MEETING MINUTES
MINUTES
BUFFALO AND ERIE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING
July 10, 2003
The meeting of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees of the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library was held on Thursday, July 10, 2003, in the Central Library pursuant to due notice to trustees. The following members were present: Daniel T. Roach, Chairman; Rebecca L. Mahoney, Vice-Chair; Phyllis A. Horton; Elaine M. Panty; Judith K. Summer; Robert J. Plache, Trustee Emeritus.
Mr. Roach called the roll and declared a quorum at 4:02 p.m.
Agenda Item B – Chapter-a-Day Continuation. Resolution 2003-36 requested authorization of funds to continue providing the Chapter-a-Day online book club service to patrons. Ms. Mahoney asked if miscellaneous accounts held by the Library Foundation might be applied to underwrite this subscription. Director Michael Mahaney indicated he would investigate the availability of Foundation funds for this purpose. Ms. Mahoney asked whether the daily installments of new titles could be linked to appropriate pages in the B&ECPL catalog so that patrons can identify library holdings and reserve copies of Chapter-a-Day selections. This will be explored. On motion by Ms. Mahoney and seconded by Ms. Horton, the resolution was adopted unanimously.
RESOLUTION #2003-36
WHEREAS, the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library continually seeks new and innovative ways to encourage reading in the community, and
WHEREAS, the online book club, Chapter-a-Day, delivers text from books to subscribers in daily emails, andWHEREAS, this service has been provided through B&ECPL’s web site since May 2001 with more than 1,100 current subscribers, and
WHEREAS, many libraries across the country similarly utilize Chapter-a-Day, and
WHEREAS, Chapter-a-Day is converting from a limited free service to a fee-based service (offering an expanded variety of clubs, including fiction, teen, audio, business, good news, romance, horror/science fiction, mystery and prepublication) as of July 17, 2003, and
WHEREAS, the service will be available to an unlimited number of B&ECPL patrons for an annual cost of $3,000 on a three-year term, subject to continued satisfactory performance, and
WHEREAS, the Library desires to continue to offer this valuable program, and
WHEREAS, sufficient unrestricted funds are available in the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library’s private funds held in trust by the Erie County Comptroller, now therefore be it
RESOLVED, that the Executive Committee, on behalf of the Board of Trustees of the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library, authorizes the Director to enter into a purchase agreement with dearreader.com at an annual cost of $3,000 for a three-year term, subject to termination should continued satisfactory performance not be maintained, or a single-year term at $3,300, and be it further
RESOLVED, that the Executive Committee, on behalf of the Board of Trustees of the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library, approves the expenditure of private funds to continue the Chapter-a-Day online book club as outlined above.
Agenda Item C - Report of the Director. Mr. Mahaney provided an update on the recent Supreme Court decision, overturning the lower court ruling that declared the mandatory filtering provisions of the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) unconstitutional. Staff committees have been reactivated to explore the latest developments from technical, economic and legal perspectives, so they can supply information the Board will require in considering this sensitive and complex matter. The Board’s standing Policy Committee may be expanded to include trustees who prepared recommendations for the Board in 2002. The Director indicated there appears to be no legal or financial urgency to modify the current policy, which has been functioning effectively throughout the County for the past year. He hopes that staff can provide necessary information for the Board to begin its deliberations by September. Many details (including specific instructions and timetables from the Federal Communications Commission) are not available at this time. Deputy Director Kenneth Stone stated the FCC has suggested that libraries will be granted a reasonable timeframe for compliance before any Federal funds are at risk.
The Director addressed ongoing investigations into the necessity and cost of employment practice insurance and director’s and officer’s insurance coverage for the B&ECPL (trustees and staff) and contract libraries (trustees and staff). Recent communication and meetings with staff of the County Attorney’s and Labor Relations Offices have emphasized the need for a clearer understanding of what the County provides and where the B&ECPL might be exposed to risk. Discussions and research continue. The Board will be advised when more information has been gathered. The Director, CFO Stone and B&ECPL legal counsel Patrick Martin met with Erie County attorneys Andrew Isenberg and Brian White and County insurance consultant Michael Kerwin to initiate a process to identify areas of possible concern and clarify the County’s role in supporting B&ECPL liability and damage/loss claims.
Last week, a memorandum from the County Executive’s Office advised the Director that a member of the B&ECPL staff (Nancy Hammond, Supervising Accountant in the Business Office) was to report for full-time reassignment to the Erie County Budget Office to assist in the implementation of the County’s new SAP/ERP financial management system. The Director reminded County officials that: “library trustees [have] exclusive power and duty to administer [the] library and its personnel…” and the Library’s Bylaws delegate to the Director: “general control and direction of the employees, business affairs and administration of the Library.” It is to the Library’s advantage to participate and influence the deployment of this complex system, so CFO Stone, Mrs. Hammond and the County Budget Office have reached agreement regarding the terms of B&ECPL involvement, which will remain at the discretion of the Library and not the Erie County Budget Office.
Deputy Director Stone reported that the County Budget Office has re-appropriated $76,000 of Erie County capital funds from unexpended balances in the Library’s 2001 equipment lines to use for other County purposes. The County has made verbal assurances that these funds will be restored, and the Library will formally request that restoration. There is no legal basis on which the Library can object to this temporary re-appropriation of County capital funds.
The Director reported on the status of the two pending branch library construction projects in the City of Buffalo (North Jefferson and South Buffalo).
Earlier today, the Director and Deputy Director Ruth Collins attended a session of the Erie County Legislature where a resolution was introduced by Legislator Lynn Marinelli to honor B&ECPL employee Doreen Woods on her inclusion in the list of Library Journal’s “Movers and Shakers” in U.S. and Canadian libraries. Ms. Woods earned this distinction through her involvement in the Urban Libraries Council’s Executive Leadership Institute and her work on the B&ECPL Process Improvement Project (PIP). A formal presentation will be scheduled in September.
Deputy Director Collins described the status of reorganization of subject departments and provided a brief presentation of the fabrics and finishes recommended by the Habiterra Design Team for the first phases of the Central Library renovation project, which is moving from the design phase into the construction document development phase.
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 5:15 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Rebecca L. Mahoney
Secretary