Policy Watch: Patrons Age 55 and Over Policy

On May 9th, 2019, the Board of Trustees approved a change to the Senior Citizens Policy. The original policy, approved in 2013, exempted patrons 55 years of age or older from paying overdue fines on Saugus items. It also made provisions for forgiving fines on items which our patrons borrow from other NOBLE libraries. Unfortunately, this second provision violates NOBLE’s Interlibrary Loan Code, which states “The borrowing library and its users must comply with the conditions of loan established by the lending library” (Section IV, Para. J). Therefore, the Board has agreed to strike the language allowing Saugus staff to forgive overdue fees owed to other libraries.

This means that Saugus staff can no longer waive overdue fines on items which our patrons borrow from other NOBLE libraries either in-person or via delivery (Interlibrary Loan).

However, Saugus patrons, age 55 and over, remain exempt from paying overdue fines on any Saugus items they borrow.

We’ve also renamed the policy “Patrons Age 55 and Over Policy” to make it more “user-friendly.”


Published: May 10th, 2019

Author: Alan Thibeault