Hi Amy,
Great questions! I did not think about the potential impact of tariffs on our resource budget much until just recently and truthfully, I'm not entirely sure how to plan for their impact on our resources budget.
My library did not budget for any tariffs or the elimination of the de minimus exemption when we submitted our budget request for the current year. I'm also unsure how tariffs might be applied to electronic books and serials yet. As a result, we don't have a real strategy outside of reducing spending overall to absorb any possible tariffs. I've heard some colleagues suggest planning for up to 15% on top of any expenditure, but I also know that some shipping services are charging additional processing fees that can vary widely.
I plan to start purchasing more books again after January 1 and my strategy at that time will probably center on paying closer attention to publisher locations and to lean on Amazon more so we know more about how much materials will cost up front. However, many of our academic publishers are based in Germany, Switzerland, and the UK, so I know we won't be able to fully circumvent tariffs forever.
I'll be curious to hear how other libraries are planning or coping!
Elizabeth
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Elizabeth Szkirpan
Collections & Discovery Specialist
Baker Library, Harvard Business School
She/Her/Hers
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Original Message:
Sent: Oct 07, 2025 08:55 AM
From: Amy Dittman
Subject: October Conundrum - Tariffs
Our library has encountered many shipments that are held at customs or with our couriers until associated duties are paid. Additionally, with the end of the de minimus exemption, many of our vendors are either indicating that they are unable to send us materials at all, or must do so using a pricier shipping service like DHL.
If anyone else is encountering these challenges, I am wondering:
- How is everyone budgeting for these changes?
- Have you found any effective work-arounds that save either staff time or collections funds?
Amy
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Amy Dittman
Chair CORE Creative Ideas in Technical Services Interest Group (CITSIG)
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