Los Angeles County Public Library Administrative Services

Over 20 years ago, California voters approved a special tax to support funding for the Los Angeles County Library system. Harris experts helped with the formation of this tax and have supported its administration ever since. 

This is essential work, given that the County is home to 87 libraries serving 3.4 million residents. The library special tax replaced the old benefit charge—and requires reams of research and auditing from Harris to maintain compliance and keep the dollars flowing.

Core Elements

Each year, the library special tax is levied on more than 400,000 parcels and generates over $12 million in revenues for library services. Harris’ extensive tax administration services for the County include:

• Receiving and processing data for more than 2.5 million parcels
• Compiling the correct parcel numbers to update and maintain the special tax database with each parcel’s appropriate service area designation
• Applying the special tax for each parcel meeting the requirements approved by voters
• Updating the latest Assessor's parcel information into the special tax database
• Submitting the special tax amounts to the County Auditor Controller for inclusion on property tax bills
• Providing summary information to the Library regarding what was accepted and levied by the County
• Updating an online website for the Library to retrieve property information and view current and historical special tax charges

Beyond the Blueprints

Checking the boxes is not enough. To ensure the accuracy of the vital tax data, Harris uses geographic information system, or GIS, data to confirm tax rate areas and that all parcels within the Library's defined service areas are included.