PURPOSE AND SCOPE

The Peotone Public Library District maintains collections for the use of residents within the library district and other registered borrowers.  Residents of the district and those who own businesses or property within the  district are eligible for a library card which gives them access to our collections.  This policy outlines circulation procedures related to acquiring a card, loan rules of materials, restrictions and limitations of circulation, and the privacy of cardholders’ information.  This policy is meant to describe the Library’s approach to matters in relation to the circulation of materials and patron records.  

 

TYPES OF LIBRARY CARDS

Resident Library Card

The Peotone Public Library District is a tax-supported public library district. This means that people of any age residing within the jurisdictional boundaries of the Peotone Public Library District pay taxes to support the library. Those people who live within the jurisdictional boundaries of the Peotone Public Library District need pay no additional fee to be eligible to receive their first library card. Library cards are renewed every two (2) years without additional fees, provided the library card holder continues to reside within the jurisdictional boundaries of the Peotone Public Library District and is a patron in good standing. 
 

Residents of the Library District may apply for a Library card by completing an application and  providing current proof of identity and residency. A valid government issued document with a photo, such as a driver’s license, state identification card, or passport is acceptable proof of identity. In the absence of a current valid government issued  photo ID, any photo ID that shows one’s full name in addition to one of the following  documents showing the applicant’s current address will be accepted: 

• Current government issued document, such as a driver’s license or state  identification card 

• Current voter’s registration card 

• Utility bill 

• Current bill, such as a credit card bill  

• Closing papers or lease 

 

The Library will accept reviewing virtual forms of identification and address verification (e.g. virtual utility bill statement with the current address).  
 

Post Office Boxes are not acceptable as proof of current address. Handwritten documents will  not be acceptable for verification purposes. If you have one piece of identification that verifies  both identity and current address, such as a driver’s license, that one piece of identification  may be used to meet both requirements. 

As a resident card holder, the borrower identified on the valid borrower’s card may physically take his or her library card to another library to borrow materials. Those materials are the responsibility of the individual who borrows them, and are subject to all of the fines, rules and regulations of the lending library.

 

Household Non-Resident Library Card

Individuals residing beyond the jurisdictional boundaries of the Peotone Public Library District and not within the boundaries of another public library and owning no property within the jurisdictional boundaries of the Peotone Public Library District may purchase a non-resident fee card for the price of the Library’s annual  non-resident card fee; the Library uses the general mathematical formula according to the formula established by the Illinois State Library (75 ILCS 5/4-7(12) and 16/30-55.60). This fee entitles the entire family to use the Peotone Public Library District as well as at all participating libraries.
 

A non-resident disabled veteran or their unmarried, surviving spouse may be issued a card, without payment of fee, pursuant to 75 ILCS 5/4-7. The non-resident, unmarried, surviving spouse of a soldier killed in the line of duty may be issued a card. Proof of eligibility, as required by statute, must be presented at the time of application for this card. 

 

Non-residents cards will be good for one year at which time proof of eligibility must be again presented to renew the card.  The proposed annual fee will vary yearly depending on the Library’s annual property tax income for the year.  

 

The mathematical formula used to calculate the non-resident fee is as follows:

 

Library’s Annual Property Tax Income / Local District Population 16,851 = ___  X the Average # of persons per household 2.8 = $_____

 

The non-resident fee is determined annually by the Library Board, in accordance with  Illinois Public Acts 92-0166, 75 ILCS 5/4-7(12) and 16/30-55. 60): 
The factor for determining the closest public library shall be the residence of the non resident. Non-residents shall apply at the participating public library in the school district  in which the non-resident has his or her principal residence unless, due to the  commonality of community interests, library services at another library that is physically  closer may better serve the needs of the non-resident. 

 

Non-Resident Taxpayer

The library tax rate or equivalent, including all special levies, is  applied to the non-resident property owner’s principal residence assessed valuation on  an individual, case by case basis. The most recent property tax bill will be used. The  property owner will pay the same amount as would be paid if the property were in the  library service area.  
 

Non-Resident Renter

The Library shall either charge a minimum of 15 percent of the  monthly rent as the annual non-resident fee, or devise its own formula. The local formula shall take into account the average local rent of the general community of the public  library, the property tax rate, and the non-resident fee for residential homeowners. The  library board shall annually determine the percent to be applied to non-resident renters.  The renter shall provide to the public library a current rent receipt or a canceled rent check for verification purposes.  

 

Cards for Kids

The Cards for Kids Act is an amendment to Illinois Public Library Non-Resident Services that allows students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade to obtain a Library card with full borrowing privileges free of charge. Cards covered by this Act will only be registered in a  student’s name and are good for one year. 
 

Lost/Stolen Cards

Patrons should notify the Library as soon as they discover their Library card is lost or stolen.  The Library will immediately stop the lost card number and issue a new card, free of charge, and that person will not be held responsible for items checked out on the card after that date.  After three replaced cards, the Library will begin charging a $5.00 fee for future replacement cards.

 

CONFIDENTIALITY

All records in the Peotone Public Library District relating to patron registration and circulation of materials are considered to be confidential in nature in accordance with the State of Illinois Library Records Confidentiality Act (75 ILCS 70/1 et seq). The contents of registration and circulation records shall not be made available to anyone except authorized Library personnel or as required by law. For more information, please refer to the Library’s Confidentiality of Library Records and Patron Data Privacy Policy. Because of their financial responsibility, parents and legal guardians may be informed of overdue material checked out on their minor child’s library card. 

 

Circulation Loan Rules 

Generally, the Library’s loan rules exist to ensure equitable access to Library materials for each and every member of the District.  However, in some cases the Library will make exceptions, as indicated in the policies below.  New materials may not be renewed.  Items with holds for other District cardholders also cannot be renewed.  The Library gives priority to Peotone Public Library District cardholders above non-Peotone Public Library District cardholders for all Peotone Public Library District materials.  

 

Most Peotone Public Library District collections are not restricted for quantity patrons may check out, with a few exceptions; in general, patrons can checkout as many items as they are willing to accept responsibility for.
 

Loan Rules

Generally, Library materials may be borrowed for 14 days, except for: 

• Materials that circulate for 7 days including:  

  • DVDs and Blu-Rays (except for tv series, which circulate for 14 days)

  • Hotspots

• Other:  Downloadable books and other media are subject to the lending terms of vendors  

• Reference materials may be borrowed at the discretion of Library staff.  

• Current issues of magazines do not circulate.

 

LOST AND DAMAGED MATERIALS

When an item is damaged, lost, or not returned, the patron will be billed the purchase cost of the item, plus a processing fee. Replacement costs for materials owned by another library are determined by the owning library. If a lost item is paid for, then found and returned within 90 days of the payment date, the library will issue a refund. The patron must present the receipt at the time of the return. No refunds are given for interlibrary-loan materials or other libraries’ materials. 

 

EXTENDED LOAN PERIODS

Though most of the time the Library will follow the above standard loan rules, the following are exceptions to the rule:
 

Book Clubs

The Library will accommodate reasonable requests from local reading groups for multiple copies of particular titles. Due dates for these items will be set according to the discussion date presented at the time of the request.  

 

Vacation Loans

Peotone Public Library District cardholders  may request  that a loan period be extended by a negotiated amount of time, provided that the item is not on hold for another Peotone Public Library District cardholder.  

 

Staff will use discretion on the length of time extended for these loans, considering popularity of the item, patron’s history of borrowing, and length of time requested.

 

HOMEBOUND SERVICE PROGRAM

Patron Eligibility
Homebound service will be provided to patrons of Peotone Public Library District who are not able to come to the library. “Homebound” is defined as being generally confined to the residence either temporarily, due to illness or accident, or permanently, due to age, disability or other mobility problems.

 

Library Card Registration & Use
Each homebound patron must register for a library card if he or she does not already have one. A staff member or volunteer from the Adult Services Department will help set up the library card at the patron’s home or remotely by email documentation. This documentation can be sent in by a family member or caregiver of the patron if the homebound patron is unable to do so. This procedure also applies to library card renewal.

 

Delivery Schedule/Loan Period
Materials will be delivered by a volunteer or staff member twice a month. At the time new materials are delivered, the items from the previous delivery will be retrieved and returned to the library. 

 

Fines & Fees
Homebound delivery service is free. Overdue fines will not be charged on homebound materials, but patrons are responsible for damaged or lost items.

 

Materials Available for Homebound Delivery

Homebound patrons must request items directly from a staff member of the Adult Services Department, requests should not be handled by circulation or by the PrairieCat app. 

 

Homebound Environment Required for Delivery
The safety of our staff and volunteers is extremely important.  With this in mind, we ask patrons requesting homebound services to provide a safe and appropriate environment for volunteers or staff members.  Some examples of an unsafe home include, but are not limited to:

• If any person in the home presents threatening behavior or harasses the library’s representative.

• If aggressive pets are not confined.

• If any person in the home exhibits signs of illness that may jeopardize the health of the library’s representative.

•  And if conditions in the home are unsafe.

 

If a volunteer or staff member must leave the home due to concerns about their safety, they will notify the Adult Services Department and the Library Director.  Service will be suspended until the issues reported are resolved.
 

Homebound Patron Responsibility

Homebound patrons must keep library materials in good condition. This includes the cloth library bag w/information tag that is used to hold library materials. 
 

Patrons who damage or lose library items will be billed for the materials. The patron must pay for the damaged or lost library items before they can receive any new deliveries.
 

The library will remove patrons from the homebound program who continually lose or damage library items.

                                                                                                              

INTERLIBRARY LOAN

Items may be borrowed on behalf of Peotone Public Library District cardholders from other libraries. These items are subject to all loan periods, fines, rules and regulations established by the lending library. Interlibrary loan service through OCLC (WorldCat or out of system) is available to Peotone Public Library District cardholders only.
 

FINES AND FEES

The Library charges a variety of small fees for various services, including overdue fees, copy and printing fees, as well as impact fees.  
 

Overdue Materials

Materials held by a cardholder beyond the due date will be considered overdue, and fines will be assessed according to the loan schedule available at the Circulation Desk and on the Library’s website. The Prairie Cat consortium will make a good faith effort to notify cardholders when their items become overdue according to their communication preferences and contact information set up at the time of library card registration. Overdue notification is a courtesy. The Library is not responsible if the notification is not received by the cardholder. 
 

Impact Fees

Developers will be required to pay a one time fee to the Library in addition to the other local taxing bodies to expand services to the developing area.  The Library’s developer fee is $100.
 

Suspension of Services

Peotone Public Library District cardholders who owe fines or fees in excess of $10.00 will have their accounts blocked. When a patron’s account is blocked, borrowing and computer privileges are suspended until the patron’s balance is below $10.00.  
 

Patrons who have been banned from the Library forfeit all privileges for the period during which they have been banned.   Please refer to the Library’s Patron Behavior Policy for a list of offenses that could lead to suspension.
 

Adopted July 1st, 2014

Amended June 18th, 2026