Bylaws of the Ashley Public Library District
Ratified 4.24.12
Amended 5.29.12
Amended 6.26.12
Amended 7.28.20
INDEX
Purpose
Establishment
Governance
Meetings
Regular Meetings
Special Meetings
Annual Meetings
Quorum
Absences
Vacancies
Board of Library Trustees
Responsibility
Procedure for Meetings
Compensation
Education
Officers and Elections
Signing of Checks
Standing and Special Committees
Finance Committee
Personnel Committee
Policy Committee
Building and Grounds Committee
Technology Committee
Marketing Committee
Development Committee
Order of Business
Parliamentary Procedure
New Trustees
Duties of Library Director
Amendments
Copyright and Copying
Administrative Records
General Records
Personnel Records
Confidential Records of the Board
These rules are supplementary to the provisions of the statutes of the State of Illinois as they relate to the procedures of Boards of Library Trustees, including but not limited to 75 ILCS 5/1.
Article I. Purpose
Section 1.01 Establishment
The Ashley Public Library District was established 11/05/02.
Section 1.02 Governance
The Board of Library Trustees shall be responsible for the provision of library services in the Ashley Public Library District and shall author, implement and publish governing policies.
Article II. Meetings
Section 2.01 Regular Meetings
The regular meeting of the Board of Library Trustees of the Ashley Public Library District shall be on the last Tuesday of each month. The meeting shall be at the library at 6:00 p.m. The meetings shall be open to the public and noticed in advance. At the beginning of each fiscal year the Board shall specify regular meeting dates and times. The secretary of the Board shall then post the schedule of meetings in the library. All notices shall have the dates, times and places of such meetings.
Section 2.02 Special Meetings
Special meetings shall be held at any time when called by the president or secretary or by any three trustees of the Board, provided that notice with the agenda of the special meeting is given at least 48 hours in advance, except in the case of an emergency, to the Board members and to any news medium which has filed an annual request for notice under the Open Meetings Act (5 ILCS 120 et seq.); no business except that stated in the notice and agenda shall be transacted. Notice and agenda shall be posted 48 hours in advance on the front door of the library except in the case of an emergency.
Section 2.03 Annual Meetings
An annual meeting shall be held in June for the purpose of hearing the annual reports of the Library Director and committees. The report should include a summary of the year’s work with detailed account of the receipts and expenditures, a budget for the following year, and other information according to statute (75 ILCS 5/4-10). A copy of this report shall be forwarded to the Illinois State Library in accordance with the law. A copy should also be on file in the library.
Section 2.04 Quorum
A quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting shall consist of four Board members.
Section 2.05 Absences
Trustees having scheduled vacation time or who will miss a Board Meeting due to unavoidable scheduling conflicts should advise the board President or the Library Director as soon as possible. Trustees who miss four consecutive meetings without prior notification will be asked to resign from the Board.
Section 2.06 Vacancies
Vacancies in the office of Library Trustee shall be declared by the Board and filled by the Board in accordance with applicable law.
Article III. Board of Library Trustees
Section 3.01 Responsibility
The Board of Library Trustees of the Ashley Public Library District is charged with the responsibility of the governance of the library. The Board will hire a skilled Library Director who will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the library. The Board will meet at least once per month. These meetings will be open to the public and noticed in advance.
Section 3.02 Procedures for Meetings
Any Board member wishing to have an item placed on the agenda will notify the Library Director 5 days prior to the meeting to have the item placed. Any Board member who is unable to attend a meeting will notify the library to indicate that he or she will be absent. Due to the fact that quorum is required for each meeting, this notification should be placed as far in advance as possible.
Section 3.03 Compensation
Board members are not to be compensated pursuant to statute but will be reimbursed for necessary and related expenses as trustees. Board members are not exempt from late fees, fines, or other user fees.
Section 3.04 Education
To be effective, Board members should attend all meetings, read materials presented for review, and attend an occasional Library System (or other library-related) workshop, seminar, or meeting. The Library Director will make the dates of these workshops known to the board in a timely manner. It is the goal of the Board of Library Trustees to have each member attend a minimum of one Library System (or other library-related) workshop, seminar, or meeting during each calendar year. Board members using their own vehicle will be reimbursed at the rate allowed by the Internal Revenue Service for travel to and from any Library System (or other library-related) workshop, seminar, or meeting.
Section 3.05 Officers and Elections
The officers of the Board shall be a president, a vice-president, a secretary, and a treasurer. Those officers shall be elected by a ballot vote for 2-year terms at the regular meeting in the month of May concurrent with the public election years. The president shall not serve more than 1 consecutive term unless by unanimous consent of the board. In the event of a resignation from an office, an election to fill the unexpired term of that office will be conducted by a ballot vote at the next regular meeting.
- President
The President shall preside at all Board meetings, appoint all standing and special committees, serve as ex-officio member of all committees and perform all other such duties as may be assigned by the Board. The President shall be the spokesperson for the board of Library Trustees in all advisory, or disciplinary, action directed to the staff.
- Vice-President
The Vice-President, in the absence of the President, shall assume all duties of the President.
- Secretary
The Secretary or his/her designee shall keep the minutes of all Board meetings, record attendance, and record a roll call on all votes (except when a ballot vote is taken). The Secretary shall perform all other such clerical duties as may be assigned by the Board.
- Treasurer
The Treasurer is authorized by the Board to sign the warrants of bills to be paid, shall supervise the drawing up of checks, and shall serve on the finance committee. The Treasurer shall keep all financial records of the Board. The normal depository of all financial records shall be the library. The Treasurer shall have charge of the library funds and income and report at each meeting the state of the funds. In the absence of the Treasurer or when he or she is unable to serve, the President or Vice-President may perform the duties of the Treasurer. The Treasurer shall be bonded in the amount to be approved by the Board and according to the requirement of statute. The Treasurer is authorized to pay salaries and insurance bills as they come due.
Section 3.06 Signing of Checks
Checks shall be signed by the Treasurer, President or Vice-President. One signature is required unless otherwise determined by the Board of Trustees.
Article IV. Standing and special Committees
The standing committees shall be appointed biennially in the month of June concurrent with the public election years and shall consist of at least three members including the Library Director. The President shall appoint a chairperson for each committee. Special committees may be appointed by the President to present reports or recommendations to the Board and shall serve until the completion of the work for which they were appointed. The standing committees shall be the finance committee, the personnel committee, the policy committee, the building and grounds committee, the technology committee, the marketing committee, and the development committee. The library shall be the depository of all committee reports.
Section 4.01 Finance Committee
The finance committee shall be comprised of at least two members of the Board of Library Trustees one of whom must be the Treasurer, and the Library Director. The finance committee’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to, drafting a Budget and Appropriations Resolution for the approval of the full board, drafting a Levy for the approval of the full Board, drafting a working budget for the approval of the full Board, monitoring the investments of the library, and implementing the library’s investment policy.
Section 4.02 Personnel Committee
- Primary Responsibilities
The personnel committee shall be comprised of at least two members of the board of Library Trustees one of whom must be the President, and the Library Director. The Personnel committee’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to, preparation of the annual review of the Library Director for discussion among the full Board prior to the formal review, assisting the Library Director in the preparation of his or her annual statement of goals and objectives for the coming year, annually reviewing and recommending changes to personnel policies, and assuming a leadership role in the resolution of any personnel conflict. The Library Director is responsible for the annual review of all other employees of the library.
- Special Responsibility: Director Search
When the position of Library Director falls vacant, the Board shall immediately select an acting Library Director for the interim and charge the personnel committee to conduct a search for a new Library Director. Applications for the position of Library Director shall be filed at the library and available to all Board members. While the full board actually hires the library director, the personnel committee may recruit, screen, interview applicants, and make a recommendation concerning top candidates. The entire Board will interview finalists. Five votes shall be required for the Board to hire a Library Director.
Section 4.03 Policy Committee
The policy committee shall be comprised of at least two members of the Board of Library Trustees and the Library Director. The primary responsibility of the policy committee is to develop Library Policy. This policy shall include the division of responsibility between the Board and staff, a Library Material Selection Policy, and shall adhere to the “Library Bill of Rights” and “Freedom to Read” statements of the American Library Association. The committee shall determine the library regulations governing the use of the library and review sections of existing policy in a systematic fashion to insure that all policy is reviewed at an interval not to exceed 3 years. As a result of such policy reviews, the policy committee will make recommendations regarding additions or changes to existing policy as well as deleting policies that are no longer appropriate or of value. The entire Library Policy must be approved by the vote of the Board and made readily available to the public.
Section 4.04 Building and Grounds Committee
The Building and grounds committee shall be comprised of at least two members of the Board of Library Trustees and the library Director. The building and grounds committee’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to, planning for and monitoring the continual development of the entire site, conducting an annual inspection of the library’s physical facility to identify areas which are in need of repair, and making recommendation to the full board regarding any and all repairs which are deemed necessary either as a result of the annual inspection, or throughout the year as the need arises.
Section 4.05 Technology Committee
The technology committee shall be comprised of at least two members of the Board of Library Trustees and the Library Director. The technology committee’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to, conducting an annual assessment of the technology utilized by the library in order to determine which technology is no longer needed, which technology needs to be upgraded, and which technology needs to be added; and, based on this assessment, developing the library’s technology plan for the approval of the full board.
Section 4.06 Marketing Committee
The marketing committee shall be comprised of at least two members of the Board of Library Trustees and the Library Director. The marketing committee’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the development, implementation and evaluation of a plan to market the library’s services and programs to the residents of Ashley Public Library District and to the community at large.
Section 4.07 Development Committee
The development committee shall be comprised of at least two members of the Board of Library Trustees and the Library Director. The development committee’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to, preparation of the annual review of the Board of Library Trustees for discussion among the full Board, nominating the officers of the Board, designing an ongoing education plan for the library Trustees, and fielding candidates for the Library Board in anticipation of the biennial consolidated election.
Article V. Order of Business
The following Order of Business shall be followed at regular meetings.
Call to order
Roll call, recording both present and absent members
Approval of Minutes as received or corrected
Financial report, approval of bills payable
Correspondence
Library Director’s Report
Committee Reports
Old Business
New Business
Personnel
Discussion
Closed Session
Act On Closed Session Meeting
Adjournment
Article VI. Parliamentary Procedure
Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised, 1990 Edition shall govern the parliamentary procedure of the Board, unless otherwise specified in the Bylaw.
Article VII. New Trustees
The Library Director and a current trustee appointed by the President shall meet with new trustees to examine the property and review services and shall present to new trustees a packet that includes the Library Policy and other procedural material, a list of trustees and committees, minutes and financial reports for the previous 12 months, and pertinent information.
Article VIII. Duties of the Library Director
The Library Director shall administer the policies adopted by this Board. Among duties and responsibilities of the director shall be that of hiring personnel, directing, supervising and disciplining of all staff members, monthly and annual reports as required by the Board, and recommending such policy and procedure as will promote the efficiency and service of the library.
Article IX. Amendments
Amendments to these Bylaws, the Library policy, or any other policy or procedural document may be proposed at any regular meeting of the Board and will become effective if and as adopted by a majority of those members present providing they represent a quorum.
Article X. Copyright and Copying
The Library may copy for its own collection material that has been lost or deteriorated only if such material is not available at a fair cost. It will post prominently all required notices regarding the copying of any materials in the library.
Article XI. Administrative Records
Section 11.01 General Records
Administrative records of the library shall be kept in the library and shall be available to the general public upon request. These shall include the monthly and annual reports of the library, all financial reports, minutes of the public Board meetings and actions and other such items as the board or Library director shall file there.
Section 11.02 Personnel Records
Staff personnel records are confidential and shall be kept in a secure place; and only the Library Director or any person authorized by the Library Director shall have access to these records.
Section 11.03 Confidential Records of the Board
Confidential records of the Board, such as personnel records concerning the Library Director, shall be kept in the library and only members of the Board shall have access to these records.
