STATEMENT OF POLICY AND PROCEDURE

Section: Service Points | Chapter: General | Page(s): 1

Subject: CONFIDENTIALITY of USER RECORDS | Sec 4, 1C

Reviewed: 2023/09/01 | Revised: 2023/11/24 | Effective: 2017/05/13

SECTION 4 – 1.C

CONFIDENTIALITY of USER RECORDS

Northern Lights Library System (NLLS), its Board, and its employee(s) are subject to the Libraries Act and the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIP).

1. No records are kept of the frequency or purpose of visits to the library by specific patrons.
2. Individual patron’s reading history may only be kept if they have opted into the feature in the online library system or provided the library written consent.
3. No patron information, including their presence in the library, will be given to a third party.
4. Employee(s) and volunteers are to keep individual patron’s reading and viewing habits confidential.
5. Upon request, a library patron will be given access to all information concerning their records.
6.  Library employee(s), board members, and volunteers will not disclose a patron’s personal information (including reading history) to a third party without the individual’s consent, except:
   1. in response to a subpoena, or court order from a law enforcement agency to assist in an investigation.
   2. where necessary to facilitate library resource-sharing agreements and programs (e.g. interlibrary loan agreements, TAL Card, ME Libraries), collecting fees or fines, and retrieving borrowed materials.
   3. for the purposes of contacting next of kin and/or emergency response personnel in the case of an emergency.
   4. where the user has contacted the library and provided written permission for someone else to access their records.
   5. where a parent or guardian’s consent is required for a cardholder to obtain a library card, that parent or guardian may have full access to the cardholder’s records.
   6. Patrons registering for library services must acknowledge by physical signature or digital consent that their contact information may be available to other organizations for these purposes.