Libraries across the United States are cutting back on e-books, audiobooks and loan programs after the Trump administration suspended millions of dollars in federal grants as it tries to dissolve the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Federal judges have issued temporary orders to block the Trump administration from taking any further steps toward gutting the agency. But the unexpected slashing of grants has delivered a significant blow to many libraries, which are reshuffling budgets and looking at different ways to raise money.

Maine has laid off a fifth of its staff and temporarily closed its state library after not receiving the remainder of its annual funding. Libraries in Mississippi have indefinitely stopped offering a popular e-book service, and the South Dakota state library has suspended its interlibrary loan program.

By: Nadia Lathan May 18, 2025

Read the full story here AP NEWS

Author Profile

UB Center for Urban Studies

Latest entries

• Black Studies03/06/2026Black Studies in the Era of White Supremacy and Authoritarianism: A Conversation at Princeton
• Media02/19/2026Senate candidate James Talarico raises $2.5 million after Stephen Colbert interview controversy, campaign says
• Police Brutality02/13/2026Trump’s border czar says immigration crackdown in Minnesota will ‘conclude’
• Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor02/03/2026Building an Opposition to Survive the Trump Era