Alabama Administrative Code › Title 520 - ALABAMA PUBLIC LIBRARY SERVICE › Chapter 520-2-3 - PLANNING GUIDELINES FOR PUBLIC LIBRARY SERVICE › Section 520-2-3-.01 - Guidelines For Developing Or Revising Agreements To Establish Joint Libraries In Alabama

Current through Register Vol. 42, No. 9, June 28, 2024
(1)
Code of Ala. 1975
, §
								11-90-4,
			 allows joint libraries to be created and their governing boards to be
			 appointed. On February 11, 1980, the Alabama Attorney General released an
			 advisory opinion which stated the conditions under which a joint library could
			 act on behalf of its member libraries must be agreed on among the parties
			 through a written contract.
(2) New
			 or revised agreements to establish joint libraries under
Code of
			 Ala. 1975
, §
								11-90-4,
			 should be written and specific, capable of serving as the basis of a library
			 region, inclusive, representative, equitable, detailed, reviewed, and
			 renegotiated.
(a)
Written and
			 specific
:
Code of Ala. 1975
, §
									11-90-4,
			 which serves as the legal authority for joint libraries, provides that cities,
			 counties, and public libraries may "contract" to establish larger units of
			 service. As a verbal contract is subject to the vagaries of individual
			 recollections, it can never serve as the basis for the creation of a joint
			 library. A joint library should be created or revised through a written
			 contract drawn up by a competent attorney with the assistance of the Alabama
			 Public Library Service (APLS) and the Alabama Attorney General.
(b)
Capable of service as the
			 basis of a library region
: As APLS has the responsibility for
			 designating a joint library as regional, and thus eligible for federal funds
			 under the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), the agreement to create a
			 joint library should be developed in such a way as to enable the joint library
			 to qualify for regional status.
(c)
Inclusive
:
1. No
			 library board, or local government can be held to be bound to an agreement
			 which it has not ratified. As indicated in the Alabama Attorney General's
			 opinion of February 11, 1980, even the governmental body which created a public
			 library cannot act on that library's behalf without the approval of the
			 library's governing board.
2. The
			 agreement to create a joint library should have the approval of all the bodies
			 responsible for providing library service within the geographical area of the
			 joint library. In municipalities or counties where there is an existing library
			 board, the library board needs to be a partner to the agreement. In
			 municipalities or counties without a library board, the "power thus to contract
			 shall vest in the county commission of the county or the government body of the
			 municipality".
Code of Ala. 1975
, §
										11-90-4.
3. The need to be inclusive extends into the
			 future as a municipal or county library "created subsequent to the
			 establishment of a joint library would not be subject to the joint library
			 absent a contractual agreement to that effect". Alabama Attorney General's
			 Opinion of February 11, 1980, to Anthony W. Miele, APLS Director.
(d)
Representative
: The experience of decades of joint
			 library development within Alabama demonstrates that joint library
			 effectiveness is enhanced when all parties to the agreement creating a joint
			 library have voting representation on its governing board. It is understood
			 that the existence of a large number of member libraries and/or municipalities
			 and counties within a joint library's area will sometimes make direct, on-going
			 representation impossible. However, it is recommended that:
1. Where feasible, joint library boards
			 should have no more than five members.
2. New joint libraries with eleven (11) or
			 fewer parties to an agreement should have a representative from each party on
			 the joint library board. Where a local government has created a public library
			 to provide service within its jurisdiction, the local library board should
			 appoint the representative of the locality's library interest on the regional
			 board. It is recommended that, in no case, the number of board members be
			 allowed to exceed fifteen (15).
3.
			 New joint libraries with more than eleven (11) parties to an agreement should
			 develop a means to alternate representation from each of the signatory parties
			 on the joint library board. It should be noted that this recommendation is made
			 with the knowledge that the size of certain parties to a joint library
			 agreement, the strength of different collections, and the financial burden
			 borne by the different parties for the support of the joint library, could
			 mandate that these parties be accorded on-going or larger representation in its
			 governance. Such permanent or enlarged representation, and the reasons for it,
			 should be included as part of the agreement.
(e)
Equitable
: The
			 development of joint libraries both within and without Alabama demonstrated
			 that long-range success is dependent on the perception that the benefits and
			 burdens are distributed in an equitable manner. No joint library agreement
			 should be written where the legitimate interests of the population served,
			 member libraries, and city and county governments are not recognized and
			 addressed.
(f)
Detailed
: An agreement to establish a joint library
			 should detail as far as possible the benefits received and obligations incurred
			 by each party to the agreement.
(g)
Reviewed and renegotiated
: An agreement to establish a
			 joint library should include as part of its terms provision for periodic review
			 by the same signatory parties to determine if the joint library is functioning
			 as envisioned. It is recommended that such reviews take place every year but
			 not less than once every three years. Where a review demonstrates that the
			 agreement is in need of revision, it should be renegotiated by the parties
			 involved.