Spokane Budget Proposal Trims Library Services
Mayor Lisa Brown's $2.9 billion two-year plan would cut library services while adding downtown police patrols.
Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in City Hall
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Should Spokane prioritize library funding over new downtown police patrols?
Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown released a $2.9 billion two-year budget proposal on Monday, roughly 13% larger than the 2025-26 biennium. The plan proposes library cuts and funds a new downtown police foot and bike patrol.
Why it matters
The proposal fills a projected $25 million deficit through service cuts, as costs including a standalone 911 dispatch system, infrastructure projects, and obligations of the 2025 parks levy increased spending. Residents across Spokane will see direct effects on library hours and police staffing if the plan is adopted.
The city's general fund would rise roughly 12% to $598.6 million, while police funding would climb from $61.4 million to $79.3 million. The Spokane Public Library system would receive $25 million from the city over the next two years.
The players
Lisa Brown
Mayor of Spokane, who released the proposed two-year budget and its library and police provisions.
Spokane City Council
The city's legislative body, which will consider and approve the budget in December and could restore library funding.
The details
The proposal would reduce library operating days and require layoffs unless the council adds funding before approval in December. Libraries have been drawing down reserves used to sustain hours and services created after voters approved a 2013 levy, and those reserves are now gone. Police department positions would decrease almost entirely through cuts and transfers from support staff, while the budget includes four new hires to restart a downtown foot and bike patrol.
Timeline
2013: Voters approved a levy that funded expanded library hours and services.
2025: The City Council provided roughly $500,000 to the libraries, of which more than $100,000 was clawed back.
2025-26 biennium: The prior budget period used as the comparison baseline.
November 2, 2026: Mayor Lisa Brown released the proposed budget on Monday.
December 2026: The City Council is expected to approve the budget.
Political Context
The proposal rests on the premise that the city's libraries operate with roughly 25% less funding than peer cities such as Tacoma and Boise, a gap that library advocates have long cited. Cuts to library hours risk widening that disparity even as the city's overall budget grows.
If the proposal passes unchanged, Spokane libraries will be open fewer days and some staff could be laid off. Residents would see a larger downtown police presence through the restored foot and bike patrol.
The takeaway
The budget choice comes down to whether the council restores library funding before December, which will determine how much of the library system's current service survives. Residents who rely on library hours should track the council's December deliberations.
What happens next
The City Council is expected to approve the budget in December 2026, when the library funding decision will be made.
Further reading
For more on how the city is weighing these choices, see City Hall coverage of Spokane's budget process.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Spokesman Review.
Live Poll
Should Spokane prioritize library funding over new downtown police patrols?
