Return on Investment Calculator

Did you know that you really get a lot of bang for your buck from your library? As of 2020, the average residential household in Branch county pays $59.83 each year in taxes to support our district library services. If you check out 2 hardback books in a year, you've already typically got more from the library than you put in. Check out our Return on Investment Calculator below to see just how much value you get from your tax dollar investment.

Please enter the number of times you use the following library services each month

Your Use	Library Services	Value of Services
	Hardback Books Borrowed per Month	$
	Paperback Books Borrowed per Month	$
	Children's Books Borrowed per Month	$
	eBooks/Audiobooks downloaded from Hoopla or Libby per Month	$
	Magazines Borrowed, Downloaded, or read in the library per Month	$
	Videos Borrowed or Downloaded per Month	$
	Audio Books Borrowed or downloaded per Month	$
	Interlibrary Loans per Month	$
	Meeting Rooms Use (Hours per Month)	$
	Program/Class Attended per Month - Adult	$
	Program/Class Attended per Month - Child	$
	Computer Use (Hours per Month)	$
	Databases Used per Month (Number of Separate Databases)	$
	Reference Questions Asked per Month	$
Value you receive monthly from your library:		$
For every $1.00 in taxes you invest in your library, you receive $ of value in return*

Where did these numbers come from?
Average 2020 household tax contributions were determined by taking the state equalized value (SEV) of all residential property in Branch County, multiplied by our millage rate (1.1012), then divided by the number of residential properties in the county (20,821). We determined the value of some library service figures from the School Library Journal, and others from the Maine State Library's Library Use Calculator. The remainder come from our own local costs. Code for this calculator was adapted from the Colorado Library Research Service Return on Investment Calculator.

*Your personal return on investment is based on your responses and the typical annual tax contribution for a property owner in Branch County, Michigan. You see a returned value of $ for every one dollar invested.