Texas Public Libraries: Economic Benefits and Return on Investment, 2017

Abstract

Public libraries in the State of Texas provide significant economic benefits for their communities. Collectively, in FY2015, Texas public libraries were found to provide $2.628 billion in benefits while costing $566 million, a return on investment of $4.64 for each dollar. A data-intensive research design was developed to document and to quantify these economic benefits. Extensive databases from the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) were used in conjunction with the input-out economic modeling software, IMPLAN. Based on the IMPLAN model, which analyzed public libraries purely as business and organizational entities, libraries produced $976 million in economic activity. Further, in FY2015, more than 11,000 jobs in Texas were dependent on public library expenditures.