The library is not a temporary institution, so why is so much around it temporal? The short-term policies and funding of public libraries do not always make it easy to plan for the future. Our research shows tensions between short-term and long-term policies. 

The policy cycle for public libraries in the Netherlands is usually around one year for smaller plans and around four years for larger ones in which municipalities are involved. As a result, planning projects longer than four years is difficult.

We see that a lot of funding for libraries is project-based. An example of temporary funding is, of course, the SPUK schemes, which many libraries have taken advantage of, as Rianne also wrote in column 7-2024. Besides the temporariness that the SPUK illustrates, it is also an example of library appreciation. The SPUK schemes give a ‘boost’ to libraries that need it, in other words: a revaluation of the public library. However, this would mean that previously the library was valued less, or at least not enough. During the interviews for our study, people mentioned the temporary funding scheme as an example of ‘reparations’. 

This temporary scheme gives libraries the boost they need in times of financial uncertainty due to the expected redistribution of the Municipal Fund in 2026. This creates a paradoxical situation where, on the one hand, there is more money available through the SPUK scheme and, on the other, municipal cuts are anticipated in the near future. Municipalities have been preparing for this reallocation for some time, which means that there will be more budget for libraries in some places and less in others. Consequently, during the interviews, some referred to 2026 as the ‘year of the abyss’. 

Policy and funding go hand in hand, as one policymaker said during an interview, ‘who pays decides’. Libraries are subject to the temporariness of municipal policies. Perhaps thistemporariness of policy and funding suits the ever-changing library that adapts to the times.  The library wants to match its offerings to the needs of users and visitors. These needs change, but some of the tasks that libraries perform are also determined by national or municipal policies. This timeliness of policy and funding is not a choice. Also, some library staff indicate that certainty would be nice, as it offers more of an eye to the future and brings a sense of appreciation. 

However, fixed policies and funding need not be all positive. At our Austrian research partner, the budget for public libraries has been fixed for some time, with no adjustments due to inflation, population growth or higher numbers of library users and visits. Here, a certainty in budget, a sum that does not change, can actually be seen as a disinvestment. 

During the interviews, it emerged strongly that the amendments to the Library Act are intended precisely to counteract the uncertainty of temporary policies, which require every municipality to provide a full-fledged public library. To ensure the availability and accessibility of public libraries, it is necessary for every municipality to have a full-fledged library facility. The amendments to the Library Act will hopefully reflect these desires, continue the revaluatio