BORROWING PRIVILEGES

A patron must present a card in good standing to borrow materials. Any and all accounts linked to the patron may be reviewed to determine whether they are in good standing. A digital replica of the library card is also an appropriate form of identification for a patron to check out materials. If a library staff member questions the digital replica, staff have the right to ask the patron for a photo I.D. A patron’s card will be blocked, and no services may be obtained with it if the patron has 15 or more overdue items, or owes $10 or more in unpaid fines and/or fees. Outreach patrons will not be blocked until they have 50 or more items overdue.
Delinquent borrowers who have not reached these limits may still borrow materials; the system operator will be notified that the patron is delinquent. The number of overdue materials and/or amount of fines/fees that will result in a patron being “blocked” is calculated at the consortium level and not at the library level.
The staff client displays patrons in good standing in “green.” Patron accounts displayed in “orange” indicates there are fines or overdues and a “purple” display indicates that the patron has hit the fine or overdue threshold and is now blocked. Barred patrons display in “red.” “Turquoise” indicates that there is a message on the account. “Gray” indicates that the patron account is expired. “Black” indicates that the patron account is inactive.

CHECK-OUT

LOSS OF PRIVILEGES

A patron’s access to materials may be limited due to overdue materials or fines and fees. “Blocked” and “Barred” are the two limitations that may be attached to a patron’s record.

USER BLOCKED

If a patron’s record is blocked due to overdue materials or fines and fees, a PATRON EXCEEDS FINES message will appear upon attempting a checkout. Selected staff will have the authority to override fines and fees. One staff override per check-out session is required. The number of overdue materials and/or amount of fines and fees that will result in a patron being “blocked” is calculated at the consortium level and not at the library level. A patron’s record will remain blocked until the fines and fee balance on the account is less than $10.00. A patron’s card may be “blocked” if related group or family member cards are “blocked.”

USER BARRED

BARRED is a status that is manually set by library staff. It is Evergreen Indiana Library policy that only the library that barred the patron can unbar said patron. If a barred patron presents items for checkout at another library, he or she should be directed to contact the “barring” library to resolve his or her status and restore his or her privileges.

Each Library Director or designee shall decide the circumstances under which a patron may be barred. This status should be reserved for serious offenses, such as theft of or malicious damage to library materials.

FINES/FEES

To encourage the prompt return of materials, the Evergreen Indiana libraries have established a schedule of fines and fees. Overdue materials incur fines of 25¢ per day per item; equipment may incur fines of $5 per day per item. Patrons may pay all or a portion of the outstanding fees and fines on the library account. If patron chooses to use the online credit card payment option, the patron must pay all fines and fees owed on the account.

Evergreen Indiana grants a one-day grace period, so that materials returned one day after the due date will not accrue a fine. Once the one-day grace period has passed, fines will include the charge for the grace day. For example, an item which has a 25¢ a day fine that is returned three days after its due date will have a 75¢ fine due. There is a $10.00 fine cap per item or the cost of the item, whichever is less. Equipment has a fine cap of $225 or the cost of the item, whichever is less.

OVERDUE NOTICES

Overdue notices are sent as a courtesy from the Evergreen Indiana Libraries. Failure to receive notices does not exempt patrons from the responsibility for payment for library materials or overdue fines and fees.

Patrons who provide an email address will receive an email notice three days before their materials are due and an email notice on the day their materials are due.
Overdue notices are notices are generated for each library. The print notices are made available to the library via a unique URL. Each member library must access the URL and review the print notice PDF. The library should then mail the print notices. Print notices are not generated and mailed by the consortium.