On April 15, 2025, the City of San Diego released their proposed budget for the 2026 fiscal year. The proposed $2.1 billion General Fund budget includes a more than $8 million reduction to the San Diego Public Library system’s budget.
If approved, the draft budget will close all City of San Diego Public Library locations on Sundays and Mondays starting July 1, 2025. These cuts reduce operating hours for the Library’s 37 branches while preserving programming and community resources during the proposed operating hours of Tuesday through Saturday.
“Being this underfunded is not normal. It is not sustainable for the San Diego Public Library to continue to serve their communities at the level expected by its patrons when the City continues to slash money from the Library budget year-after-year.
Our City leaders must face this daunting budget deficit and all choices are going to be hard. I understand budget cuts for the next fiscal year will impact every area of City services.
I am relieved, however, that the community services offered at San Diego Public Libraries will continue to remain available to patrons. San Diegans depend on these core programs that range from early literacy programs, Homework Help Centers, workforce development initiatives, and entrepreneurial services like securing patents and trademarks.
Looking ahead, the Library Foundation SD urges City leaders to commit to building sustainable revenue streams that will safeguard the San Diego Public Library, a cornerstone of the City’s public services. We need to build a plan that will allow all 37 library locations to be open to San Diegans seven days a week.” – Patrick Stewart, CEO of the Library Foundation SD
- The San Diego Public Library’s per-capita operating budget is less than 70 percent of the California state average and well behind many of its urban library peers,
- With a books, materials, and e‑resources budget of more than $7.4 million (in FY2025), San Diego County spends 3.5 times more on their library’s resources than the City of San Diego,
- SDPL’s security spending is larger than its materials budget, and
- The City’s Public Library Department has over $50 million in deferred maintenance issues and no maintenance budget to address them.
