English and creative writing major, works as a circulation assistant at the library. She has considered how important the library is to her school work and the entire Goshen community. 

“Sometimes I think about how if somebody proposed [libraries] now, they would get laughed out of the room. Having the government fund a service that is offering free materials and a third space? Anyway, they’re wonderful, and I hope they continue to exist indefinitely,” Lind said. 

Lind also said, “We’re a resource that is there for the community. So, the more people utilize it, the better it is for us, because we can say that people are using the library and that’s why it’s important to keep it open, especially in uncertain times when there are budget cuts.” 

To mitigate the effects of SEA 1, the Goshen City Council has since passed a wheel tax. This is an annual $25 or $40 tax on every vehicle that will be added to resident vehicle registration bills by the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles. The price of the tax will depend on vehicle type. The funds acquired from this tax “can only be utilized for repairing our roads and streets,” said Mayor Gina Leichty.

The full effects of SEA 1 are still unknown. A majority of these changes will not be put into full effect until 2027. 

“It’s possible that [the city and state] is going to extend that a little bit. So we really are looking at a five-year timeline of knowing exactly how these legislative changes are going to affect us. Libraries across the country are already kind of preventatively taking steps,” Thomas said. 

Some of the library’s preventative measures include limiting hiring initiatives and cutting back on spending until their financial future is certain.

Thomas believes that some of “the most important things” students and Goshen community members can do are advocating for the library in conversation, using the online resources and donating to the library if possible. 

“There are a lot of misconceptions about what public libraries are and do,” Thomas said. “People think that the only reason they would need to go to a public library would be to check out a book. We have so much more to offer. This is a place where people want to help you solve information problems and connect you to services. The more that we can communicate that to our friends and neighbors, the better.”