Fiscal Responsibility
Read through this section to learn about budgets and finance.
The Trustee Essentials: Understanding Local Government Budgeting and Finance course covers this information in greater detail. Please consider taking that course to learn more.
City-County or County
A city may choose to either become a joint city-county library, pursuant to 22-1-316, MCA or assume the functions of a county library, pursuant to 22-1-315, MCA.
In either case, however, the respective governing bodies of the city and the county, or the governing body of the county and the city library board of trustees must enter into a contract.
A county that has established a county free library pursuant to 22-1-303, MCA is authorized to contract directly with the board of trustees of the free public library of any incorporated city to assume all county library functions and to pay the sum agreed upon out of the county free library fund.
46 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 19 provides some clarity on this topic. You can read the opinion in the Montana Library Laws: Attorney General Opinions and Supreme Court Decisions resource. See pages 14-19.
If there is no contract in place, then the library does not have to fulfill the role of a city-county library.
If a city library board of trustees accepts money from the county, it must be treated as provided in 22-1-309 (8), MCA. Thus, it must be expended only for the "specific purpose" of the gift, grant, donation, etc. (if one is specified by the county).