VOORHEESVILLE — The Voorheesville Public Library’s director says the board is struggling to balance a continuation services while being forced to cut costs.

The library board has proposed a $1,100,119 budget for 2012-13, up slightly from the $1,074,860 budget in 2011-12. The proposed budget stays under the state-set tax levy cap. Gail Sacco, the director, said the state comptroller authorized a tax cap of 2.82 percent and Voorheesville will squeak by just under that, at 2.77 percent.

The library follows school district boundaries, lying mostly in New Scotland, but also partly in Guilderland and Berne.

The estimated tax rates, per every $1,000 of assessed valuation, are: $1.26 for New Scotland residents, up four cents; $1.39 for Guilderland residents, up four cents; and $1.91 for Berne residents, up five cents.

“A family whose home is valued at $200,000 will see an increase in library tax of $8 annually — less than the cost of a book or a movie,” wrote Sacco and board President Dick Ramsey in the library’s budget message, which is available online.

District residents will vote on the budget on May 15; at the same time, they will elect a library trustee.

State aid has gone down for the first time in years, according to Sacco, and revenues from interest payments have plummeted.

The estimated interest revenue for 2012-13 is $500, down $2,800 from 2011-12.

“We had been hopeful about the interest, but for the last couple of years it hasn’t met our expectations, and the federal government has indicated that interest rates will remain low for the next three years,” said Sacco. The library, she said, can invest only in treasury notes and certificates of deposit, and, right now, interest rates are down to roughly 1.09 percent.

Other revenues, from desk receipts, donations and grants, are estimated to remain the same. The budget will also draw the same amount — $10,000 — from its fund balance as it did this year.

The estimated cost of library materials is $95,000, up from $93,000 last year. Sacco said this is largely due to the library’s plan to purchase more electronic books.

“We plan to purchase the devices and circulate them with books already loaded onto them,” said Sacco.

The e-books will be loaded with material by genre — one will contain general and classic fiction, another will have thrillers and mysteries, and there will be readers for romance, fantasy and science fiction, general non-fiction and biographies, and even an e-book for children. The books will be available to patrons for three weeks at a time.

The cost for building repairs is estimated to be down by $4,200 from 2011-12. Sacco explained this is due to a grant last year from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, which provided funding to replace the ballasts in the library’s lights to make it more efficient. The library had to match the grant with $8,000, but the work has been done, eliminating that cost for next year, she said.

Employee benefits are the biggest jump in library expenditures; retirement contributions are estimated to increase from $60,000 to $77,000, which Sacco called “a huge number amount” for such a small budget.

The library employs 20 people who work the equivalent of 12 full-time jobs. Most of the employees live within driving distance of the library, Sacco said.

“I like to think of us as a local economic benefactor; taxes come in from the people who live here, and we put it right back out into the community,” said Sacco. Salaries and benefits make up the largest portion of the budget, at $820,819, up from $792,360 this year.

Contractual expenses are estimated to go up from $33,000 to $40,500, which Sacco attributed to increases in auditing, payroll, and additional hours for technology.

Debt interest costs will decrease, from $8,000 last year to zero in 2012-13. The library purchased a piece of nearby land five years ago, and has finished paying it off, so there will be no more debt interest in the following year.

An organization called Friends of the Library helps to raise funds to supplement the regular budget, and also supports community library programs.

Sacco said the library is “extremely grateful” for the help from Friends of the Library, which has increased its contribution toward the summer reading program by about $1,300.

“We have a huge children’s summer reading program, for all age groups, with special events — it is almost like a summer camp,” said Sacco. The program runs for three to four days per week in the summer, and uses teen volunteers.

The library also has adult fiction and non-fiction groups, which are both “pretty active,” she said.

“There are a lot of ways people can connect to the library, and we’re working very hard to cut costs, but still be available to the community,” concluded Sacco. “The library offers a lot of different ways to get at information, for all different age groups.”