New state legislation will allow non-residents of library districts to get library cards for short periods of time instead of an annual card, and let local college students get cards at no charge.
The changes take effect July 1. The Warsaw Community Public Library Board of Trustees Monday afternoon approved policy changes reflecting the new legislation.
Joni Brookins, Warsaw Community Public Library assistant director, said, “The legislature changed the law as they like to do, and they are now allowing us to sell part-year cards again to non-residents. So we’re going to be issuing a three-month card so we can be quarterly.”
The non-resident fee, by law, states that the minimum fee that the board may set is the greater of either the library district’s operating fund expenditure per capita in the most recent year for which that information is available in the state library’s annual “Statistics of Indiana Libraries” or $25. In 2016, House Bill 1273 requires a library to pro-rate the cost of a library card that is valid for less than a year.
Based on the state law, Brookins said the library card fee is going up from $75 to $80 for a single annual card and $200 for a family card. The part-year card will be $20.
Also in HB 1273, Brookins said, “They are authorizing us to be able to issue a school non-resident card, like we do for the kids in the school district who are non-residents. We now are supposed to do it for our people who are attending college. Colleges located within our district, not just any college, not mail-order college or whatever.”
She said the colleges included would be Grace College, Trine, Ivy Tech and Indiana Tech.
Brookins said they will require a valid college I.D. to get that card.
“It all deals with non-residents,” she said before the board approved the library card issuance policy changes.
Administrative Assistant Robin Fosnaugh told the board that Director Ann Zydek’s job evaluation will be next month. Board members will have to get their evaluations of Zydek to board member Paulette Sauders by the end of June so she can compile them.
The board will meet in executive session to discuss Zydek’s performance at 4 p.m. July 11, with the regular meeting starting immediately following that.
