What, if any, are the ramifications if a school district public library board of trustee member refuses to sign the code of ethics and/or the conflict of interest/whistleblower policy?
I am sure there is a very interesting set of facts, personal convictions, and conversations behind the stark facts presented in this question (there always is). But we’ll address just the stark facts.
We are a school district public library, and a governmental entity, considering crafting a policy relating to debts discharged in bankruptcy, if the library is named as a creditor.
Are replacement costs for library materials exempt from or subject to discharge of debt? Overdue fines?
Before we get to the nitty-gritty on this question (and we will), let’s reflect on why libraries charge fines and replacement costs in the first place:
We have two individuals in our community, within 500 feet on either side of the library, that have been identified as sex offenders on the NYS website. One comes to the library to take out materials. He is an adult and now living and working in the community, but still identified on the NYS website. He is listed at a higher level of offense.
When considering how to address concerns about registered sex offenders using the library, there are several factors that must be considered at once:
Factor 1: Civil rights
A recent article appeared in a local newspaper that was describing the local efforts of a group called Moms for Liberty to have certain books removed from school libraries because the group consider the titles to be inappropriate for school age children.
We have become aware that a recent law in New York shortened the statute of limitations to collect consumer debts. Does this affect our library’s ability to enforce and collect library fines?
Libraries likely do not have any statute of limitations for collecting overdue or replacement fines because the law does not consider library fines as “debts.” As such, any change to how long a “debt” may be collected does not matter for libraries. This privilege extends to third parties who collect fines on behalf of libraries. Let’s dive in deeper to help understand why.
We are looking to determine if there is a specific time frame for which email must be held. Can we designate in a policy that email will not be considered original documents - that all original documents must be in print format? AND if this is possible, how long then are we required to hold onto archived e-mail?
This has been a tough question to mull over! That is because the answer is superficially “yes,” but in reality: “no.”
How do we get to this disjointed conclusion? Schedule MI-1, as the member did, is a great place to start.
Is bonding recommended for small public library director?
I won't tease the readers here; generally,[1] the answer is "no."
There are three reasons for this:
Reason 1: a public library director, unlike a library system treasurer and other local "public officers" isn't required by law to carry a bond.
