Recently Asked Questions (RAQs)

We got a question from a school library...

I was wondering about student privacy when substitutes are in the library. When I started here, subs were able to use the circulation desk to check out material. However, since September we have had one substitute who is also a parent looking up their children’s accounts. We also had another issue with a different substitute looking up material to see what students were checking out. When I found this out it made me uncomfortable and I am no longer allowing subs to circulate materials. I have had some pushback from subs about the sudden limitations. I was thinking that the information would be along the same lines as an adult volunteer. However, I did not know if subs had more privileges to access student accounts because they are district employees. I would like something in writing to reference if admin ever asks.

According to the RAQ: Using Emails from ILS Patron Database: “Although a member library contributes information to an ILS, unless system bylaws or policies say otherwise, that information belongs to the system, who is just as ethically and legally bound to protect the information as a member library.”

However, there was a question during a session at NYLA regarding system ownership of library records that seemed to contradict this.

If the system owns the ILS and therefore the library records, wouldn’t that mean that policies pertaining to accessing/creating/modifying/deleting records for the ILS should be governed by system policies that are also approved by each member library board?

I’m specifically thinking of such policies as Confidentiality of Library Records / Inquiries from Law Enforcement - where if the system owns the records then wouldn’t both these policies just be a system one? Also with having consistency for Library Card Applications. A patron can go to one of our libraries and have to show many forms of identification - but the same patron could see us at an outreach event and not even have to show their ID to get a card.

Is the library at risk if a teen patron volunteers to share contents of a cell phone?

An adult patron recently called the library and said that her 11-year-old daughter reported being filmed outside the library (parking lot or backyard). The child reported that two teen patrons had been using cell phones to film her. No staff witnessed this, but all of the juveniles involved were known to library staff. The two teens had returned inside the library at the time the call came in, and staff asked them if what was reported was true. Both denied the claims, and one asked to “prove” that it wasn't true by showing the contents of his cellphone video library. Do we put ourselves at risk by allowing a patron (juvenile or otherwise) to show us such content? We can see a variety of ways that this might expose us to risk, but we also understand the teen’s impulse to defend himself.

Additional questions that came up (but maybe too much for a single query): If patrons do film each other without consent on library property, is that a further risk for us? If we were to explicitly state that filming others while on library property is against policy, how could we safely enforce that policy?

I’m assuming the age requirement for youth cards varies widely even among NYS libraries, but what are the key determining legal factors which inform how libraries settle on an age range for this policy? I can think of three factors, and libraries likely conflate all of them together. I’d like to extrapolate the real legal concerns so that I can more clearly determine our own library’s circulation policies regarding permission for youth cards.

1. Is the signature to allow for “parent permission” to access the library? Are public libraries legally obligated to obtain parent permission before a child of a certain age accesses library materials or services? I’m assuming that the library would not be liable if, for example, staff allowed an 11-year-old without a library card to read any book they liked within the walls of the library. Does this apply to a child of any age? (I realize unaccompanied minors will eventually come into play). So, by extension, is granting an 11-year-old a library card without parent consent legally permissible?

2. Is the signature an acknowledgement of responsibility for the library materials on behalf of the child? Many library card applications prompt for this specifically, but according to NYS law, is a parent/guardian responsible for library materials checked out to a minor in their care regardless? (If a 15-year-old minor lost library materials or incurred fines or fees, would their parents still be legally responsible even without giving permission for the card?)

3. COPPA and the collection of PII (for online library card signup). Though not required as a non-profit, our library chooses to comply with this policy, requiring parent/guardian consent of online card signup for children 12 and under. Does this mean that a child aged 11 could still, within legal boundaries, apply for a library card in person without collecting consent?

For public libraries that must comply with Freedom of Information Law (FOIL), how does FOIL impact our organization's use of social media? What sort of social media records can be FOIL-ed and what are some best practices for using social media in regards to FOIL?