A Seattle City Council committee grew the size of this summer’s library ballot measure by nearly $70 million to cover additional upkeep, hours, staffing and collections.
The total cost of the proposed seven-year library levy going to voters this August is now just under $480 million, up from what Mayor Katie Wilson introduced last month. That’s roughly 70% larger, when accounting for inflation, than the measure approved in 2017 that expires at the end of this year.
The additions came over the objections of Councilmember Maritza Rivera, the sponsor of the levy, who is concerned about the collective cost of the city’s many levies to taxpayers, as well as the closely approaching legal limit on how much in property taxes the city can collect from its residents.
“This is not about who loves the libraries more,” she said. “This is about fiscal responsibility and our ability to pay for all our needs.”
But her words of caution were overwhelmed by her colleagues, most of whom argued the library system’s needs were urgent enough to warrant a larger measure.
“Any pennies we pinch now will cost us dollars seven years from now,” said Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck.
Seattle’s library system has had a bumpy few years. Following the approval of the 2017 levy — which promised expanded hours and the elimination of late fees — the system was rocked by the pandemic and its associated costs. As a result, it didn’t start delivering on its promises of longer hours until 2023.
In the meantime, the system's many buildings — the dramatic Central branch downtown among them — are starved for maintenance and upgrades. Library staff estimates buildings need $167 million over the next 10 years to catch up with deferred maintenance.
Even with Wednesday's amendments, the proposed levy won’t cover those needs. Rather, about half of it would go to maintaining current hours, social services, literacy programs and security.
Wilson’s original proposal dedicated $60 million to growing the library's collection of books and e-books and $86 million for maintenance.
The proposal comes at a precarious time for the city’s overall budget and ability to add new property taxes and the wallets of its residents.
Years of growing property tax levies — for housing, transportation, education and more — have pushed Seattle to its legal limit of $3.60 per $1,000 in assessed value. If the library levy is passed, that would leave Seattle with room for one more midsize levy, though that could change depending on how quickly — or slowly — the city’s economy grows.
The council passed the nine amendments that added to the levy’s costs Wednesday. The four most significant, adding more than $40 million to the price tag, all related to maintenance and facilities: $10 million for the Central Library; $15 million for upgrades to heating and cooling systems; $15 million for seismic upgrades; and $8.4 million for Americans with Disabilities Act improvements.
Other amendments added new dollars to expand collections, add new resource officers, livestream library events on the Seattle Channel and expand multilingual programming.
All of the city’s recent property tax measures have passed comfortably. The 2017 library levy won about three-quarters support from voters.
In council chambers Wednesday, commenters lined up, mostly in support of growing the proposal.
Christian DelloRusso spoke about failing escalators and elevators.
“The time to fund these replacements is right now, with the once-every-seven-years opportunity in front of you, before costs get even higher or a serious issue occurs,” she said.
Though in the minority, some urged restraint.
“All Seattle residents have wonderful affiliations with Seattle’s libraries and great memories, but we can’t afford more than the $410 million,” said commenter Colleen McAteer.
For the most part, only Rivera voted against expanding the levy’s size, though Councilmember Debora Juarez joined her in voting no against two maintenance-related proposals.
“It is not easy for me to say no to adds for something I care so deeply about,” she said.
Rinck framed her support for the additions in terms of coming challenges for the city.
“I expect hard times ahead for Seattle’s economy,” she said. “This levy presents us with an opportunity — and to my mind a responsibility — to increase our investments to ensure safe community spaces are in every neighborhood in our city.”
The measure will get one more vote by the full council before heading to the Aug. 4 ballot.
© 2026 The Seattle Times. Visit www.seattletimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
