By-Laws of the Board of Trustees of Louisville Public Library

THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LOUISVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY BY-LAWS

Effective January 1, 1996

Article I: Name

This organization shall be called “The Board of Trustees of the Louisville Public Library” existing by virtue of the Laws of the State of Ohio.

Article II: Membership

Section 1.
The Board shall consist of seven (7) members appointed by the Louisville School Board.

Section 2.
The term of membership shall commence on January 1, and shall be seven years in a single term. A member may not be re-appointed to a second term except after a lapse of two (2) years. Members who have been appointed to fill an un-expired term may be nominated for the next full term.

Section 3.
Members will be guided in the performance of their duties during their term by the most recent issue of the “Ohio Public Library Trustees’ Handbook”.

Section 4.
A member shall be terminated after missing two (2) consecutive meetings, or a total of three (3) meetings in any one-year. Absences may be excused by a vote of the Board.

Section 5.
Vacancies on the Board shall be subject to public notice, with sufficient opportunity for interested citizens to request membership.

Article III: Officers

Section 1.
The officers shall be a president, a vice president, and a secretary, elected from among the appointed trustees at the annual organizational meeting of the Board.

Section 2.
A nominating committee shall be appointed by the president at the October meeting who shall present a slate of candidates for election to office at the annual organizational meeting. Additional nominations may be made from the floor.

Section 3.
Officers shall serve a term of one year from the annual organizational meeting at which they are elected and until their successors are duly elected.

Section 4.
The president shall preside at all meetings of the Board, authorize calls for any special meetings, appoint all committees, execute all documents authorized by the Board, serve as ex-officio voting member of all committees, and generally perform all duties associated with that office.

Section 5.
The vice president, in the event of the absence or disability of the president, or of a vacancy in that office, shall assume and perform the duties and functions of the president.

Section 6.
The secretary shall be responsible for keeping a true and accurate record of all meetings of the Board, issuing notice of all special meetings, and performing such other duties as are generally associated with that office.

Section 7.
Vacancies in offices, other than that of the president, shall be filled by nomination and vote of the Board at a regular meeting.

Article IV: Meetings

Section 1.
The regular meetings shall be held each month, the date and hour to be set by the Board at its annual organizational meeting.

Section 2.
The annual organizational meeting, which shall be held for the purpose of the election of officers and the adoption of the annual report, shall be held prior to January 15, each year.

Section 3.
The order of business for regular meetings shall include, but not be limited to, the following items, which shall be listed on an agenda and be covered in the order of the agenda:

A.Call to Order; Roll Call, quorum determination.
B.Disposition of minutes of the previous regular meeting and any intervening special meetings.
C.Public presentation to, or discussion with, the Board.
D.Report of the Clerk/Treasurer.
E.Report of the Library Director.
F.Unfinished business.
G.Report of committees.
H.New business.
I.Adjournment.

Section 4.
Special meetings may be called by the secretary, at the direction of the president, or at the request of four (4) members, for the transaction of business as stated in the call.

Section 5.
A quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting shall consist of four (4) members of the Board present in person.

Section 6.
Minutes of the previous meeting and the agenda for the next meeting shall be mailed to members five (5) days prior to the meeting.

Section 7.
Proceedings of all meetings shall be governed by Robert’s Rules of Order.

Section 8.
Any person, group, or delegation wishing to address the Library Board of Trustees must contact the Library Director at least seven (7) days prior to the regularly scheduled meeting and indicate the topic to be discussed. A representative of a group, after giving name and address, may be allowed five (5) minutes to address the Board. (11/2002) amended.

Article V: Committees

Section 1.
The following Standing Committees shall be appointed by the President at the annual organizational meeting, with two (2) members serving on each, who shall be guided by the appropriate sections of the Ohio Public Library Trustees’ Handbook.

A.Property – which shall include concern for both maintenance of the buildings and equipment and improvements thereto.
B.Finance – which shall include the areas of budget, finance, and planning.
C.Personnel – which shall include areas of Personnel, Policy, and Public Relations.

Section 2.
The president shall appoint special committees of one or more members each for such specific purposes as the business of the Board may require from time to time. Special committees shall be considered to be discharged upon the completion of the purpose for which they were appointed and after final reports are made to the Board.

Section 3.
All committees shall make a progress report of each of its meetings to the Board.

Section 4.
No committee will have other than advisory powers unless, by suitable action of the Board, it is granted specific power to act.

Article VI: Library Director and Staff

Section 1.
The Board shall appoint a qualified library director who shall be the executive and administrative officer of the library on behalf of the Board and under its review and direction. The director shall recommend to the Board the appointment and specific duties of other employees. The director shall be held responsible for the proper direction and supervision of the staff, for the care and maintenance of the library property. Also, for the adequate and proper selection of books and other materials in keeping with the stated policy of the Board, for the efficiency of library service to the public, and for its financial operation within the limits of the budgeted appropriation. In the case of part-time or temporary employees, the director shall have interim authority

To appoint, with prior approval of the Board, provided that any such appointment shall be reported to the Board at its next regular meeting, for the approval by the Board.

Section 2.
The Board shall select a Clerk/Treasurer from among those whose applications have been reviewed by the Director and the Personnel committee and affix the compensation thereof. The Clerk/Treasurer must execute a bond in an amount approved by the Board. The Ohio Revised Code (ORC), describes the duties of the Clerk/Treasurer shall keep minutes of all Board meetings, and other duties as may be assigned by the Board.

Section 3.
The director and staff shall be governed in the discharge of their assigned duties by the policies adopted by the Board.

Article VII: General

Section 1.
An affirmative vote of the majority of all members of the Board present at the time shall be necessary to approve any action before the Board. The president shall vote upon and may move or second a proposal before the Board.

Section 2.
The by-laws may be amended by a 2/3 majority (5), vote of all members of the Board provided written notice of the proposed amendment shall have been mailed to all members at least ten (10) days prior to the meeting at which such action is proposed to be taken.

Section 3.
Any rule or resolution of the Board, whether contained in these by-laws or otherwise, may be suspended temporarily in connection with business at hand. But, such suspension, to be valid, may be taken only at a meeting at which 2/3 (5) of the members of the board are present and 2/3 of those present shall so approve.

Article VIII: Code of Ethics

Section 1.
The members of the Board of Trustees shall follow the Statement of Ethics for Library Trustees, endorsed by the Board of Directors of the American Library Trustee Association and the Public Library Association in July 1985.

• Trustees must promote the highest level of library service while observing ethical standards.
• Trustees must avoid situations in which personal interests might be served or financial benefits gained at the expense of the library users, colleagues, or the institution.
• It is incumbent upon any trustee to disqualify himself/herself immediately whenever the appearance of a conflict of interest exists. Board of Trustees By-Laws (continued)
• Trustees must distinguish clearly in their actions and statements between their personal philosophies and attitudes and those of the institution.
• A trustee must respect the confidential nature of library business while being aware of and in compliance with that particular state’s freedom of information act.
• Trustees must be prepared to support to the fullest the efforts of librarians in resisting censorship of library materials by groups or individuals.
• Trustees who accept appointment to a library board are expected to perform the duties and responsibilities of a trustee.

Article IX: 501(c)(3) Standing

Section 1.
We agree that the majority of the Board of Trustees will be nonsalaried and will not be related to salaried personnel or to parties providing services. In addition, the salaried individuals cannot vote on their own compensation and that compensation decisions will be made by the Board. (Adopted July 8, 2003)

Section 2.
The Louisville Public Library is organized exclusively for charitable, religious, educational, and scientific purposes, including, for such purposes, the making of distributions to organizations that qualify as exempt organizations under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code. (Adopted July 22, 2003).

Section 3.
No part of the net earnings of the organization shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that the organization shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes set forth in the purpose clause hereof. No substantial part of the activities of the organization shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the organization shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office. Notwithstanding any other provision of this document, the organization shall not carry on any other activities not permitted to be carried on (a) by an organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or (b) by an organization, contributions to which are deductible under section 170(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code. (Adopted July 22, 2003)

Section 4.
Upon the dissolution of the organization, assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose. Any such assets not disposed of shall be disposed of by the Court of Common Pleas of the county in which the principal office of the organization is then located, exclusively for such purposes or to such organization or organizations, as said Court shall determine, which are organized and operated exclusively for such purposes. (Adopted July 22, 2003)

ADDENDUM TO BOARD BY-LAWS

COLLECTION AND GIFT MATERIALS DISPOSAL POLICY
(Adopted 7/01)

Section 1:
The Board of Trustees finds it is not in the best interest of the library or the general public to discard surplus materials as refuse. It is neither cost effective nor a suitable use of staff time to use paid library personnel to sort and price discarded materials and/or conduct sales of those materials, and the public’s interest is best served by selling discarded materials to the general public through community based sales conducted by local Friends of the Library organization rather than attempting to sell those materials in any other manner.

Section 2:
he Board of Trustees further finds the ability of the Friends of the Library organization to generate revenues from the sale of surplus library materials is due primarily to the volunteer services of its members and community participants, and the Friends of the Library organization provides a valuable service to the library and to the community by facilitating the circulation of surplus materials to the general public, encouraging participation in library activities and education in general, and providing financial support to the library.

Section 3:
The Board of Trustees hereby designates the Friends of the Louisville Public Library as the recipients of the library’s surplus books and other materials to be sold by the Friends at periodic sales open to the general public. The surplus materials will be the property of the Friends when sorted and marked for sale, and the proceeds from the sale of those materials shall not be subject to any limitations imposed by the Board.

Section 4:
The Board hereby delegates the responsibility for selection and removal of surplus materials to the Library Director or the director’s designees. The director or designees are further directed to separate out items that appear to be of particular value, such that the proceeds the library could reasonably expect to obtain from its own sale of these items would exceed the overall costs of processing said sale. The Board expects that the transfer of surplus materials will involve some staff time. The director will make reasonable efforts to minimize such staff time. It is also understood that the surplus materials will be stored on library property pending sale. The Friends may conduct sales on library property at the director’s discretion so long as the director reasonably determines said sales will not interfere with library operations. The Board finds the use of library property in this limited manner is a necessary component of the above- stated method of disposing of surplus materials, and is an appropriate use of library resources.