Chattanooga-Hamilton County Library, serving an area of 270,000 residents, has a collection of 1,100,000 books and periodicals; in addition, there are 14,000 CDs, records, cassettes and other audio materials, as well as 5,400 video items, such as DVDs and VHS tapes. Internet terminals are available for use by the general public.
Staffing consists of 92 employees, of whom 20 are fully accredited librarians, plus volunteers. The system comprises one central library and 4 branch libraries. Annual expenditures on the library collection total $750,000. Patrons make 600,000 visits annually, and check out materials 920,000 times. Twenty-one percent of all check-outs are children's materials.