Public Services – 314
Approved by the Board of Trustees February 27, 2025
St. Joseph Public Library
Library Card Policy
The St. Joseph Public Library (SJPL) issues library cards to allow the recipient to borrow physical and electronic materials from the four branches of the SJPL district. Anyone is welcome to peruse any materials in any of our collections, with or without a library card. Library cards also provide access to online resources at public service computers in the library and from devices that connect to the internet. Signed consent from a parent or legal guardian is required for a minor age 17 years or younger to use their library card to access an SJPL public service computer (see 310F – Internet Consent Form).
Individual (Personal) Cards
A library card may be obtained and used at any branch of the St. Joseph Public Library. There are no age or residency restrictions for using the St. Joseph Public Library or owning a library card. No out-of-residence fees or user fees are charged.
New library cards are subject to a probationary period of three months with a restriction of five items checked out at any given time. Following the probationary period, library cards expire annually.
Anyone 18 years or older applying for a library card must provide photographic proof of identity and current address, such as a driver’s license, identity card, or a passport. If the picture ID does not have the current address, this can be verified with other documentation, such as a utility bill.
Anyone age 17 years or younger is considered a minor by SJPL. Staff may request proof of identity when a minor applies for a library card. A parent or legal guardian must consent to a minor obtaining a card. The parent or legal guardian assumes responsibility for all items checked out on a minor’s library card. If a parent or legal guardian wishes to restrict a minor’s check out privileges, they should contact the library to do so. Library staff will add a restriction alert to the minor’s library card account.
Temporary Cards
A patron requesting a library card who does not have a permanent address and/or a picture ID will be given a temporary card. Temporary cards have a restriction of two items checked out at any given time.
eCards
eCards provide access to electronic materials only and are available to anyone who lives in St. Joseph, MO and does not already have a regular library card in good standing. A parent or legal guardian will be asked to authorize an eCard for any minor age 17 years old or younger.
Institutional Cards
A local business or organization may obtain an institutional card by completing an Institutional Card Application Form (308F). It should be filled out by a responsible person, such as an owner, manager, administrator, or fiscal officer of the institution.
Library-by-Mail
Library-by-mail is available to patrons who live within the library district and are homebound. Patrons who are interested in library-by-mail are asked to complete an application that allows the library to send and receive back library materials through the US Postal service at no charge.
Personal Identification Number
All library cardholders are issued a Personal Identification Number, or PIN, that enables patrons to access their library account for the purpose of updating account information, reviewing and renewing checked out materials, placing holds or sending item requests, or to send a message to library staff. These features are available through the library’s online catalog and the Missouri Evergreen Discovery app. SJPL staff members can send a pin reset email from the library system at the cardholder’s request. The pin reset email will be sent to the patron at the email address provided when they signed up for their card. The Missouri Evergreen system does not allow SJPL staff to see patron library card PINs. The assigned PIN can be changed by a patron in the online catalog or in the Missouri Evergreen Discovery app. Access to the catalog is through the “Books and Materials” link on the library’s website, https://sjpl.modiscovery.org/ or via the Missouri Evergreen Discovery app.
Library Card Responsibility
A library card gives access to all content at the St. Joseph Public Library, its affiliated online resources and databases, and various consortium collections. This content may include print or electronic materials of books, audiobooks, movies, music, magazines, and websites and such information may include both fiction and nonfiction written information. Some electronic resources may include video or other interactive portions of content. Access to eContent resources is made available with an SJPL library card and SJPL has no responsibility for age designations or material content of such resources.
Patrons are responsible for ensuring their account information is accurate and up to date. When a card is expired patrons may call or email library staff to verify account information and update the library card as needed.
A library card should be presented when checking out materials. In the absence of a card, staff will make a reasonable attempt to identify a patron in order to allow materials to be checked out. If a satisfactory identification cannot be made, borrowing of materials will be denied.
The checkout period for physical library items is three weeks, with the opportunity to renew materials twice if no one is waiting for them. The checkout period varies by vendor for electronic materials such as eBooks, eAudiobooks, eMagazines, movies, and music.
When a minor, who is age 17 years or younger, is issued a library card, they are given access to the same content at the St. Joseph Public Library as an adult 18 years or older. It is the responsibility of the parent or legal guardian, and not SJPL staff, to monitor a minor’s consumption of content in any and all forms. When requested by a parent or legal guardian, the checkouts of physical materials on a minor’s card may be restricted, as directed by that parent or legal guardian. Signed consent from a parent or guardian is required for a minor to access an SJPL public computer. See 310F – Internet Consent Form. SJPL is unable to restrict eContent access on personal devices.
A parent or legal guardian assumes responsibility for any fees, damages, or loss of material, which may result from the use of the library card by a minor who is age 17 years or younger. Library users aged 18 years and older applying for a library card assume responsibility for any fees, damages, or loss of materials that may result from use of the library card.
The corporate entity shall assume responsibility for any fees, damages, or loss of material, which may result from the use of the institutional card.
Cardholders are responsible for paying for lost or damaged items. If the part(s) missing from a multi-part set cannot be replaced and the purchase of the entire set is necessary, cardholders are responsible for the replacement cost of the entire set. This responsibility includes carrying cases for library materials, such as CD and DVD cases or parts of multi-part sets. A processing fee of $3.00 is also charged for each lost or damaged item. If an item that was lost and paid for is returned without damage within one year of payment, the amount paid for the item will be refunded, less the processing fee.
Missouri Evergreen Consortium
SJPL is a member of the Missouri Evergreen Consortium. Cardholders can request materials from any of the member libraries. Each member library places its own restrictions on lending materials, so not every item in a member library’s collection will be available for SJPL cardholders to borrow. SJPL takes no responsibility for another library’s age designations or material content.
Interlibrary Loan
A patron may make a special request through interlibrary loan for materials unavailable at the St. Joseph Public Library or the Missouri Evergreen Consortium. These materials are subject to the checkout period of the lending library and may only be renewed with the permission of the lending library. The lending library may require fees for the interlibrary loan service. The patron using the service assumes responsibilities to the lending library for lost or damaged material. See 306-Interlibrary Loan Policy for more information.
Lost Cards
Staff will assume that the bearer of a library card issued to someone other than the bearer has permission to use the library card. Therefore, it is in the interest of a cardholder to report lost or stolen cards immediately. Cardholders are responsible for materials checked out on the card until the loss has been reported. The replacement cost of a library card is $1.
Fees
The library does not charge overdue fees. The library does charge for lost or damaged items, and the cost varies based on the cost of the item. There is also a $3 processing fee charged for each lost or damaged item that is billed. A library account may be suspended until billed fees are paid.