Board President Briefing | December 2023

Tax Cap Compliance for Public Votes

Each library with a public vote must file with the Office of the State Comptroller regarding their Tax Cap. It is recommended that libraries that go out for a public vote pass a board resolution indicating that they will or may exceed the tax cap. This is recommended whether you intend to exceed the tax cap or not due to the potential for reporting errors.

Currently, only five libraries in our System do not have a public vote (Allens Hill, Honeoye, Lima, Marion, and Livonia), meaning everyone else must complete this process.

Below are some resources that may be helpful. Visit the OWWL Docs Tax Cap page for more information.

Property Tax Cap

Libraries of all types that have their own Board and have a public vote on their tax levy are subject to the Local Government section of the New York State Property Tax Cap law. This legislation went into effect in 2011 and is designed to limit property tax increases to 2%, or the Consumer Price Index (CPI), whichever is less. Each year your library must file an online form with the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC) to indicate your compliance with the particulars of the law. In the course of the Board’s budget deliberations, you may determine that your library may be justified in asking for more than the tax cap amount. To accomplish this, the Board must pass a tax cap override resolution prior to the public vote on the library’s tax levy. This resolution must receive an affirmative vote by 60% of the library trustees. The public vote must then pass by a simple majority to approve the levy amount. For more information, see: https://www.osc.state.ny.us/local-government/property-tax-cap

- 2023 Trustee Handbook, pg. 83.

Annual Reporting/Filing

• Office of the State Comptroller requires libraries that receive funding through a referendum (public vote) to complete tax cap reporting forms each year, even if you do not plan to ask for an increase or exceed the tax cap.
  • You must file and submit your online form with the Office of the State Comptroller before March 1st each year.
• The Form Needs to be Completed and Submitted Online
  1. Property Tax Cap Form
     
     • To declare your intentions for the coming fiscal year and the tax levy being voted on this May. (The May timeline is a general guide as many libraries put up their tax levies and local school district votes).
     • Deadline to file: End of February

Annual Update Document (AUD)/Annual Financial Report (AFR) and 990 Requirement

New York State General Municipal Law §30 requires each public library to file an annual report of financial transactions with the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC). After fiscal year 2023, this report is known as the Annual Financial Report (AFR).

Annual Update Document/Annual Financial Report (AFR) [Office of the State Comptroller, New York State] https://www.osc.state.ny.us/local-government/required-reporting/annual-update-documentannual-financial-report-afr

- 2023 Trustee Handbook, page 18-19

All public libraries are required to submit an Annual Update Document (AUD)/Annual Financial Report (AFR) to the OSC, and all association libraries registered as a 501©(3) with the IRS should submit Form 990 to the Internal Revenue Service.

What Libraries Have Learned from OSC Audits

Most libraries fall under the regulations set forth by the Office of the State Comptroller. Audit reports, released weekly, can help libraries determine what areas they review for potential compliance issues. Some of the key OSC audits in 2023 taught us:

• Libraries must have established financial control policies to protect public assets.
• Any non-exempt employee working more than 40 hours in a week must be paid overtime.
• Libraries must have a procurement policy and collect supporting documentation for all purchases.
• Boards must review expenditures prior to making payments.
• User accounts (for any computer/online access) must be reviewed regularly and non-employee accounts must be deactivated.
• Staff and Board Members must complete the Sexual Harassment Prevention Training Annually.
• Libraries should have an investment policy that is reviewed annually.
• Libraries should have a credit card policy.

Trustees Need to Complete their Two Hours of Required Training

Beginning January 1, 2023, each member, elected or appointed, of a board of trustees shall be required to complete a minimum of two hours of trustee education annually. (Education Law 260-d added by Chapter 468 of the Laws of 2021).

This means Trustees must have their two hours complete by December 31, 2023!

Your library should have a policy, a self-assurance form, and a spreadsheet to track Trustee Education activities.

Libraries will be required to report this on the upcoming Annual Report.

Please note that the Sexual Harassment Prevention Training is also required. However, it does not count towards the mandated two hours of training required by Ed. Law.

2023 Trustee Handbooks

OWWL Library System purchased enough copies of the 2023 Trustee Handbook for all current Trustees and Directors to receive a copy. I have been working my way through delivering these to libraries, but if you would like yours sooner, I am happy to schedule a time to get them to you (or you can visit HQ, just let me know). Otherwise, I'll be dropping them off at libraries as I visit them or when I am in the area.

The online version has yet to be uploaded by DLD; I'll let you know as soon as it is live.

Question of the Week: What Do Member Library Cost-Shares Pay For?

Question: In reviewing the amount our library pays to the OWWL Library System annually, our board is wondering how this benefits our library. Could you let us know what services these funds pay for?

Answer: This is a timely question since the OWWL Library System Board recently approved the 2024 document that outlines these items. In this document, we updated the name of the cost-share to explain better how the funding is used.

Member Libraries pay for three things:

1. Integrated Library System Cost Share ($320,489 Estimated Member Share) - Hosting a System-wide ILS is expensive; these funds pay for Evergreen only. The hosting, support, development, and cataloging. The System also buys into this by subsidizing 25% (in 2023, we were able to subsidize at 46%, but that was only a one-year thing). We used to call this the "OWWL Cost Share," but we're changing the name since this money only supports the ILS.
2. OverDrive Fiction Content – OWWL2go ($139,086 Member Library Commitments) - This money pays for most of the fiction content in OWWL2Go. We purchase it on behalf of member libraries to build our OverDrive collection. The System adds money to this fund when we can. In 2023, we paid $10,000 from the System budget to help build the Children's Collection.
3. PC Security Software - To keep library computers secure, libraries pay a per-computer fee for specific pieces of software. This is inexpensive, totaling less than $2,500/year.

That's everything that libraries fund.

Everything else that the System does is paid for through categorical aid we receive from the State Education Department. This is why advocacy is so important. Even though it does not provide a significant amount of money for local libraries, it funds the critical infrastructure (like Delivery, IT Support, subsidized Internet, and subsidized cost-shares) that libraries need to operate at their current funding levels.

This was a great question, and it helped shape the Cooperative Costs and System Funded Resources to Member Libraries document for 2024.

Update: Policies Required on the Annual Report

The Division of Library Development has updated its list of required policies for registration for association and public libraries across the state. This means these policies will most likely appear on the Annual Report in the spring. Here's the list so library boards can start working through them to make sure they're approved and online before the Annual Report is submitted.

• Open Meeting Policy: All public and association libraries are subject to open meetings law (Education Law, §260-a).
• Confidentiality of Library Records: All public and association libraries are required to keep library records confidential according to Civil Practice Laws and Rules, §4509.
• Conflict of Interest Policy: All public and association libraries are subject to Not-for-Profit Corporation Law, §715-a.
• Whistle Blower Policy: All public and association libraries with twenty or more employees AND an annual revenue in excess of one million dollars in the previous fiscal year are subject to Not-for-Profit Law, §715-b. (Note that this is required only for certain libraries.)
• Disaster Response Policy: A board-approved disaster response policy in the event of a natural or man-made disaster that affects the library facilities, holdings, or staff and library users.
• Collection Development Policy
• Meeting Space Policy (exception: if the library does not have a meeting room)
• Internet Use Policy
• Code of Ethics
• Personnel Policy
• Financial Controls: Purchasing/Procurement Policy and Petty Cash Policy.

Source: https://nyslibrary.libguides.com/publiclibrarystandards/policies

Legal Resources/Advice

HR Legal Update from Law Offices of Stephanie Cole Adams

Effective November 13th, 2023, all employers in New York State (including quasi-governmental employers such as municipal public libraries, and not-for-profits such as museums) must include a "Record of Employment" form with any notice confirming separation of employment.

This form must also be provided if an employee's regular hours are reduced to below 30 hours a week.

This obligation applies regardless of whether employment was terminated or reduced due to resignation, expiration of an employment contract, mutual agreement, or termination with or without cause.

The "Record of Employment" form to be completed can be found here: https://dol.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2023/11/ia12.3_0.pdf.

The law requiring this form be supplied is New York State Labor Law Section 590 (found here: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/LAB/590).

Ask HR Alert November 20, 2023.pdf

Ask a Lawyer: Setting Limits on Pay Outs of Accrued Vacation Time

Regardless of your library's current policy regarding vacation (especially if you do not have one), this is a really good question to read through.

If we were to change our time off accrual policy to allow staff to bank as much vacation as they like but specify that upon separation they could only be paid out 'x' number of hours, could we be accused of wage theft?

The full answer can be found by visiting the Setting Limits on Pay Outs of Accrued Vacation Time RAQ page.

Meeting Room Legal Guidance

Legal risks related to a policy setting who can rent or use a library meeting room are:

• If the library regulates access at the library's discretion, or does not have clear criteria that is consistently applies, the library can be accused of unfairly allowing or prohibiting access;
• If the library offers access to private groups for restricted events without a fee, the library can be accused of improperly allowing access that creates a benefit to a private person or firm (an "inurement").

There are several ways to limit these concerns, but it requires the library to: a) make a tactical decision about the use of a meeting room (what "type of use" is allowed); b) develop a policy based on that "type"; and c) stick to the policy.

Here are the "type of use" options:

Option 1: Rental only (for a fee based the cost of cleaning and utilities, for instance), to any group or individual that meets pre-set and non-discriminatory criteria. Such meetings do not have to be open to the public.

This is a good option if the library just wants to make the space available and recoup expenses. However, access can't be denied because the library doesn't like the group's politics or mission, and some groups could get priced out.

Option 2: Free and open to any group or individual that meets pre-set and non-discriminatory criteria, such as incorporation as an not-for-profit corporation, a business address within the area of service, and providing proof of insurance.

For example: "Use of the Community Room is free for any 501©(3) entity that has a primary address in the library's area of service."

This is a good option if the library just wants to make the space available for free. However, just like with rental, access can't be denied because the library doesn't like the group's politics or mission, and to avoid concerns, meetings should be open to the public.

Option 3: Use for mission-adjacent programming, meaning meetings happen with endorsement of library, per the library programming policy, and are open to the public. This is a good approach if the library only wants the rooms to be used for meetings, workshops and events put on with cooperating organizations that are basically extra library programming.

Option 4: Room "checked out" by library user like any other resource (not by group), with rules for the space (including rules against commercial use, etc). No viewpoint discrimination allowed, but it can limit activity based on neutral criteria (no meeting larger than 10 people, for instance), and limit use to card-holders and residents of the area of service.

Guidance on how to decide between or blend options

If a library wants a room use policy that allows the Library to limit who uses the room, but still wants to offer rooms for open events it finds consistent with mission, the library can use option "3" (mission-adjacent programming).

If the library wants to provide viewpoint-neutral access to as many as possible, any of the other options can work, it's just a question of what's right for the library and community. In that case, an application process and contract should be used to impose conditions of use.

There is also the option to blend of options "3" and "4". Option "3" helps a library identify community members who are leading events that the library wants to promote by actually making them "library official" (even if led by volunteers), while Option "4" allows the library to provide space to card-holding individuals who want to check it out for their own group on a limited basis (added bonus: the access does not have to be open to all, since it's a library service, not an event).

In no event should library space be used for "political activities" (as defined by the IRS, meaning campaign activity). While arguably rental for fair market value could be allowed, the risk is too great that such use could violation state and federal restrictions. Any policy developed should make this bar clear.

The key is clarity, so the Library can ensure there is no risk the Library could be accused of unfair viewpoint discrimination or allowing prohibited private benefits.