Friday, August 14, 2020
The Wisconsin Department of Revenue posted its final 2020 Equalized Values Report on August 14, so municipalities with public libraries may begin calculating their ability to exempt from the county library tax as provided under Wis. Stats. 43.64.
In order to exempt from the tax a municipality must appropriate and expend for the library fund an amount at least equal to the county library tax. Not all municipalities meet that criterion, so this calculation is an important step in finalizing a municipality's library appropriation.
Please keep in mind that the municipality-- not the public library-- calculates and requests the exemption from the county library tax. However, we know that public library directors and public library boards are often involved in an advisory role during this process.
Step-by-step instructions on calculating a municipality's qualification for exemption from the county library tax for 2021 can be found on the DPI website at https://dpi.wi.gov/pld/legislation-funding/county-library.
Submitted by
Shannon Schultz, Public Library Team
Division for Libraries and Technology