Anyone living in the West Branch School District will be eligible for a West Branch Public Library card. Any patron of a participating Open Access library in the State of Iowa may also make use of the West Branch Public Library collection. Service to eligible patrons will not be denied or abridged because of religious, social, racial, or political affiliation, or because of the age, sex, or physical capability of the patron.

Registration

To obtain a local library card, a prospective patron must complete a registration card, and provide proof of ID and local residence. The library staff reserves the right to refuse service to those without adequate identification. Children under the age of 14 must have a parent or legal guardian sign the registration card.

Materials Check Out

A patron must provide a valid library card number or patron name which can be cross-referenced with library records. Only persons listed on the account will be allowed to check out. The patron assumes the responsibility for the care and return of library materials in accord with established policies. At the discretion of the library staff, a patron may be refused additional materials if it is known that they have not returned overdue items or have an outstanding fine balance of more than $6.00.

Loan Periods

Printed material: Printed material has a checkout period three weeks. All loans of printed materials may be renewed for one additional period unless a Reserved Checkout List exists for a given printed material. The library reserves the right to require an item to be physically present in the library for second and subsequent renewals. All items may be renewed by telephone or email unless required in the library. Special arrangements may be made with local school faculty or administration to permit longer term use of specified library materials for support of educational programs.

Videos: Both VHS tapes and DVDs have a loan period of one week. Rules and restrictions follow that of printed material.

Loan Limitations

• Books: 25 items may be loaned for a three week period.
  
• Newspapers: May be checked out for two days, except current issue.
  
• Audio books: Five items may be loaned for a three week period.
  
• Magazines: Five items may be loaned for a three week period.
  
• Pamphlets: Five items may be loaned for a three week period.
  
• Interlibrary Loans: Limit of two requests per patron per visit.
  
• Videos and DVDs: Five items may be loaned for a ONE week period.
  
• Music CDs: Five items may be loaned for a TWO week period.
  
• Reference Materials: MAY NOT BE LOANED. Staff will offer to photocopy up to six pages free of charge.

Collection Access

In accord with the American Library Association interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights (June 30, 1972) the West Branch Public Library shall afford minors access to all collections.

Confidentiality

All circulation records and other records identifying the names of library users are confidential in nature.

Overdue Items and Lost Items

Fines are an incentive to bring materials back in a timely manner so others can have access to these materials. The processing of overdue materials is costly in staff hours and other resources. Because a portion of library funding is based on circulation, returning materials late may also decrease financial resources for the library. Failure to return items is considered theft of city property according to the State of Iowa. The library assesses fines equally. Failure to pay fines may result in refusal of library services including internet access.

Overdue Charges

• Computer software, videos and DVD's will be assessed a $1.00 per day, per item overdue fine with a maximum fine of $10.00 per video if returned.
  
  
• Music CDs will be assessed a 25¢ per day overdue fine with a maximum fine of $10.00 per CD.
  
  
• All other materials shall be assessed a 10¢ per day overdue fine with a maximum fine of $4.00 if returned.

All fines begin the day after the due date. Fines may also include postage and telephone costs when these charges exceed routine limits for patron notification.

Overdue Notification

Patrons will be notified by telephone or mail within one month of the due date that materials are overdue. Notification of overdue videos will be made by phone the week following the due date. Notification will continue on a monthly basis. In accordance with Iowa State Law, following a 3 month period of notification, the materials will be considered to be permanently overdue. The patron of record will be billed for the full replacement cost of the item. In the event a patron fails to respond to overdue notification made via mail or telephone within a reasonable amount of time, the director may choose to consider the overdue item stolen and proceed with the matter as specified by Iowa State Law.

Lost or Destroyed Item Charge

The patron of record will be billed for the current replacement cost of the item as listed in Books in Print. If the item is not listed, the charge may be estimated by the librarian, based upon the average cost of a current item similar to the one lost, or based upon the value of the lost item to the collection.

Revised 09/05