Community Education Government

Pierce County libraries could lose access to some services due to federal funding cuts

Posted on May 15th, 2025 By: Marsha Hart

People who use the Gig Harbor Library and others in the Pierce County system could lose access to certain online resources, from kids’ magazines to scholarly journals, thanks to federal funding cuts.

Harbor History Museum also faces a potential loss of federal funds that it has relied on to tackle certain major projects.

The library and museum are among the local institutions facing uncertain futures as the Trump administration hastily eliminates programs, often through executive orders.

Institute of Museum and Library Services

An executive order in March slashed funding for the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services. Congress established the institute in 1996 to provide grants, support and other services to local institutions, Pierce County Library System marketing and communications director Mary Getchell said.

While PCLS does not receive funding directly from the institute, the Washington State Library does. The state library uses those funds to support Pierce County Library System’s subscription to a key database known as Gale.

The Gale package of online resources includes an adult learning center; magazines on educational topics for school-aged children; legal forms; information on entrepreneurship and business plans, as well as many topics that inform and educate users, including news, and scholarly journals on a variety of subjects.

“We are determining what their (Washington State Library) funding reduction, or potential funding reduction means to the Pierce County Library’s purchase of databases and online e-sources and how we may provide such services going forward,” Getchell said. “We are in the discovery, determining stages, so we really don’t have a definitive understanding of the funding and what our game plan will be going forward with potential loss of this group purchasing.”

Subscription good through next June

PCLS independently renewed its subscription for the Gale database through June 2026, said Somer Hanson, marketing and communications manager for the library system.

The Gale online resource package is well-used at Pierce County libraries, Hanson said.

During a May 14 meeting of the library’s Board of Trustees, Executive Director Gretchen Caserotti said it will take time for the system to feel the impacts of the cutbacks.

“The state library has positions that provide and develop support, and that could have secondary or tertiary impacts on training. … It’s too soon to know any dollar amounts for us,” Caserotti said. “It’s clear that rural library systems are having immediate impacts.”

Harbor History Museum

While local donors provide the majority of funding for Harbor History Museum, executive director Stephanie Lile said federal funding previously has helped support major projects.

When the museum receives federal funding, it’s typically project-dependent. For instance, the museum received approximately $127,000 for restoration of the fishing vessel Shenandoah.

The museum’s strategic plan calls for digitizing its collections. The digitization project includes photographs, 3-D objects, and other pieces in the collection.

Digitization is a $50,000 to $300,000 project that could be supported by federal grants.

“When we get federal grants, like the National Endowment for Humanities grants, those include staff time to work on the project, and contractors,” Lile said. “Digitizing is more complicated than people think it is.”

Funding can come to local organizations from the National Endowment for Humanities, often filtered through groups like Humanities Washington.

“Their programs trickle to us, to Humanities in the Harbor, it’s in partnership with Humanities Washington,” Lile said. “So our program has been severely affected.”

Maintaining independence

Another program that impacts the museum directly is the National Endowment for Humanities’ America 250 Celebration, she said. July 4, 2026, is 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Lile said an executive order mandates that anyone receiving those funds must focus on “traditional American history.”

“That changes the way we believe that history should be told,” Lile said. “We are a private museum, so it only affects us if we receive federal funding. We are trying to work for the community good.”

In order to continue adhering to its mission of “valuing stewardship, community, inclusivity, education, integrity, and fiscal responsibility to create a museum that is welcoming for all,” Lile said that she continues to search for as many grant sources as she can, but that is challenging.

“It is competitive, so we are launching an endowment campaign to maintain our independence,” she said. “We are inviting the community to provide legacy gifts.”

The campaign “Leave 10” is an effort to get people to leave 10% of their estate to the museum.

“If we can get $5 to $10 million, we could maintain the museum in perpetuity,” she said.

Lawsuits

The American Library Association and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees filed a joint lawsuit challenging the executive order that cut funding for the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Attorneys general from 21 states filed a separate lawsuit arguing that the executive order violates the Administrative Procedure Act. On May 1, a federal court issued a temporary restraining order halting the dismantling of IMLS.

According to an NPR news report, district court Judge John J. McConnel Jr. issued an injunction on May 6 in the case brought by the state attorneys general. McConnel’s injunction said in part that the executive order “also disregards the fundamental constitutional role of each of the branches of our federal government; specifically, it ignores the unshakable principles that Congress makes the law and appropriates funds, and the Executive implements the law Congress enacted and spends the funds Congress appropriated.”

Property taxes provide bulk of funding

Approximately 97% of PCLS’s funding comes from property tax revenue. The Pierce County Library Foundation, Friends groups and e-rate funding — a federal program for libraries and schools to provide Wi-Fi and Internet access to the public — make up the rest, Getchell said.

Last year, 336,412 Pierce County residents had active library cards. The Gig Harbor branch ranked as one of the busiest libraries within the PCLS.

While online resources are available for at least another year, Getchell said a good way to support the library is by using it.

“Please use and enjoy the Library’s services,” Getchell said. “Share your great experiences with your friends and family, and encourage them to use the learning and welcoming library services. Another way (to support) is to connect with the Pierce County Library Foundation, or your library’s friend group.”