Appendix L

Interlibrary Loan Policy

 

Interlibrary loan material is material that a patron has requested and WCL does not own.  It is borrowed from another library through the HQ branch.  To request material through ILL, fill out a request slip, (see appendices) with as much correct information on it as you can and send it in to HQ to be processed.  ILL material is processed at HQ and is given a three week due date (unless otherwise noted from the lending library).  It will arrive in your branch with a barcode and an Interlibrary Loan Slip (see appendices) in it.  Do not check this material in, out or change due dates on ILL material.  The only thing you need to do is accept payment when appropriate.

 

InterLibrary Loan is an important and necessary part of library services.  It is impossible for any library to purchase all materials.  Whitman County Library System encourages patrons to make use of this service.  However, some restrictions are necessary:

 

  1. Interlibrary Loan materials may not be requested more than once by a patron.

 

  1. Interlibrary Loan materials may not be renewed.

 

  1. Only materials which are not owned by the Whitman County Library System may be borrowed via InterLibrary Loan.  We cannot borrow books that we own which are in use at the time of the request.

 

  1. Audio-visual materials, reference books, rare books and books less than one year old cannot be borrowed via InterLibrary Loan in accordance with national InterLibrary Loan standards.

 

  1. Due to the nature of public library collections, librarians cannot undertake original research through InterLibrary Loan.  We cannot support college courses by providing required reading materials.  Specific reading lists or specialized subject materials for college research should be requested through the appropriate university library.

 

  1. We will make very effort to have books by a date specified on the request form.  However, we can make no guarantees.  Patrons can expect to wait up to several months for InterLibrary Loan books to arrive.

 

  1. Every effort will be made to fill a patron’s request from the WCL collection before Interlibrary Loaning materials.  This may involve a waiting period of up to several months while an item is considered for purchase.

 

H.     WCL will borrow up to five (5) items per month per patron so long as the lending library does not charge a fee greater than $2 per item.  Any items requested beyond 5 per month will be assessed a borrowing fee of $3 per item to offset postage and staff costs.  If a patron does not want to pay possible charges, he/she should note that on the request form.  If the lending library charges a fee greater than $2, that fee will be paid by the patron with their pre-approval. 

 

  1. InterLibrary loan service is a privilege.  Patrons who abuse this privilege by failing to return books on time or by failing to pick up InterLibrary Loan books may have their InterLibrary Loan privileges suspended.

 

 Revised 6/6/01