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Declaration of Emergency Policy

Approved by the Board of Trustees 4/21/2021
Declaration of Emergency Policy PDF

Under emergency conditions, closing may be necessary the library may need to close, reduce hours, declare stand-by alerts, reduce staff on site, and/or direct staff to work remotely. “Emergency conditions” and ensuing action shall be determined by the Director or, in the absence of the Director, by the Senior Person in Charge on duty. In the event of the latter, the Senior Person in Charge on duty shall make every effort to contact the Director before closing. If the Director is unavailable, the Senior Person in Charge on duty is authorized to close the library. The Board President shall be timely notified of the emergency actions taken by the Director (or person acting in their place).

If the Library closes because of extreme weather conditions or other emergency, employees that had been scheduled to work during that time will be credited with time as if worked, with the exception of those employees who had previous time off approved. Approved time off shall supersede any credited time provided as a result of an emergency closure.

If the Library is impacted by a community emergency situation forcing closure, reduced staffing, standby alerts, a shift to remote operations, or other significant change to library operations, the Director shall enact a contingency operations plan as soon as practicable, and in the best interests of safety and the library community. Consultation with appropriate local and state authorities and fellow community partners will be included, as deemed appropriate by the Director and Board President.

The Director and Board President shall maintain ongoing communication to monitor the best approach to address safety and operational concerns during states of emergency, and shall timely involve the full Board of such communications.

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Subject East Greenbush Card UHLS Card UHLS MyCard
Library Card Registration Free to any individual who resides or pays taxes in the East Greenbush Community Library taxing district or Town of Schodack. Cards expire and must be renewed every three years.

Free to any individual who volunteers or works at the EGRN Library. Cards expire and must be renewed yearly.

Free to partner educational agencies with verified employment. Cards expire and must be renewed yearly.

Those that live outside the UHLS area may purchase a temporary card at the price established by our Table of Fines and Fees. Cards expire and must be renewed yearly.

All ages eligible. Youth under age 16 must have their application completed and signed by a parent or guardian, who provides acceptable identification for them.

Card blocked at $5 or more in replacement costs or fines/fees

Fines vary according to individual library rules and UHLS resource sharing rules. The EGRN Table of Fines and Fees are applicable for items which are checked out from the East Greenbush Community Library

 Free to residents residing in a community served by a UHLS library.

All ages eligible. Youth under age 16 must have their application completed and signed by a parent or guardian, who provides acceptable identification for them.

UHLS library cards expire and must be renewed every three years.

Card blocked at $5 or more in replacement costs or fines/fees

Fines vary according to individual library rules and UHLS resource sharing rules. The EGRN Table of Fines and Fees are applicable for items which are checked out from the East Greenbush Community Library

 The UHLS MyCard is a fine-free, limited-access library card for youth. It is intended to address multiple barriers to serving youth and families, including:

  • Barriers to access related to fines (e.g. computer access, checking out materials)
  • Parents not present for a child’s library card registration
  • Previous fines on a child’s card

Free for youth residing in a community served by a UHLS library.Applicants 18 and under who are applying for a limited use, UHLS Youth Only MyCard, need to provide name, address, and date of birth.UHLS library cards expire and must be renewed every three years.Youth ages birth to 18 can register unaccompanied, or with the help of a caregiver or relative who is not the child’s parent/guardian.This card may be used at all UHLS Libraries except for the Colonie Town Library.

Card blocked at $10 or more in replacement costs.

No fines for late items
Limits on # of Materials Borrowed Unlimited checkouts Unlimited checkouts Limited total items: Can only have 3 items checked out on their card at a time
Types of Items All eligible item types. All eligible item types except Museum Passes, ILL, and Hot off the Press. Active paid members of the Friends of the East Greenbush Community Library have access to all lending collections. Only items eligible to be borrowed are books (any age level), juvenile and young adult (teen) audiobooks, and juvenile and young adult (teen) DVDs.
Databases/Digital Content EGRN and UHLS subscription databases and digital content UHLS subscription databases and digital content Only items eligible to be borrowed are books (any age level), juvenile and young adult (teen) audiobooks, and juvenile and young adult (teen) DVDs.
Interlibrary Loan Nationwide UHLS Libraries UHLS Libraries
Program Registration Unlimited except by limited program capacity Preference given to resident cardholders Preference given to resident cardholders