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Policy adopted by the Board of Trustees March 12, 2001
Policy revised November 12, 2002
Policy revised April 7, 2004
Policy revised January 14, 2008
Policy revised December 13, 2010
Policy revised August 8, 2011
Policy revised December 14, 2015
Policy revised January 9, 2017
Policy revised April 11, 2022
Bethlehem Public Library cards are issued to residents of the Bethlehem Central School District. All other borrowers residing in Albany and Rensselaer Counties are issued an Upper Hudson Library System (UHLS) card. Refer to the library card policy for details.
Patron’s Responsibilities
- Patrons are responsible for all materials borrowed on their cards.
- Parents and guardians of minors are responsible for materials borrowed on their children’s cards.
- Change of address or lost/stolen cards must be reported immediately. Materials charged out to an unreported lost or stolen card are the responsibility of the cardholder.
Suspension of Privileges for Health and Safety Reasons
- The library may restrict a patron’s ability to borrow materials and/or visit library facilities when such use may jeopardize the health and cleanliness of library facilities, collections and other patrons.
- Should it become necessary to suspend a patron’s library privileges in order to protect library collections, facilities or other borrowers, the library patron will be notified of the suspension.
- Borrowing privileges will be restored when the suspended patron demonstrates that the situation causing the loss of privileges has been remediated.
Account Information
New York State confidentiality law prevents the library from disclosing information about the status of an account to anyone but the cardholder.
Lost and Damaged Materials
Replacement cost is charged for all lost or irreparably damaged materials. Previously lost items that are found and returned will not be charged a replacement cost.
Renewals
Library materials that are renewable and not on reserve for other patrons may be renewed twice. Items are automatically renewed when possible.
Fines
The library follows a fine free lending policy for most materials except for high-demand unique items, including but not limited to:
- Interlibrary loan (ILL) items, Library of Things collections, $1.00 per day
- Museum passes, $5.00 per day
- Maximum fine per item, $5.00
The library may suspend borrowing privileges for physical items for patrons owing $10.00 or more.
Loan Periods
Museum passes ………………………………………………………………………..….. 3 days
New and Popular DVDs, video games, and 7-day Express……………….….………….. 7 days
New books, magazines, and Library of Things …………………………………………… 14 days
Audiobooks and Playaways……………………………………………………………….. 28 days
Other items………………………………………………………………………..……… 14 or 28 days
Electronic Materials
Loan periods and checkout limits for electronic materials are specific to each lending platform. Electronic materials are not subject to fines or replacement costs.