W Tali Hairston: OK, it is now 11:02 AM. We have a quorum and I like to call this
OK.
W Tali Hairston: regular meeting of the Seattle Public Library Board of Trustees to order.
W Tali Hairston: If there are no changes to the agenda, may I hear a motion to the approve agenda
You did good.
W Tali Hairston: as published?
Yazmin Mehdi: I'll propose that motion. Can I also ask somebody has is unmuted
Yazmin Mehdi: and there's a lot of background noise which is making it hard to hear,
W Tali Hairston: A lot of background.
Yazmin Mehdi: but I'll move to approve the agenda.
Faith Pettis: I'll second that.
W Tali Hairston: OK, it's been moved and seconded. All in favor, raise your hand or say aye.
W Tali Hairston: Opposed.
W Tali Hairston: OK, passes. We have our published. Our agenda is published as noted at the
W Tali Hairston: top of the agenda in your packets. The Library Board doesn't accept Public
W Tali Hairston: comment by e-mail in person at the Central Library and in this remote
W Tali Hairston: meeting.
W Tali Hairston: Are there any Public comments for today related to our agenda?
There is no one signed up in person or in Q&
A to provide public comment related to an agenda item. However,
one public comment was received by e-mail and was distributed to all trustees from
Miguel del Aguilla in regard to the Central Library environment.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you, Amy. We did receive that Public comment via
W Tali Hairston: e-mail. It was received by the board. Thank you very much. Appreciate it.
Faith Pettis: And can I just note that Ron is there and I think trying to get in?
Faith Pettis: It.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you, Faith. I see Ron. I don't see Ron, but I see Ron.
W Tali Hairston: He's in there somewhere.
W Tali Hairston: Run. Let's let them get you hooked up so you
W Tali Hairston: can.
W Tali Hairston: Come Online and join us for today's meeting.
W Tali Hairston: OK.
I did just move Ron into the presenter box.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you.
W Tali Hairston: OK, so we have A. consent agenda with minutes from our June
W Tali Hairston: Meeting and the June 2025 Finance report. I did not see any changes.
W Tali Hairston: Anyone else notice any changes? If not, I can I hear A.
W Tali Hairston: motion to approve the consent agenda as A. published as published?
Yazmin Mehdi: So moved.
Faith Pettis: Um.
Faith Pettis: 2nd.
W Tali Hairston: OK, IT has been moved and seconded for both
W Tali Hairston: of those items to be approved. All in favor. Aye, raise your hand. Oh,
W Tali Hairston: that's me. OK, opposed.
W Tali Hairston: Motion passes.
W Tali Hairston: All right. Next is our Chief Library report.
W Tali Hairston: And Rick, I believe that means you're up, is that correct?
Rick Sheridan: That is correct, Mr. President. So Chief Librarian Tom Fay is
Rick Sheridan: unfortunately in A. Meeting right now with other Library
Rick Sheridan: systems with Representative Kim Schreyer of the 8th Congressional District. It's A.
Rick Sheridan: Meeting that's focused on Library funding, and he Will be joining this Meeting
Rick Sheridan: somewhat late, but he did ask that.
Rick Sheridan: You accept the written document that he provided as part of the Board packet for
Rick Sheridan: his Chief librarian's report, and he said he would be happy to answer
Rick Sheridan: any Questions when he joins this Meeting shortly.
Yazmin Mehdi: I just wanted to note tell you're muted, but I wanted to note that I do have a
Yazmin Mehdi: question for him when he when he does join.
W Tali Hairston: Yeah, I was gonna ask, does anyone else have Questions as if
W Tali Hairston: maybe we can get A. good sense of what Tom should be
W Tali Hairston: expecting. I know I might have A. question or two,
W Tali Hairston: but I don't see anything in there that.
W Tali Hairston: U.
W Tali Hairston: Other than A. few Questions for clarification, but.
W Tali Hairston: Anyone else think they might have something for Tom when he jumps on?
W Tali Hairston: OK. All right. Thank you, Rick. When time comes on,
W Tali Hairston: we'll we'll pepper in with A. few.
Rick Sheridan: Excellent.
Rick Sheridan: So moving then to the systems report, if we could go ahead and please promote
Rick Sheridan: Bo Kenny.
Rick Sheridan: I'd like to introduce Bo Kinney, our Circulation Services Manager,
Rick Sheridan: and Bo is present today to give A. report on the library's efforts to be
Rick Sheridan: fine free for patrons.
Bo Kinney: Hello.
Bo Kinney: My name is Beau Kinney. I'm the Circulation Services Manager for
Bo Kinney: the Seattle Public Library, and it's really great to be back again
Bo Kinney: this month to talk to you about the elimination of overdue fines and some of
Bo Kinney: the impacts that that has had.
Bo Kinney: Can everyone see and hear me and see my slide deck?
Bo Kinney: This is all kind of new for me, so OK, I see lots of thumbs up, so thank you.
W Tali Hairston: Sure.
Bo Kinney: Well, this is really I think a celebratory kind
Bo Kinney: of presentation, so hopefully it will be nice to hear some
Bo Kinney: some.
Bo Kinney: Good positive updates. So as as you all know,
Bo Kinney: I'm sure five years ago, a little more than five years ago,
Bo Kinney: as part of the 2019 Library levy, the Seattle Public Library eliminated.
Bo Kinney: Daily overdue fines for materials that were returned late. This the library levy,
Bo Kinney: of course, was passed overwhelmingly by Seattle
Bo Kinney: voters and went into effect January 2nd, 2020.
Bo Kinney: It's hard to believe that was five years ago. Only five years ago, it feels like.
Bo Kinney: Lifetime ago when we think about how much has happened in that time.
Bo Kinney: So just briefly, what were the reasons why we why the
Bo Kinney: library wanted to eliminate late fines? First and foremost,
Bo Kinney: late fines are are not effective despite our very long ingrained assumptions.
Bo Kinney: Daily late fines do not actually have very much of an impact on.
Bo Kinney: When people return their library materials,
Bo Kinney: but they do impose a financial penalty for using the library,
Bo Kinney: which created a barrier to access for many members of our community.
Bo Kinney: So making this change really.
Bo Kinney: We hoped and it has played out to have some some real positive benefits for our
Bo Kinney: community. Finally, fines, you know, with the ongoing shift or increased use
Bo Kinney: of e-material, electronic materials, fines were not going to be a predictable
Bo Kinney: source of revenue. So replacing that revenue as part of the
Bo Kinney: library levy was.
Bo Kinney: Also really important.
Bo Kinney: What happened when we eliminated overdue fines?
Bo Kinney: We immediately restored access for 18, 000 patrons whose accounts had had been
Bo Kinney: blocked just because of having returned overdue items but still having fines on
Bo Kinney: their account after the fact.
Bo Kinney: Those blocked or suspended library patron accounts were prevented from borrowing
Bo Kinney: materials. So we in 2020 when we made this change,
Bo Kinney: we cut the number of suspended patron accounts in half went down from.
Bo Kinney: 10% of our active users to about 5% and that that number has stayed stable in the
Bo Kinney: past five years. There have been some other things that
Bo Kinney: have happened in the last five years, notably the the pandemic.
Bo Kinney: As well as other other things that happened within the Seattle Public
W Tali Hairston: Yeah.
Bo Kinney: Library, of course, all the fallout after the pandemic,
Bo Kinney: open hours, changes, challenges with staffing,
Bo Kinney: most recently the ransomware attack. These things have had an impact on
Bo Kinney: patrons use of the library and ability to return.
Bo Kinney: Return materials on time, but by and large the the return rates,
Bo Kinney: percentage of overdue items and hold wait times have all stayed very stable since
Bo Kinney: the elimination of overdue fines.
Bo Kinney: And then?
Bo Kinney: There's been many reports about the statistics and numbers,
Bo Kinney: and I'll talk about a couple of those. But this last bullet point is what I
Bo Kinney: really want to focus on, is that this change really made the
Bo Kinney: library more welcoming and easier to use for patrons,
Bo Kinney: which which ultimately makes the library more accessible for our community.
Bo Kinney: Clicked the wrong thing. Pardon me. So as part of, you know,
Bo Kinney: this whole year we're kind of celebrating as the the fine free 5th anniversary.
Bo Kinney: So we've done a number of things to kind of highlight those changes and benefits
Bo Kinney: as well as other things that we're doing, so.
Bo Kinney: This is a screenshot of a blog post that our Communications Office and Elisa
Bo Kinney: Murray wrote to kind of celebrate this at the beginning of the year.
Bo Kinney: And I just want to say we've still, you know,
Bo Kinney: we're still in 2025 seeing a lot of really positive effects.
Bo Kinney: We have still have a much lower rate of suspended accounts.
Bo Kinney: Also, if a patron's account does get suspended
Bo Kinney: because they have an overdue item, it is so much easier to resolve that.
Bo Kinney: All they have to do is return the item. Previously you if you returned a late
Bo Kinney: book, then you became stuck with these overdue
Bo Kinney: fines, which would become an extra barrier and
Bo Kinney: step to have to deal with.
Bo Kinney: So that's, you know, and again, I don't want to spend too much time on
Bo Kinney: data, but one really interesting thing that we
Bo Kinney: we noticed that was a significant change is that we see a a huge increase in,
Bo Kinney: you know, if items do become overdue or if they
Bo Kinney: become even lost when we've charged.
Bo Kinney: The patron replacement fee, we've we've seen a massive increase in
Bo Kinney: the number of long overdue items that eventually do get returned.
Bo Kinney: Previously with overdue fines, it was kind of a disincentive to return
Bo Kinney: late items because even after you returned it.
Bo Kinney: You get stuck with those fines, but now that that it's as simple as just
Bo Kinney: returning the item, we see patrons that if they do,
W Tali Hairston: Thanks.
Bo Kinney: if something does happen in their lives, they do have a late book.
Bo Kinney: We make it a lot easier for them to just return the book or talk to us and get
Bo Kinney: some help with their account and we can get that cleared up much more easily so.
Bo Kinney: Encourage everyone to take a look at this blog post on our Shelf Talk blog if you
Bo Kinney: haven't already, and because it includes a lot of quotes
Bo Kinney: from library patrons who shared their stories of how this has been impactful in
Bo Kinney: their lives. We heard a lot of stories about how not
Bo Kinney: having to worry about late finds has made borrowing books from the.
Bo Kinney: Library less stressful, more accessible, taking the shame away of returning late
Bo Kinney: books. The headline here a huge load off my
Bo Kinney: shoulders. People shared feeling grateful, joyful and proud of our city for making
Bo Kinney: this change.
Bo Kinney: Eliminating fines is, of course, really, really important,
Bo Kinney: and it's it's just one part of a broader effort to make the library more
Bo Kinney: accessible and welcoming. There's many ways that we've made the
Bo Kinney: library more easy to use for patrons in the last five years.
Bo Kinney: We've made it easier for patrons to get help if they lose an item and can't pay
Bo Kinney: the fee. We've stopped referring patrons to a
Bo Kinney: collections agency if they're unable to pay.
Bo Kinney: We've rewritten our notifications to make them clearer and more welcoming.
Bo Kinney: We've made it easier for patrons to use a preferred name in their library account.
Bo Kinney: We've eliminated fees for interlibrary loans.
Bo Kinney: We've made it possible for new patrons to sign up for cards online.
Bo Kinney: We've added 24/7 hold pickup lockers at 7 branches.
Bo Kinney: We're implementing an uncollectable patron account debt procedure,
Bo Kinney: which will restore access for thousands of patients with old charges.
Bo Kinney: And those are just examples related to patron accounts and borrowing physical
Bo Kinney: materials. I put this image from the strategic plan
Bo Kinney: because obviously.
Bo Kinney: This this is just a a much bigger goal even than than borrowing materials is
Bo Kinney: just making the library easier to use and more accessible.
Bo Kinney: So just I'll close with just a couple really exciting data points.
Bo Kinney: In the first half of 2025, we're seeing more active library users
Bo Kinney: than ever. The the these are a little hard to read,
Bo Kinney: but.
Bo Kinney: Our active borrowers who've used their card for something in the last three
Bo Kinney: years was was over 400, 000 as of July 1st and active borrowers
Bo Kinney: in the last one year is 300,000, which is at least as far back as we've
Bo Kinney: been tracking this trend from 2012. Those are the highest numbers.
Bo Kinney: That we have on record and you can see you know the what I like about this trend
Bo Kinney: is it shows you the impacts. You know you can see those big dips in in
Bo Kinney: 20/20/21 impact of COVID. You can see a very small impact in in mid
Bo Kinney: 2024 as a result of the ransomware attacks.
Bo Kinney: You can see how these other things impact.
Bo Kinney: Library use, but but you also see how much it's been
Bo Kinney: increasing since the pandemic and how we've now kind of returned and actually
Bo Kinney: gone beyond the pre pandemic usage rates. And then this is another one.
Bo Kinney: It's a little.
Bo Kinney: Little bit more going on in this chart, but this is the by month the number of
Bo Kinney: new library card sign-ups and actually as of July 1st we also saw a record number
Bo Kinney: of new library card sign-ups. So just really seeing the the long-term
Bo Kinney: payoff of of eliminating fines, but all of these.
Bo Kinney: Changes that we've made to make things more accessible and having the results of
Bo Kinney: people actually signing up for library cards and using them after after they do.
Bo Kinney: So I'll just close with this this one more quote from a patron who said no late
Bo Kinney: fines has made me feel more empowered and connected to my local library.
Bo Kinney: Thank you for this economically just and inclusive policy,
Bo Kinney: and thank you for your time today and for the opportunity to share this really
Bo Kinney: positive report with you all.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you. Any questions for?
W Tali Hairston: Oh, yes, Carmen.
Bendixen, Carmen: Bo, thanks for the information and the
Bendixen, Carmen: uplifting message. It's really exciting. Five years.
Bendixen, Carmen: I was just curious on the that last graph you showed of the new card sign-ups,
Bendixen, Carmen: does that include folks?
Bendixen, Carmen: umm From the Books on Band program, the digital card, sign up.
Bo Kinney: Thanks, Carmen. That's a great question. Actually it doesn't. So that's so.
Bendixen, Carmen: OK.
Bo Kinney: So if we added in the books on ban numbers,
W Tali Hairston: Mm.
Bo Kinney: that would be an even higher number. So that's just our regular borrowers to
Bendixen, Carmen: OK.
Bo Kinney: use the.
Bo Kinney: The jargon folks, folks living in our service area or
Bendixen, Carmen: Yeah.
Bo Kinney: signed up for a regular Seattle Public Library card.
Bo Kinney: So books on band actually would increase those numbers even more.
Bendixen, Carmen: OK, cool.
Bo Kinney: I'm really glad you mentioned Books on Band,
Bo Kinney: because I would add that to the list of things, you know,
Bo Kinney: that we've done in the past couple years to make things more accessible.
Bo Kinney: And I think it's important to, you know, in in my mind,
Bo Kinney: all of the things we do to improve library access really do tie into
Bo Kinney: intellectual freedom and access.
Bo Kinney: Access to books and reading and books and band, of course,
Bo Kinney: is a really powerful and exciting way that we've done that in a new way in the
Bo Kinney: last couple years. So thanks for asking about that.
W Tali Hairston: Yes.
Yazmin Mehdi: Bo, it's nice to see you back. Thanks for the great presentation.
Yazmin Mehdi: I actually have A. question about your presentation from
Yazmin Mehdi: last Meeting about the the. So I'm sorry to bring this back up,
Bo Kinney: OK.
Bo Kinney: Yes.
Yazmin Mehdi: but in rereading the notes from the Meeting last month it.
Yazmin Mehdi: I realized I wasn't clear about one aspect of the elimination of uncollected
Yazmin Mehdi: patron debt, and it's this. And IT May be that Rob actually needs to
Bo Kinney: OK.
Yazmin Mehdi: answer this for me, and you don't have to answer IT now.
Yazmin Mehdi: You guys could just e-mail me, but.
Yazmin Mehdi: At the end of the discussion, Rob mentioned that the debt for this
Yazmin Mehdi: uncollected debt is not actually debt. It doesn't create an account receivable
Yazmin Mehdi: due. And I realized I don't understand that.
Yazmin Mehdi: And I don't know, can you explain that to me at some point?
W Tali Hairston: It.
Bo Kinney: Definitely Rob will be the one to explain that and and I don't know if he wants to
Yazmin Mehdi: OK. OK. That makes sense.
Bo Kinney: now or or to follow up later.
Yazmin Mehdi: Um, I what?
To step out of the room temporarily to help someone who's here in person.
So I have made a note of that and I will have him get ahold of you.
Yazmin Mehdi: Yeah, let's just do IT offline. That just sounds fine. Thank you.
W Tali Hairston: Any other questions or comments for Rob Bo? Excuse me.
W Tali Hairston: OK. Thanks.
Bo Kinney: Thanks again.
Rick Sheridan: And Mr. President, just real quickly, I would like to provide kudos to Bo Kenny
W Tali Hairston: Mhm.
Rick Sheridan: and the Circulation Services team. It's based on their recommendation and
Rick Sheridan: analysis work in advance of the 2019 levy that IT was included as an element of
Rick Sheridan: that levy.
Rick Sheridan: And their predictions in terms of benefits to patrons,
Rick Sheridan: unlocking accounts for patrons who have blocked accounts have proven true.
Rick Sheridan: And obviously we're seeing IT in terms of the rates of return have not
Rick Sheridan: significantly changed. It really has been beneficial to many of
Rick Sheridan: our patrons.
Rick Sheridan: For whom fines were A. deterrent to participating in the Library
Rick Sheridan: system.
Yazmin Mehdi: Actually, thanks Rick, because that I did actually have one
Yazmin Mehdi: other question if you guys don't mind, which is that Bo,
Yazmin Mehdi: you just said that the restoration of of accounts for or Access for 18,000 patrons.
Yazmin Mehdi: Was A. 50% reduction in the numbers of accounts
Yazmin Mehdi: that were I guess not accessible. And I'm realizing that the in clearing
Yazmin Mehdi: the uncollected debt that also I think IT was 10,000 accounts.
Yazmin Mehdi: That were restored. So are we basically well below 5% at this
Yazmin Mehdi: point of inaccessible accounts?
Bo Kinney: Um.
Bo Kinney: Thank you for asking that question. So the uncollectable debt change is going
Bo Kinney: to have a big, a similarly large impact. We are still in process of implementing
Bo Kinney: that one and I I'm hopeful that it will be happening in August.
Bo Kinney: So, and I don't have the exact numbers in
Bo Kinney: front of me to speak to that right now, but I would say generally yes,
Bo Kinney: there there's going to be a similarly, that's going to be similarly impactful
W Tali Hairston: Yeah.
Bo Kinney: and.
Bo Kinney: Restoring patron access for patrons who had old charges on their accounts,
Bo Kinney: preventing them from being able to use the library,
Bo Kinney: and I would be happy to provide those details in a follow up so that I can give
Bo Kinney: you the exact numbers of when we actually implement.
Bo Kinney: what what the exact number turns out to be. But yeah,
Bo Kinney: it's going to be in that order of magnitude.
Yazmin Mehdi: That's great. And that's an incredible milestone.
Yazmin Mehdi: The reduction of inaccessible or inaccessible accounts is, wow, remarkable.
Yazmin Mehdi: So kudos. Yeah, hats off.
Yazmin Mehdi: Hats off.
Bo Kinney: Thank you.
Ron Chew: Can I make an observation and just A. thought? Great report. Appreciate it, Bo.
Ron Chew: I remember years ago when I was A. kid and I checked out A.
Ron Chew: book from the Library and I lost the book.
Ron Chew: And um.
Ron Chew: You know, when you're at that age, you're not really conscious of fines.
Ron Chew: You just know you did something wrong, but somebody's got to pay something.
Ron Chew: And I remember staying away from the Library for probably, actually, IT was A.
Ron Chew: couple years because I didn't want to tell my parents that there was something
Ron Chew: that I did where I screwed up.
Ron Chew: And I kept looking for the book, couldn't find it. Anyway,
Ron Chew: I can imagine that that May be the situation for some of the kids of
Ron Chew: immigrant parents and others who aren't used to using the library. I had A.
Bo Kinney: Um.
Ron Chew: thought that, and maybe this is sort of.
Ron Chew: Neither here nor there, but is there an opportunity perhaps to in
Ron Chew: terms of, you know, uncollected fines that the foundation
Ron Chew: could make IT sort of A. little bit of A cause or something and
Ron Chew: maybe raise some additional money?
Ron Chew: Um, through this vehicle, just to I don't know if you have any
Ron Chew: thoughts on that, Paul.
Bo Kinney: Yeah. Well, I mean, I really appreciate you sharing that
Bo Kinney: story. And I I think we we see stories like that
Bo Kinney: regularly. And I think the one thing I want to kind
Bo Kinney: of add on to that is that as we.
Bo Kinney: I think something that's still that we still need to,
Bo Kinney: that we need to continue being aware of and working on is that, you know,
Bo Kinney: as I said, this is celebratory. We're really excited.
Bo Kinney: We've made a lot of great changes, but as we're going to continue to have
Bo Kinney: new.
Bo Kinney: As I showed new patrons coming in, as you said,
Bo Kinney: patrons from immigrant communities or for any number of, you know,
Bo Kinney: maybe just using another library system or having a a cultural assumption that
Bo Kinney: libraries charge fines. And you know, so, so it's incumbent on us to make sure that
Bo Kinney: we're communicating that.
Bo Kinney: Continuously that this is our, you know, this was not A. one-time change.
Bo Kinney: This was A. major policy change that's maybe contrary
Bo Kinney: to what people expect A. Library to do. And so I think IT is really important
Bo Kinney: that we think about as many ways as possible to communicate out.
Bo Kinney: You know, not just make the Library more accessible,
Bo Kinney: but make sure we're letting people know how accessible the Library is to use.
Bo Kinney: As far as partnering with the foundation, we have done that specifically with our
Bo Kinney: Fresh Start program, which has done that exact thing.
Bo Kinney: We have worked with the foundation to Support even beyond.
Bo Kinney: The three-year uncollectable debt practices. For many years,
Bo Kinney: the foundation has supported paying charges on accounts for young patrons,
Bo Kinney: young adults ages 12 to 26 who are not able to pay their charges.
Bo Kinney: We are actually looking this year at ways we can.
Bo Kinney: Strengthen that program and and maybe do even more with that. So,
Bo Kinney: so that's one way we are, we're kind of starting to do that.
Bo Kinney: And yes, as you said the foundation can be A.
Bo Kinney: partner there both in supporting financially but also in get helping us
Bo Kinney: get that message out and you know working with Support other supporters in our
Bo Kinney: community to kind of.
Bo Kinney: Make sure that people are aware that this is something that they can benefit from.
Bo Kinney: So if you have other suggestions or ideas for ways we can improve on that,
Bo Kinney: let's hear them because we're, you know, I think that's an active, active area for,
Bo Kinney: you know, continuing to build on these successes.
Ron Chew: Yeah, I mean, part of the reason both that I bring that
Ron Chew: up is the current time period that we're in.
Ron Chew: And I know this from working within the immigrant communities,
Ron Chew: International Community Health Services, anytime there's a public agency of some
Ron Chew: kind.
Ron Chew: People are very fearful, you know, in the case of the community clinics,
Bo Kinney: Mm.
Ron Chew: you know, patient information is being shared with
Ron Chew: the federal government, with Homeland Security,
Ron Chew: because they have to. And so it's deterred.
Bo Kinney: OK.
Ron Chew: Many of patients from coming in. So there's this chilling effect that I
Ron Chew: think cuts across a number of arenas and probably encompasses the library,
Ron Chew: anything where there's some sense that they're connected with the government in
Ron Chew: any way.
Ron Chew: Which obviously Public Library is. So I think it's important to be mindful
Ron Chew: of that that chilling effect and what it could do in terms of access.
Bo Kinney: Such an important point, yes. Thank you.
W Tali Hairston: Well thank you Ron. It looks like Tom is back. Is Tom is here.
W Tali Hairston: Not back Tom is here. But both agree. Thank you and agree with everyone.
Tom Fay: Yes.
W Tali Hairston: Great job. That's much appreciated.
Bo Kinney: Thanks again for the opportunity.
W Tali Hairston: OK. Do we want to move to it looks like
W Tali Hairston: that's the end assistance report. Do you want to come back to the Chief
W Tali Hairston: Librarian's report and and talk to Tom a little bit? Can you hear me? Are you good?
Tom Fay: I I can hear you.
W Tali Hairston: OK.
Tom Fay: So I think we can probably leave the Chief Librarian's report as it stands.
Tom Fay: Unless some folks have some questions, I'm happy to answer those.
W Tali Hairston: Yeah, there are a couple of questions, I believe. Yasmin, if you start,
W Tali Hairston: I'll come behind you unless someone else wants to to start, but go for it.
Yazmin Mehdi: OK, Tom, just a few quick questions. In the in your report you you talked
Yazmin Mehdi: about the new Library Environment and Security Services Manager and that person
Tom Fay: Yeah.
Yazmin Mehdi: sounds wonderful. I'm looking forward to meeting them. I'm.
Yazmin Mehdi: Can you just help me understand where that position sits within the security
Yazmin Mehdi: department? Is that the lead?
Tom Fay: Yeah, the.
Tom Fay: So this, yes, this will be the manager over security
Tom Fay: and reports directly to Rob Gannon.
Yazmin Mehdi: OK, great. That was. I just wanted it's the title for some
Yazmin Mehdi: reason threw me off. And then the other question I had for you
Yazmin Mehdi: was, I'm not going to remember exactly where
Yazmin Mehdi: it is, but there is a mention of the Washington
Yazmin Mehdi: Center for the book.
Yazmin Mehdi: And as I understood it last, Washington Center for the Book used to be
Yazmin Mehdi: housed at SPL, and I think it went over to the State
Yazmin Mehdi: Librarian. Is that correct?
Tom Fay: That is correct.
Yazmin Mehdi: And so I'm curious about if you could at some point share what its future is,
Yazmin Mehdi: given the cuts to the State Library.
Tom Fay: I will note that and I'll do some research.
Yazmin Mehdi: OK. Thank you.
Tom Fay: Mm-hmm.
W Tali Hairston: Anyone else?
W Tali Hairston: OK, my questions were answered actually, so I'm good with the Chief Librarian's
W Tali Hairston: report. We're good to to move on to new
W Tali Hairston: businesses. We don't have any old business.
W Tali Hairston: Our first item is the Ethics and Open Public Meetings Act training.
Tom Fay: Yes. And we'd like to bring Wayne Barnett and
Tom Fay: Gary Smith forward. I believe Amy's doing that now.
Tom Fay: I'd like to also thank Rick Sheridan for starting the meeting off today and most
Tom Fay: certainly running it last month. I did have a good meeting with.
Tom Fay: Several colleagues here at KCLS who's letting me use their boardroom for this,
Tom Fay: but we just finished our meeting with Congress Member Schreyer.
Tom Fay: Very good session discussion discussing the issues that we all have. So again,
Tom Fay: thanks to for Rick for managing today's start and for the management of the
Tom Fay: meeting last.
Tom Fay: Last month.
Tom Fay: And Gary and Wayne, I think you're here. I see Gary.
Smith, Gary: Yes, thank you. Don't know if you have A. preference as to who goes first,
Smith, Gary: but I'm happy to lead IT off. That's fine. Yeah. So good to see everyone.
Smith, Gary: Good morning. So I'm again, I'm Gary Smith,
Smith, Gary: Director of the Government Affairs section of the City Attorney's Office and
Smith, Gary: Government Affairs section really is the point point for advice to.
Smith, Gary: All of the city's boards and commissions. We'll pull in attorneys from other
Smith, Gary: sections as necessary, but we're generally the point for advice
Smith, Gary: on general municipal law, and one of the topics that is within our
Smith, Gary: scope is the Open Public Meetings Act, the presentation.
Smith, Gary: That I'll be presenting today and the OPMA is one of the Washington state laws
Smith, Gary: that promotes transparency in state and local government. And I have A.
Smith, Gary: PowerPoint. I Will go ahead and load that up and.
Smith, Gary: Hopefully that Will go smoothly.
Smith, Gary: Um, is my screen? Uh, am I sharing my screen?
W Tali Hairston: Yes, you are.
Tom Fay: Yes.
Smith, Gary: OK, great, great. So the the Open Public Meetings Act,
Smith, Gary: again, state Law very much in the purpose is to
Smith, Gary: promote transparency in government. Purpose of this training in one sentence
Smith, Gary: is that meetings of the governing bodies of the city, of the city.
Smith, Gary: That includes City Council and city boards and commissions or required to be
Smith, Gary: open to the Public under the under the Open Public Meetings Act.
Smith, Gary: So the purpose of this training is that you are members of the governing of A.
Smith, Gary: governing body that is covered by the OPMA.
Smith, Gary: The OPMA and the OPMA itself actually mandates training,
Smith, Gary: training either within 90 days of assuming the position or a refresher
Smith, Gary: training every four years. So it is important to to have trainings
Smith, Gary: and to update your trainings accordingly.
Smith, Gary: And the the purpose of the OPMA is some of the statements of principle from the
Smith, Gary: state law are set forth here. And really just to give you a flavor of
Smith, Gary: the importance that it is assigned under state law,
Smith, Gary: all boards and commissions exist to aid the conduct of the people's business.
Smith, Gary: Actions are to be taken openly and deliberations conducted openly.
Smith, Gary: People of the state do not yield their sovereignty to the agencies with which
Smith, Gary: serve them. So some very strong principles of purpose,
Faith Pettis: Barry, your screen disappeared.
Smith, Gary: yeah.
Yazmin Mehdi: Yeah.
Smith, Gary: Oh, no. OK.
Faith Pettis: So we just see your background now, not the there it is. There it's back.
Smith, Gary: OK, let me. Oh, I see when I OK, I'll have to. OK, I got it.
W Tali Hairston: I found it was. I can't.
Faith Pettis: Thanks.
Smith, Gary: So some of the highlighted language that you see here does reflect some relatively
Smith, Gary: new provisions of the Open Public Meetings Act,
Smith, Gary: really focusing on the requirement to receive public comment.
Smith, Gary: So that's something that I wanted to highlight.
Smith, Gary: That requirement is met by the opportunity to provide written public
Smith, Gary: comments. So public comment does not need to be
Smith, Gary: taken in an oral format, but that is a relatively new provision of
Smith, Gary: the OPMA and I'll talk a little bit more, a little bit more about that.
Smith, Gary: Also like to start off with some potential consequences for violating the
Smith, Gary: OPMA. Important to highlight these. I think again important for the training
Smith, Gary: to be familiar with the OPMA and ensure compliance,
Smith, Gary: but but also to want to just highlight some of the potential consequences for a
Smith, Gary: violation.
Smith, Gary: And laid those out in this slide as a general matter,
Smith, Gary: just a loss of public trust, a public relations issue and concern when
Smith, Gary: there's any even an allegation that a a governing body has done something in
Smith, Gary: secret outside of the public view.
Smith, Gary: From a legal perspective, the most significant sanction is that any
Smith, Gary: ordinance, resolution or action that is taken by the
Smith, Gary: Board in violation of the OPMA could be declared null and void by a court of law
Smith, Gary: if there was.
Smith, Gary: A challenge and a finding that the OPMA was violated.
Smith, Gary: One of the potential remedies is actually voiding any action that the the governing
Smith, Gary: body took in violation. And that doesn't necessarily mean the
Smith, Gary: just the final vote if there were discussions that violated the OPMA
Smith, Gary: leading up to A.
Smith, Gary: Potential action. Then that could also result in this
Smith, Gary: rather drastic court remedy remedy. OPM violations can serve as a basis to
Smith, Gary: remove a member of a board or committee from that governing body.
Smith, Gary: This is primarily the case for elected officials,
Smith, Gary: but but another just another sort of flavor of how.
Smith, Gary: How significant it is to to comply with the OPMA.
Smith, Gary: And there's also a provision that a court could impose individual civil penalties
Smith, Gary: on members of a governing body that violate the OPMA.
Smith, Gary: This is only for a knowing violation. So if the board member actually knew that
Smith, Gary: they were acting in violation of the OPMA and there was a charge.
Smith, Gary: And a finding that there was a violation and there is a potential for civil
Smith, Gary: penalties. It's not something we've ever, just to be frank,
Smith, Gary: not something we've ever seen assessed in a in a reported case,
Smith, Gary: but it's it's in there and it's again another another indication of the
Smith, Gary: importance with compliance.
Smith, Gary: So when we first talk about what is a, what is a meeting that is covered by the
Smith, Gary: OPMA and that is required to be open to the public, really two components.
Smith, Gary: The the 1st is that it what I'm speaking about today relates to a gathering of a
Smith, Gary: quorum or majority of the board. So nothing that I'm.
Smith, Gary: Presenting today should give you any concern about speaking to one another
Smith, Gary: individually. The OPMA is concerned when it is a there
Smith, Gary: is a quorum or a majority of the board involved in a discussion and the that
Smith, Gary: majority or quorum must have the collective intent to collect to conduct
Smith, Gary: city business.
Smith, Gary: So the OPMA is is not implicated if you are just attending a social event and
Smith, Gary: there is no Board business that is discussed.
Smith, Gary: So those are the the two prerequisites, the two main things that we're concerned
Smith, Gary: about with the OPMA the that there is a quorum or majority of the Board and the
Smith, Gary: collective intent.
Smith, Gary: To conduct board business. Also important to point out that it
Smith, Gary: doesn't require the physical presence of board members.
Smith, Gary: A meeting can take place over telephone, e-mail or video conference. Again,
Smith, Gary: just think about those prerequisites. Is there a majority of the board and is
Smith, Gary: there the collective intent?
Smith, Gary: To conduct board business. Another another thing just to be
Smith, Gary: concerned about or just to be aware of is that e-mail discussions amongst a
Smith, Gary: majority of the board members would implicate the OPMA if that that majority
Smith, Gary: was discussing board business over e-mail.
Smith, Gary: But again, a meeting only takes place when there is
Smith, Gary: the transaction of official business of the governing body.
Smith, Gary: This does include the receipt of testimony, deliberations, discussions.
Smith, Gary: So it's a rather broad application.
Smith, Gary: And definition of action as to when the OPMA may apply will will apply doesn't
Smith, Gary: apply only to final action of the Board. It doesn't apply only to votes.
Smith, Gary: Those discussions, deliberations amongst the majority that
Smith, Gary: lead up to a Board action must take place in an open setting.
Smith, Gary: To comply with the OPMA. Now final action, the final vote or decision on a matter
Smith, Gary: always has to take place in an open meeting.
Smith, Gary: I'll speak a little bit about executive sessions and the board is probably
Smith, Gary: familiar with.
Smith, Gary: Executive sessions, closed sessions that are justified under
Smith, Gary: the OPMA. But even if an executive session is
Smith, Gary: justified, any final action must occur during the
Smith, Gary: open portion of a meeting.
Smith, Gary: And now I'll talk a little bit about the distinction between regular and special
Smith, Gary: meetings. Regular meetings are held in accordance
Smith, Gary: with a a fixed schedule, the Board's adopted schedule for meetings.
Smith, Gary: The really the only requirements there are that the agenda must be posted 24
Smith, Gary: hours in advance of the meeting, but that agenda.
Smith, Gary: That can be modified subsequently. There there's no restrictions on
Smith, Gary: modifying that agenda. I don't know if you can hear behind me,
Smith, Gary: but there's got the Blue Angels and that is distinct from a special meeting.
Smith, Gary: Now the board can meet in compliance with the OPMA.
Smith, Gary: In a special meeting that is not on the Board's regular schedule and that can be
Smith, Gary: called by the presiding officer or a majority of the members.
Smith, Gary: That is a possibility under the under the OPMA.
Smith, Gary: The the real distinction between a special meeting and a regular meeting is
Smith, Gary: that again.
Smith, Gary: Agenda must be posted in advance, but the real difference is that final
Smith, Gary: disposition on any matters may not be taken at a special meeting unless that
Smith, Gary: matter was identified on the agenda that was published and noticed.
Smith, Gary: Uh, for the special meeting. So that's the the big distinction and an
Smith, Gary: important thing to think about. If the board is considering a special
Smith, Gary: meeting, make sure that agenda is broad enough to
Smith, Gary: encompass any of the intended Uh discussions or actions.
Smith, Gary: They'll spend a little time here. This is there is this concept of rolling
Smith, Gary: or serial meetings and I would go back to that that principle that the OPMA is
Smith, Gary: concerned when there is the collective intent amongst a majority of the board to
Smith, Gary: conduct board business.
Smith, Gary: So again, it doesn't apply. It may apply outside of the physical
Smith, Gary: presence of the members, but it also may apply if the if all of
Smith, Gary: the members are not engaged in a contemporaneously in a discussion.
Smith, Gary: So here's try to give a simple example. So if.
Smith, Gary: Yeah, they, let's just say for simplicity, A5 member board and two members discuss
Smith, Gary: an issue and then there is an agreement that one of those members will go to and
Smith, Gary: secure a majority for the particular matter.
Smith, Gary: By speaking to other board members and say, look, we have the votes for this.
Smith, Gary: I've already talked to these board members.
Smith, Gary: They intend to support this that that could constitute a what we call a rolling
Smith, Gary: or a serial meeting, which also does implicate the OPMA.
Smith, Gary: But again, the this does not.
Smith, Gary: We're not concerned with just one-on-one communications.
Smith, Gary: It's when there are communications that really reflect,
Smith, Gary: I'll go back to that that term, the collective intent of the board to
Smith, Gary: come to a decision and essentially secure the votes outside of a outside of an open
Smith, Gary: meeting.
Smith, Gary: We do include some some tips here and we're always available to provide
Smith, Gary: guidance to help board members and compliant act in compliance with the OPMA.
Smith, Gary: But but here are just a few tips. It's perfectly acceptable for less than a
Smith, Gary: majority, less than a quorum to discuss an issue.
Smith, Gary: Outside of an open meeting, work on an issue and develop a developer
Smith, Gary: proposal so long as that it has been presented to the full board for action.
Smith, Gary: So we see this very commonly used amongst boards and commissions and the City
Smith, Gary: Council.
Smith, Gary: Less than a majority, fewer than a majority will meet and and
Smith, Gary: work on a matter in detail outside of an open meeting before it is presented to
Smith, Gary: the the full board. So that's a a practice tip.
Smith, Gary: We include A. few more. They the passive receipt of information
Smith, Gary: amongst A. majority of the Board is allowed under
Smith, Gary: the OPMA. So and I'm sure you're familiar with that
Smith, Gary: when often Amy Will distribute materials to the full Board that is acceptable even
Smith, Gary: though the the quorum or majority of the Board is implicated.
Smith, Gary: Because it's really just passive receipt of that information by the Board members.
Smith, Gary: They're not acting on it. But but what we would caution you about
Smith, Gary: is particularly when you're dealing with e-mail. If you do receive an e-mail,
Smith, Gary: the full Board is on the e-mail. We would caution you about replying All
Smith, Gary: to that e-mail.
Smith, Gary: That is what then could implicate and be considered the collective intent to
Smith, Gary: discuss to conduct Board business outside of an open Meeting because again,
Smith, Gary: you have the majority present on the communication and.
Smith, Gary: If there is the reply All and A. continued discussion,
Smith, Gary: then IT May implicate the OPMA. So we just take away is that passive
Smith, Gary: receipt is OK, but A. caution about reply All when you have the
Smith, Gary: full Board on A. on A. particular communication and then just A.
Smith, Gary: few more.
Smith, Gary: Few more tips. We do suggest that you know you can use A.
Smith, Gary: Staff member to distribute material that is often safer and keeps the Board
Smith, Gary: members at least one step removed for the actual any actual communication with the
Smith, Gary: other members.
Smith, Gary: So several practice tips there. I think I'll I'll just pause there for
Smith, Gary: any any Questions at this point. I'll also have A. Questions at the end,
Smith, Gary: but but some of those, some of these particular slides often
Smith, Gary: generate questions. So I like to just pause there for any
Smith, Gary: questions.
Smith, Gary: If if not, I'll just keep moving Meeting formats the
Smith, Gary: as we see here the the OPMA and this was amendments that were adopted post
Smith, Gary: pandemic, but IT is completely within the terms of
Smith, Gary: the OPMA for any or All Board members to attend.
Smith, Gary: Meeting remotely, virtually that is now clear under under
Smith, Gary: the law. That was an amendment that was adopted
Smith, Gary: post pandemic. That said, there must always be A.
Smith, Gary: physical location for the meeting. There must always be A.
Smith, Gary: physical location where A. member of the public.
Smith, Gary: Can attend and observe the Meeting if that is what they so choose.
Smith, Gary: So again these are these are new provisions but but something just to to
Smith, Gary: be aware of and familiar with and then Public attendance.
Smith, Gary: The Board can't require any certain conditions for.
Smith, Gary: Public attendance at A. meeting. You can Request that members of the
Smith, Gary: Public use A. sign in sheet, but there that's or any other
Smith, Gary: requirements are not allowed under the under the OPMA with the exception of A.
Smith, Gary: generally applicable.
Smith, Gary: Restrictions or regulations, you know, we like the masking mandate.
Smith, Gary: There were Questions about that when IT was in place and if it's A.
Smith, Gary: general restriction that like that that applies to the public,
Smith, Gary: then that is acceptable for A. A. Meeting requirement for A. meeting.
Smith, Gary: And then Public comment. As I mentioned at the outset,
Smith, Gary: there is now A. requirement that the Board receive Public
Smith, Gary: comment that is satisfied if there is the opportunity for written Public comment.
Smith, Gary: It does not have to be oral Public comment.
Smith, Gary: And but but again and I think the Board maybe May recall the discussion that we
Smith, Gary: had about the the Public comment period and when IT is opened up implicates other
Smith, Gary: legal concerns. But I'll I won't once revisit that in
Smith, Gary: this presentation but just something to be aware of when when oral Public comment
Smith, Gary: is.
Smith, Gary: An opportunity for oral Public comment is provided. Next slide is just A.
Smith, Gary: this is just A. decision tree about when Public comment
Smith, Gary: is required, really more for Staff than the than the
Smith, Gary: board. So I'll just skip over that and get to
Smith, Gary: Executive sessions. These are closed sessions,
Smith, Gary: so these are opportunities for A. majority of the Board to meet.
Smith, Gary: Outside of an open meeting, they must be. It must be pursuant to A.
Smith, Gary: specific justification that is set forth in the OPMA itself, and there are A.
Smith, Gary: number. Some of the common ones are review of the
Smith, Gary: Performance of A. Public employee or to receive.
Smith, Gary: Legal advice. So again, that is A. possibility.
Smith, Gary: It just needs to be pursuant to one of the stated exceptions to the open Meeting
Smith, Gary: requirement in the OPMA itself. And then procedurally, this is just A.
W Tali Hairston: Mhm.
Smith, Gary: slide covering the procedural calling of an exec session.
Smith, Gary: The presiding officer states the purpose, ties IT to the OPMA.
Smith, Gary: Stated justification and announces the time that IT Will take place that Will
Smith, Gary: take. There's slight distinction between that
Smith, Gary: and closed sessions, closed sessions not applicable to every
Smith, Gary: Board or Commission, and I'll just skip to the next slide.
Smith, Gary: This applies to when you have A. quasi judicial.
Smith, Gary: Proceedings collective bargaining sessions that could be that could be A.
Smith, Gary: justification for A. A. A. closed session for the Library board.
Smith, Gary: These other the three and four aren't really applicable, but just A.
Smith, Gary: slight distinction from.
Smith, Gary: From an Executive session, that's really just A.
Smith, Gary: closed session where the OPMA doesn't apply at all,
Smith, Gary: so no requirement to state the the reason or the time that's just outside of the
Smith, Gary: the requirements of the act completely. Minutes are required to be taken again,
Smith, Gary: something that Staff is.
Smith, Gary: Manages and ensures that that those are are sufficiently in compliance with the
Smith, Gary: OPMA, but that is there's A. requirement, A. state Law requirement for minutes.
Smith, Gary: Then I think, yeah, just in closing the really just five
Smith, Gary: takeaways. You know that again the primary purpose
Smith, Gary: is to promote transparency and trust in local and state government.
Smith, Gary: OPMA training is an important guide, but also required A.
Smith, Gary: legal requirement and you can All confidently say after today that you are
Smith, Gary: in.
Smith, Gary: Compliance and are up to date on your training difference between A.
Smith, Gary: regular and special meeting. We talked about the rolling or serial
Smith, Gary: Meeting and then the use of technology. Again,
Smith, Gary: the time when we see the most opportunity or potential for inadvertent.
Smith, Gary: Issues with the open A is the use of e-mail.
Smith, Gary: So we just caution caution the Board members with their their use of e-mail
Smith, Gary: with with particularly with other Board members.
Smith, Gary: And that's the conclusion of my part. Any any Questions arise?
Smith, Gary: And if not, just know that we are myself are always
Smith, Gary: available. Again, really the point of contact for just
Smith, Gary: general municipal advice. So always know that we're available and
Smith, Gary: anytime you have any further Questions or any follow up on this or any other.
Smith, Gary: Any other legal matters. So thanks for your time.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you, Gary. Definitely we'll follow up with you if we
W Tali Hairston: do have any questions.
Barnett, Wayne: All right. Should I start off?
Tom Fay: Yes, thanks, Owen.
Barnett, Wayne: All right. My name is Wayne Barnett and I'm the
Barnett, Wayne: Executive Director of the Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission.
Barnett, Wayne: And our main role and reason I'm here today is administering and enforcing the
Barnett, Wayne: ethics code. So that's the code we All live by.
Barnett, Wayne: It's the code that guarantees the Public some measure of.
Barnett, Wayne: You know, A. good government and it's my role to do
Barnett, Wayne: that. And I do IT in two ways. First off, I do trainings like this and just give
Barnett, Wayne: advice. So please call me if you ever have any
Barnett, Wayne: questions. The other, my other way of doing IT is through
Barnett, Wayne: enforcement. And I don't like doing enforcement,
Barnett, Wayne: but I sometimes have to. So that's where we're actually in an
Barnett, Wayne: investigative.
Barnett, Wayne: Mode looking into allegations and deciding what to do with them.
Barnett, Wayne: So in the advisory mode, I'll just tell you the main thing about
Barnett, Wayne: the ethics code is just stay away from your family. You're not stay away,
Barnett, Wayne: but you know if you're doing something officially,
Barnett, Wayne: you just need to make sure you're not.
Barnett, Wayne: I'm sorry, you have to make sure that your Family is
Barnett, Wayne: not involved in IT or or your business or any or you personally. So that's sorry.
Barnett, Wayne: So that's that's A. key thing. The other thing is making sure that
Barnett, Wayne: people aren't using their position for their private benefit. That's probably.
Barnett, Wayne: Probably the most important thing to the public,
Barnett, Wayne: just make sure you're not in any way using your position to advance an
Barnett, Wayne: interest that is not the city's interest. So if you have someone in mind for A. job,
Barnett, Wayne: you think they'd be great for it, just be careful about calling Tom and
Barnett, Wayne: saying, hey Tom, I have this person who'd be really great
Barnett, Wayne: for this job because you hire and fire Tom. So that's.
Barnett, Wayne: That's where you just have to be conscious,
Barnett, Wayne: like how would this Look to the to the normal person?
Barnett, Wayne: So that's that's where our main thing. We're just worried about A.
Barnett, Wayne: reasonable person and what they're going to think of these things.
Barnett, Wayne: Another thing that get the ethics code does is IT read IT low.
Barnett, Wayne: It deals with gifts, so if anybody offers you A. gift,
Barnett, Wayne: that's fine. But if it's A. gift that could be interpreted as
Barnett, Wayne: intended to influence your official actions, that's A. different story.
Barnett, Wayne: So if you get invited to A. Mariners game to discuss,
Barnett, Wayne: to discuss Library business.
Barnett, Wayne: You can go, just don't let the person who's invited
Barnett, Wayne: you pay your way. So that's that's important.
Barnett, Wayne: So that's the ethics code. We also do the elections code.
Barnett, Wayne: So and that's we've had some dealings with the Library on that.
Barnett, Wayne: I think that's where this come up more than anything.
Barnett, Wayne: That's where our two agencies have gotten tangled up, but.
Barnett, Wayne: Just make sure that for the ballot measures,
Barnett, Wayne: make sure you're not in any way using your resources to promote A.
Barnett, Wayne: ballot measure. So with the the families net levy coming
Barnett, Wayne: up, just make sure you're not recommending
Barnett, Wayne: that Tom put in the libraries like.
Barnett, Wayne: Libraries like things that are promoting Library levy or that that levy.
Barnett, Wayne: Also you have to stay away from candidates.
Barnett, Wayne: We shouldn't be perceived as like promoting or opposing candidates.
Barnett, Wayne: So that's where I think A. couple years ago there was A.
Barnett, Wayne: forum you All put together and I think you know you only invited 3 candidates,
Barnett, Wayne: which I think was.
Barnett, Wayne: Sense. They were the three candidates who really
Barnett, Wayne: had A. legitimate Chance at winning. But you're A.
Barnett, Wayne: Public agency and we just have to make sure we're not in any way limiting voters
Barnett, Wayne: choices. So that's where actually A. complaint came in from one of the people
Barnett, Wayne: who was excluded in the.
Barnett, Wayne: The Commission actually found in his favor,
Barnett, Wayne: so we just have to make sure like everybody's invited it.
Barnett, Wayne: We we can't keep out anybody who is A. candidate for an Office for appearing in
Barnett, Wayne: A. Library forum. So yeah, that's my whole thing.
Barnett, Wayne: Anybody have any Questions for me?
Barnett, Wayne: Yeah, like I said, my the main thing. If you remember nothing else,
Barnett, Wayne: just remember my face. Call me. Yes, I'd be happy to help you.
W Tali Hairston: Will do. Thanks, Wayne.
Barnett, Wayne: All right. You're welcome.
Tom Fay: OK.
W Tali Hairston: Oh.
Tom Fay: Accessible. I I greatly appreciate their guidance and
Tom Fay: advice through a number of sometimes sticky questions that we need to make
Tom Fay: some determinations on. So they both mean it when they say give
Tom Fay: them a call and we're more than happy to facilitate that through Amy.
W Tali Hairston: Awesome. Hi.
W Tali Hairston: Are we ready to go to our library use of artificial intelligence policy where we
W Tali Hairston: are needing to approve the to vote on the approval of the policy?
Tom Fay: Yes. And we'll bring, I believe we're bringing Rob Gannon and
Tom Fay: Charles Wesley forward.
Tom Fay: Amy is doing that now. I know you've had a a couple of months to
Tom Fay: see some of this as it's been building towards its final and actually Jim Loder
Rob Gannon: Uh.
Tom Fay: may also be coming forward on this one. I think it is Jim actually.
Tom Fay: Bob, I'll turn it over to you for the first
Tom Fay: part of this, if that's appropriate.
Rob Gannon: It is, Tom, and just as soon as Charles and Jim are
Rob Gannon: promoted, I'm going to turn IT over to them.
Rob Gannon: But good morning, members of the board. As you're All well aware,
W Tali Hairston: Morning.
Rob Gannon: we brought forward A. draft policy for your consideration at
Rob Gannon: your last meeting.
Rob Gannon: Since that time, we've been continuing to review the
Rob Gannon: policy and understand what IT means for the Library and done some work
Rob Gannon: socializing IT inside the library. Jim Loder has been the.
Rob Gannon: Principal Library resource building this policy and stewarding IT forward to this
Rob Gannon: point. And so I'm going to turn IT over to him
Rob Gannon: where he can give you A. brief update on the purpose of the policy
Rob Gannon: just to restate IT for the record and then answer any Questions or receive any
Rob Gannon: comments that you might have before you begin your consideration.
Rob Gannon: Iteration. So Jim, I'll turn IT over to you and Charles and
Rob Gannon: I Will remain available as necessary for questions.
Jim Loter: Thank you, Rob. Can everybody hear me OK? Great.
Jim Loter: Thank you very much to the Board for inviting us today.
Jim Loter: You heard from myself last month as the policy was submitted to you for your
W Tali Hairston: 8.
Jim Loter: review.
Jim Loter: The memo that is in your packet covers a few,
W Tali Hairston: Mm.
Jim Loter: I I would say non consequential changes that were made to the draft between then
Jim Loter: and now, mostly clarifying some language and
Jim Loter: addressing some.
Jim Loter: Areas of responsibility that were incorrect in the in the first draft.
Jim Loter: But just as a recap, artificial intelligence technologies have
Jim Loter: become widely available, accessible and popular in the last few
Jim Loter: years.
Jim Loter: And collectively, they present what we consider to be new
Jim Loter: and novel risks and controversies that may conflict at times with the Library's
Jim Loter: values, with our commitments to our staff and to
Jim Loter: the public, and with legal and regulatory obligations.
Jim Loter: The policy was developed, filtered through those lenses to
Jim Loter: establish the groundwork for future efforts to develop procedures and
Jim Loter: approval policies or approval guidelines, excuse me, that cover.
Jim Loter: The acquisition and use of technologies in the library.
Jim Loter: The primary component of that is the formation of an AI Governance Committee
Jim Loter: composed of members of library staff to advise.
Jim Loter: Leadership on directions related to the adoption of a I technology.
Jim Loter: So that is a recap of of why we're here and why we're considering this policy.
Jim Loter: My understanding is the policy is presented to you all today for your
Jim Loter: approval and I am also open as is Charles Wesley for any.
Jim Loter: Questions you might have before a vote is taken.
W Tali Hairston: OK. Do we have any other presentations or is
W Tali Hairston: that?
W Tali Hairston: If not, welcome.
Jim Loter: I'm sorry, I had trouble hearing President.
W Tali Hairston: I was asking, are there any more presentations around
W Tali Hairston: the policy or can we start to?
Jim Loter: No, I I have nothing. I have nothing to to share.
W Tali Hairston: discuss and ask questions.
Jim Loter: I I presented all all at the last meeting. Thank you.
W Tali Hairston: You did. Thank you, Ron.
Ron Chew: Yeah. Can I? And this is because I was in DC not long
Ron Chew: ago as part of AARP and we're discussing the whole issue of AI and the
Ron Chew: conversation and it's actually around policies as well, but.
Ron Chew: Their conversation took on more of the flavor of around the environmental impact,
Ron Chew: the data centers that are sucking enormous energy, you know,
Ron Chew: and and affecting.
Ron Chew: In particular, a lot of communities of color and the
Ron Chew: disproportionate impact. I know it's sort of referenced in the
Ron Chew: policy, but Jim, do you have any thoughts on how that
Ron Chew: might play out, you know, long term as we?
Ron Chew: Start thinking about this whole issue.
Jim Loter: Yeah, absolutely. It's a great question and it's a concern
Jim Loter: of mine, a primary concern of mine as well.
Jim Loter: We will be the the policy directs that the AI Governance Committee be tasked
Jim Loter: with developing standards around environmental impact as a part of the
Jim Loter: criteria for adopting.
Jim Loter: Approving a technology for adoption. Separately, at this point,
Jim Loter: Charles and I have been meeting and having discussions with an organization
Jim Loter: that we are hoping can help guide us on pointing us to benchmarks and other.
Jim Loter: Data regarding environmental use, among other factors for the major
Jim Loter: technology platforms and and language models.
Jim Loter: So with the resources that that organization pointed us to,
Jim Loter: my hope is that the AI.
Jim Loter: Advisory Committee or excuse me, AI Governance Committee can be guided to
Jim Loter: develop responsible standards and guidelines based on information that's
Jim Loter: available that will factor into our decision about which technologies to
Jim Loter: approve.
Jim Loter: With with environ and I'm specifically talking about environmental and
Jim Loter: sustainability impacts. So those benchmarks are out there,
Jim Loter: they they exist. There is both academic and industrial
Jim Loter: research that's available.
Jim Loter: The challenge is that the data is sometimes hard to come by.
Jim Loter: It's not necessarily transparently shared or offered by the companies running these
Jim Loter: models, but we are definitely looking at reliable
Jim Loter: sources of that information to serve as guidelines for decision-making along.
Jim Loter: On this front, absolutely.
Ron Chew: Yeah, thank you, Jim. I I was astonished and digging a little
Ron Chew: deeper into it, the incredible environmental impact of
Ron Chew: what what we're doing. So just it's front of mind a little bit
Ron Chew: on a number of.
Ron Chew: Levels.
Jim Loter: Absolutely. Thank you.
Tom Fay: And I think that's why IT IT is such an important piece as we Look at IT because
Tom Fay: you know you don't want to do something that provides A.
Tom Fay: very small net gain for what the impact could be on the environment.
Ron Chew: Yep.
Tom Fay: So that that definitely went into the thinking on this and most certainly the
Tom Fay: city as well.
Tom Fay: Obviously, as we host some of these larger providers
Tom Fay: of some of these Services in the region, that's also A. big consideration.
W Tali Hairston: Yes, yes, Linda.
Yazmin Mehdi: Yeah. One thing that I had read about is that
Yazmin Mehdi: in trying to train AI, there had been this recommendation to,
Yazmin Mehdi: for example, use the words please and thank you,
Yazmin Mehdi: but using the words please and thank you in and of themselves generate.
Yazmin Mehdi: More impact environmentally. So like the ethical,
Yazmin Mehdi: the ethical considerations are are large. So really appreciate that you guys are
Yazmin Mehdi: taking into account the environmental impact. My questions are about.
Yazmin Mehdi: How can we use? How can we help patrons understand how A.
Yazmin Mehdi: I can be problematic? And for example, are we thinking about training our
Yazmin Mehdi: patrons in the use of A. I because?
Yazmin Mehdi: To some extent, when they use our Public computers,
Yazmin Mehdi: they are already accessing A. I and so they're having an impact.
Yazmin Mehdi: And so for example, one thing that is really concerning is
Yazmin Mehdi: this hallucinatory impact or hallucinate.
Yazmin Mehdi: data that AI Will make up. Um And so one of the things I think that
Yazmin Mehdi: the Library can help people understand is what that looks like or how to Look for
Yazmin Mehdi: it.
Yazmin Mehdi: So I think about that and whether or not that is something that you All are
Yazmin Mehdi: considering for programming.
Jim Loter: Thank you. It's a great observation. I see that my colleague Kristina Darnell
Jim Loter: is is here on the call. She and I have had conversations about
Jim Loter: this and and Kristina has been also connected with the organization that I
Jim Loter: referred to before. More on that public workshop and public.
Jim Loter: Awareness front that that you're describing.
Jim Loter: So it is very much on our minds that the library may have a role in the community
Jim Loter: to help residents understand the impacts of this technology,
Jim Loter: how to recognize it when it's being used and and some of the risks that they may
Jim Loter: come across.
Jim Loter: In using it it is, it is very definitely been on on heavy
Jim Loter: rotation on discussions that that we in IT have had with our colleagues in the
Jim Loter: library programs and services, absolutely.
Tom Fay: A couple of colleagues and I when we were talking at one of the national levels
Tom Fay: even said, you know, maybe we also run some campaigns about
Tom Fay: let your library and or your libraries be your fact checker of AI, right?
Tom Fay: Because it because of those hallucinations or.
Tom Fay: Um, again, biases in data. How can how can the library still play
Tom Fay: that critical role of? Hey, let me just double check this.
Yazmin Mehdi: Even think of like Public service messages on our Public computers letting
Yazmin Mehdi: people know, hey, are you using A. I to do your research? Remember,
Yazmin Mehdi: Librarians sitting not far from you can help you Fact Check that.
Tom Fay: A good idea.
Jim Loter: Thank you.
W Tali Hairston: And I I went straight to the prohibited uses section just because of my
W Tali Hairston: background in in higher Ed where that initially was the focus, right?
W Tali Hairston: It's like how can we prevent some of these uses?
W Tali Hairston: That are either deceptive, that use things like essentially are the
W Tali Hairston: dark side of AI, right? And and I just, I just want to be able to say I asked the
W Tali Hairston: question. I think I know the answer.
W Tali Hairston: You have thoroughly vetted the prohibitive uses of AI and its
W Tali Hairston: applications that might affect dissemination of or misleading
W Tali Hairston: information dissemination of.
W Tali Hairston: Of misinformation of deceptive content you've gone through in your minds,
W Tali Hairston: Jim and Tom, as much as you know of AI to eliminate
W Tali Hairston: the uses that that are harmful and and promote incorrect information to society.
Jim Loter: Yes, I I that that is our intent and we
Jim Loter: believe that we have. Obviously this is a new and evolving
Jim Loter: still still very evolving technology. So we do intend as the policy directs.
Jim Loter: For usage guidelines and standards to be derived out of the policy,
Jim Loter: which can be changed and can evolve and can and can address emerging issues much
Jim Loter: more rapidly than a policy can. So the policy I I think does include,
Jim Loter: as you mentioned, for a broad and blanket.
Jim Loter: Absolute no goes with regard to using the technology,
Jim Loter: but we think under those categories as usage does expand and as we learn more
Jim Loter: from the world and the environment that we live in,
Jim Loter: I think that we we have some good mechanisms with the AI Governance
Jim Loter: Committee coming online.
Jim Loter: Fine to address even more issues as as they emerge.
Jim Loter: It was not our intent I think to start from a point of we are going to only
Jim Loter: focus on prohibited uses and not also leave room to.
Jim Loter: Allow library staff to use a I in places where it might make sense,
Jim Loter: but but as with everything, we want to make sure that we're being
Jim Loter: responsible stewards of everything, including the truth.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you.
Charles Wesley: And I I'd just like to briefly add on that what we're bringing to you with this
Charles Wesley: policy is representative of an approach that we're going to apply to other areas
Charles Wesley: of technology where there are going to be ethical or moral dilemmas that the
Charles Wesley: Library Will have to face and IT is A. combination of.
Charles Wesley: Policy and governance. And so the governing body is intended to
Charles Wesley: be that place where these dilemmas can be brought and recommendations or decisions
Charles Wesley: can be made, and also where there's going to be an
Charles Wesley: opportunity for there to be A. continued evaluation of not just an
Charles Wesley: evaluation of the.
Charles Wesley: Tool to approve its procurement, but to govern how IT is used in practice
Charles Wesley: and to ensure that in practice IT is being used in the way that IT was
Charles Wesley: initially proposed. And so if there needs to be some
Charles Wesley: corrective guidance given, that body Will be empowered with either
Charles Wesley: being able to just independently make that judgment or to escalate.
Charles Wesley: To Leadership for A. decision and specifically because this is
Charles Wesley: going to be an evolving landscape, we want to make sure that that governance
Charles Wesley: is is just as important as the policy itself.
Tom Fay: And the policy always can be adapted and and or just change as needed.
Tom Fay: I mean the one thing we're going to have to watch on this and the Governance
Tom Fay: Committee will be assisting in this is what laws are changing both at the.
Tom Fay: Federal, state and then even the local level that
Tom Fay: may impact the policy. So they'll be the the first tier to be
Tom Fay: really looking at that and to catch that so that we're not just keeping policy out
Tom Fay: there that now is not.
Tom Fay: Responsive to the realities of other legal matters within the country.
Tom Fay: In many, in many cases, I think there just hasn't been precedent
W Tali Hairston: Yeah, they.
Tom Fay: on some of this, these tools and some of the potential bad
Tom Fay: outcomes of these tools. So once that starts rolling in,
Tom Fay: laws will change.
Faith Pettis: So I had raised something June meeting as well and I have to say I think the policy
Faith Pettis: is really great. I think you've thought through issues it
Faith Pettis: shows.
Faith Pettis: It's well-rounded. I'm going to be very supportive of this.
Faith Pettis: I had asked at the last meeting about a little more detail in my governance
Faith Pettis: committee and had received an answer that it was still being discussed and realized.
Faith Pettis: I I think that the governance committee, while it may be internal to the library,
Faith Pettis: can also benefit from outside experts.
Faith Pettis: We're really fortunate to be the part of the country we are in where AI is being
Faith Pettis: developed here locally and there are people out there that are going to be on
Faith Pettis: the cutting edge of the next developments of AI.
Faith Pettis: I I'm concerned that we not only look at what.
Faith Pettis: How this, how it impacts us now under this policy,
Faith Pettis: but what could be coming down the Pike that we need to be responsive to and that
Faith Pettis: the policy adjust not just for the way AI is used now,
Faith Pettis: but how it may be used in the future. Because I think that's where the danger
Faith Pettis: is, is that it's.
Faith Pettis: Moving so quickly, it's gonna pass this policy and next week
Faith Pettis: there may be something else coming out on A I that's gonna throw us for a loop.
Faith Pettis: So if as you develop that governance committee,
Faith Pettis: you can think about how to bring in people that are really knowledgeable
Faith Pettis: about what's coming.
Faith Pettis: Think that would that fit the library.
Jim Loter: It's a great suggestion. Thank you very much.
Yazmin Mehdi: Related to that, I think Faith makes a good point and her
Yazmin Mehdi: raising that last time was in the back of my head as I read the new policy or the
Yazmin Mehdi: final policy. And another thought is not just the
Yazmin Mehdi: people who are developing A I, but also the people who are.
Yazmin Mehdi: Thinking about how a I effects civil liberties,
Yazmin Mehdi: I think getting their perspective because they're also thinking about the misuse of
Yazmin Mehdi: a I going forward and I sometimes think our our private sector colleagues don't.
Yazmin Mehdi: Think enough about the potential misuse and I'll just share. For example,
Yazmin Mehdi: when I worked for Congresswoman Jayapal, I was part of a committee that the Port
Yazmin Mehdi: of Seattle pulled together around the use of biometric data in the airport.
Yazmin Mehdi: And you know, we had, we had members of airlines and cruise
Yazmin Mehdi: lines, you know, who were really talking about the
Yazmin Mehdi: efficacy of using facial recognition to, you know,
Yazmin Mehdi: load planes and load cruise ships.
Yazmin Mehdi: But without having the ACLU there and some government folks there,
Yazmin Mehdi: they might not have heard about. Well, yeah, part of the problem is, though,
Yazmin Mehdi: that these facial recognition systems are not 100% accurate and they've been
Yazmin Mehdi: trained on.
Yazmin Mehdi: Primarily white faces. So anyway, my only point here is just we should be
Yazmin Mehdi: thinking about, we should maybe be taking into account
Yazmin Mehdi: folks who are thinking about the civil liberties side of a A I.
Yazmin Mehdi: But I agree with Faith that having some folks who might give you some more
Yazmin Mehdi: objective opinions might be helpful. And I I too am very interested in the
Yazmin Mehdi: makeup of the A I Governance Committee and.
Yazmin Mehdi: Maybe at some future point, Tom, these folks could come back and give us a
Yazmin Mehdi: report on what they're finding and how it's going,
Yazmin Mehdi: because I think it could be illustrative, not just to ourselves and running the
Yazmin Mehdi: organization, but to patrons.
Yazmin Mehdi: Thank you.
Tom Fay: Yeah, I I I agree. Yasmin will. We will be bringing back more on this
Tom Fay: topic. I think one of the things I'm trying to
Tom Fay: do.
Tom Fay: At a national level is to make sure that we're involved in those discussions.
Tom Fay: So from a Public Library side, but also and this is kind of news,
Tom Fay: we're trying to tie this together a little bit before October, but.
Tom Fay: We're looking at trying to bring in Digital Public Library and really have
Tom Fay: the convening on this at UW. So bringing in Ben Lee, I know,
Tom Fay: I'm pretty sure Jim knows Ben Lee over at UW again and really approaches this from
Tom Fay: the ethics side of things.
Tom Fay: Some of these things around, you know, saving democracy,
Tom Fay: the civil liberties and issues, et cetera. So I think having folks and starting to
Tom Fay: have those discussions again with libraries involved in that at some
Tom Fay: different levels I think will be key in bringing folks in.
Tom Fay: Even if we're only able to bring them into the governance committee as guests
Tom Fay: on occasion, I think we'll constantly refresh the
Tom Fay: knowledge that's out there about where a I is going.
W Tali Hairston: OK, I think we.
W Tali Hairston: Have had our discussion.
W Tali Hairston: The recommendation to approve the library use of artificial intelligence policy is
W Tali Hairston: before you. Do I have a motion?
Faith Pettis: I'll make that motion.
Yazmin Mehdi: 2nd.
W Tali Hairston: It is a motion and seconded to approve the Library Use of Artificial
W Tali Hairston: Intelligence Policy as published in your board packet. All in favor.
W Tali Hairston: Post.
W Tali Hairston: Ayes have it. Policy passes. We look forward to continuing to learn
W Tali Hairston: with you as a board. We think this is one of the areas that we
W Tali Hairston: probably should stay closer to because it is an evolving issue that has
W Tali Hairston: implications in terms of law and government and so.
W Tali Hairston: I feel like we have a board who can who can kind of walk with you on this one.
Jim Loter: Great. Thank you. Thank you all so very much.
Jim Loter: A great conversation and thank you for the approval.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you, Jen. Thank you, Tom. Thank you, Charles.
W Tali Hairston: Union report is up next.
Tom Fay: I we were at Jesse in. I think she's coming forward.
Yazmin Mehdi: Yeah.
Tom Fay: There we are.
Jessica Lucas: Yeah, here I am. I just wanted to thank the Board for
Jessica Lucas: their work as always and say that I will let our statements stand for this month.
Jessica Lucas: I will be gone next month and so I'll make an attempt to get another leadership
Jessica Lucas: person or one of our Executive Board members to come in my place.
Jessica Lucas: Thank you and great meeting.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you, Jesse. We do have the Board report in our packet.
Tom Fay: Thanks, Justin.
W Tali Hairston: I mean, excuse me, do have the Union report in our packet.
W Tali Hairston: And so it's there for us. Appreciate that, Jesse.
W Tali Hairston: Next is our our updates Library Foundation and Friends of the Library.
W Tali Hairston: We'll start with Carmen.
Bendixen, Carmen: Yes, the foundation met a few weeks ago, July 9th.
Bendixen, Carmen: Just a few tidbits for you is actually kind of chock full of information on
Bendixen, Carmen: fundraising. They're in good shape. They actually beginning with the summer.
Bendixen, Carmen: They're at 2.5 million for the total, which is about 76% of the total goal for
Bendixen, Carmen: the year. So that's great news. In terms of advocacy,
Bendixen, Carmen: we had a really informative presentation from the folks from NWP Consulting.
Bendixen, Carmen: Previously ran the campaigns for previous library levies and they talked about
Bendixen, Carmen: expectations and timelines for a potential 2026 levy.
Bendixen, Carmen: And then also on the advocacy front, they talked about.
Bendixen, Carmen: The the plan network, so the Public Library Action Network,
Bendixen, Carmen: if you, I think we all know about that and I
Bendixen, Carmen: think we're all on the list. But if you aren't,
Bendixen, Carmen: let me know and I will send you a link. They had set a goal of for the year of
Bendixen, Carmen: 1000 memberships. They've now exceeded that.
Bendixen, Carmen: 1034 memberships, so more people are getting the emails and
Bendixen, Carmen: reaching out. We also had an update from folks that
Bendixen, Carmen: went to the International Public Library Fundraising Conference, which was in June.
Bendixen, Carmen: That was something that John Award started a few years ago,
Bendixen, Carmen: so they actually had.
Bendixen, Carmen: Foundation staff and also a few board members attend the conference and they
Bendixen, Carmen: gave some presentations on their experience and insights.
Bendixen, Carmen: So it sounded like a successful experience.
Bendixen, Carmen: I think each each person had their a lot of different takeaways, so.
Bendixen, Carmen: Um.
Bendixen, Carmen: Strategic planning. So as you may remember,
Bendixen, Carmen: the foundation is working on their strategic plan.
Bendixen, Carmen: They had a work session during the meeting on their values and trying to,
Bendixen, Carmen: I don't want to say parse, but really get down to what do their
Bendixen, Carmen: values mean and what do those terms mean and are they?
Bendixen, Carmen: Their values that they want to kind of make front and center was really well
Bendixen, Carmen: done. So they're continuing that work. They're doing community listening
Bendixen, Carmen: sessions in it says the summer, early fall,
Bendixen, Carmen: but I want to say like summer's almost over, so I'm not sure.
Bendixen, Carmen: What that timing actually means? I'll find out. And then finally,
Bendixen, Carmen: for library appreciation for library employees,
Bendixen, Carmen: Foundation Board members were delivering these.
Bendixen, Carmen: Fun in the Sun buckets to all branches and they included, you know,
Bendixen, Carmen: summer kind of treats and and fun activities for staff that they could have
Bendixen, Carmen: in the break rooms and just enjoy the the few months of of sun and fun that we get.
Bendixen, Carmen: Um, that is all for the foundation.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you, Carmen. Yasmin.
Yazmin Mehdi: Hi everyone. First I want to note on plan because
Yazmin Mehdi: first of all everyone should be signed up for plan.
Yazmin Mehdi: But I I actually had to clarify with Tom that you know plan messages,
Yazmin Mehdi: they're they're really careful about not inundating people with with those
Yazmin Mehdi: messages.
Yazmin Mehdi: But some of those involve lobbying City Council, for example.
Yazmin Mehdi: So just note that like as board members, we should be doing that together as
Yazmin Mehdi: opposed to separately and and then.
Yazmin Mehdi: So my report is actually about the friends though.
Yazmin Mehdi: So a couple things they in their July board meeting,
Yazmin Mehdi: they had seven potential board members attend.
Yazmin Mehdi: So they're doing an incredible job of keeping that board robust and bringing in
Yazmin Mehdi: new people.
Yazmin Mehdi: They're going to confirm new candidates at their fall annual meeting. You know,
Yazmin Mehdi: one of their big goals is around giving books out. They gave 5291 books in June,
Yazmin Mehdi: just June.
Yazmin Mehdi: And that's partly because there were a lot of public events that they attended,
Yazmin Mehdi: for example, Rainbow City, Juneteenth and Pride events in June.
Yazmin Mehdi: But they also do books for teachers. They do lots of different ways of.
Yazmin Mehdi: Giving books away and if you haven't been to the Georgetown location,
Yazmin Mehdi: if you ever get a chance, stop by. Lisa Lee has a has set up a great little
Yazmin Mehdi: shop down there and lots of different kinds of books are available.
Yazmin Mehdi: Finally, their print-on-demand T-shirt test has
Yazmin Mehdi: been completed with Friends designs, including Library Friends with Library
Yazmin Mehdi: Benefits artwork. Very cute, and they're going to be making these
Yazmin Mehdi: available to the general public with a discount for members.
Yazmin Mehdi: Look with a discount for members. And the other thing I wanted to note is
Yazmin Mehdi: that the Friendshop has been closed on Sundays since the pandemic,
Yazmin Mehdi: but they have been experimenting with opening up and their next test is Labor
Yazmin Mehdi: Day weekend, although.
Yazmin Mehdi: Library's not open on Sunday on. Oh, right. Library's not open on Labor Day,
Yazmin Mehdi: but it is open on the Sunday before Labor Day. So that's one of their test days.
Yazmin Mehdi: And that's all for me. And my only objection with what Carmen
Yazmin Mehdi: just said is that the light, the summer's almost over.
W Tali Hairston: No.
W Tali Hairston: Mhm.
Yazmin Mehdi: No, don't say it. We still have a whole month.
Bendixen, Carmen: I know, I know. It's we still have August. I know.
W Tali Hairston: And in Seattle, we consider part of September, right?
W Tali Hairston: We consider September summer to you guys. That's because we don't start until July,
Tom Fay: OK.
Bendixen, Carmen: Yeah, it's fine.
W Tali Hairston: so.
Bendixen, Carmen: This is true.
W Tali Hairston: OK. Thank you. Thank you, Carmen, for those updates.
W Tali Hairston: Any library board member updates?
Faith Pettis: I I need to jump at 11, 12:30, but I wanted to just say I so enjoyed the
W Tali Hairston: Yeah.
Faith Pettis: opportunity to go to ALA in Philadelphia and much appreciation to the library and
Faith Pettis: to the foundation for making that happen.
Faith Pettis: I know my fellow trustees may have something to say,
Faith Pettis: but if I could just briefly recap that the plenary sessions from the opening
Faith Pettis: plenary with the Mayor of Philadelphia all the way through Gretchen Whitmer to
Faith Pettis: Carla Hayden to George Takei. I mean, it was just.
Faith Pettis: Really inspirational to hear and see this library community.
Faith Pettis: I I really gravitated towards the sessions that were more legal focused.
Faith Pettis: So when two ones on freedom of expression, censorship,
Faith Pettis: library advocacy and Snow Isle was actually moderating that advocacy session,
Faith Pettis: which is great.
Faith Pettis: I went to one on legal issues where there was a attorney there who was just
Faith Pettis: answering questions from librarians who had top of mind legal questions for him,
Faith Pettis: government engagement and placemaking. And so there were some really solid.
Faith Pettis: Educational sessions as well, but I think overarching for me that what
Faith Pettis: was most impactful was the conversations about how to navigate the turbulent times
Faith Pettis: and the challenges that libraries are facing around the country.
W Tali Hairston: No.
Faith Pettis: And it made me grateful for, first off, the community that we're in and the
Faith Pettis: support we have locally, which is.
Faith Pettis: Very different from places elsewhere, but it also made me just it.
Faith Pettis: It underscored for me what I'm learning about what our library and libraries
Faith Pettis: around the country is what how important they are in communities and what sorts of.
Faith Pettis: Anchors they are and how many different things they do in different communities.
Faith Pettis: And I think we do measuring up and listening to what others are trying to
Faith Pettis: get started in their communities. I think we're way ahead of the curve,
Faith Pettis: it feels like, and are doing so many things that others
Faith Pettis: are trying to come up to speed on right now, so.
Faith Pettis: Kudos to our library. I I do have to say that for me,
Faith Pettis: the highlight of the conference was Carla Hayden and hearing her optimism in the
Faith Pettis: face of all she's been through in the last few months and she was just so
Faith Pettis: inspiring. So again, thank you for the opportunity to attend.
Bendixen, Carmen: Yeah.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you, Faith. It's such a rich opportunity. Yeah, Ron.
Ron Chew: While Faith is still here, since I spent a little bit of time with
Ron Chew: her and I was joking his first time, we've actually met in person.
Ron Chew: So we're just sort of screen partners in these meetings and like, oh,
Ron Chew: you see a person in 3D. So it was a nice opportunity to see a
W Tali Hairston: The.
Ron Chew: fellow board member in 3D.
Ron Chew: But I did want to give a little shout out to Tom for, you know,
Ron Chew: his leadership and you know, we had a chance to get together some of
Ron Chew: the staff and, you know, find out a little bit more about what's
Ron Chew: happening in the foundation.
Ron Chew: And those moments are very precious in my navigating to the different sessions.
Ron Chew: You know, the work Tom and the staff are doing is
Ron Chew: held in high regard within the our profession.
Ron Chew: And so that really resonated with me. It's like, oh.
Ron Chew: Look at Tom and it's like, oh, you're with Tom. It's like,
Ron Chew: so Tom's name kept coming up and it was, it was.
Ron Chew: I've learned so much from going to these things,
Ron Chew: meeting colleagues and just learning how to be a better board member.
Ron Chew: So thank you for that.
Ron Chew: Oh, let me just, yeah, can I just real quickly, yeah,
Tom Fay: Thanks, Ron.
Tom Fay: Oh.
Ron Chew: mention I've been involved in two conferences last week and this week the
Ron Chew: OCA Asian Pacific Advocates has their national conference,
Ron Chew: had their national conference.
Ron Chew: A lot of folks flowed to the downtown library and you may have seen clusters of
Ron Chew: folks from that conference. And the Asian American Journalist
Ron Chew: Association is is at the Sheridan. And so there's thousands of journalists
Ron Chew: and we've been migrating folks over there. So it's been kind of a highlight of a lot
Ron Chew: of their visits.
Ron Chew: as well. So I've been bringing folks there.
Ron Chew: So that's that's all for my report.
Tom Fay: Thanks for the kind words and you know I represent 700 folks doing this great work.
Tom Fay: Most certainly I'm always grateful for all that they put in and actually for
Tom Fay: this board's leadership. I I did want to state that because I
Tom Fay: think when I.
Tom Fay: With others across the country, to some of the points Faith made,
Tom Fay: you know they face different challenges and we have a great board going through
Tom Fay: these policies and things that we've been working on over the last few months and
Tom Fay: your great questions.
Tom Fay: Your engagement, I know you've all have read it.
Tom Fay: I mean it's you can't, you can't always get boards that work
Tom Fay: that well and that are that committed. So it is all of our work that hopefully
Tom Fay: is celebrated across the country and.
Tom Fay: All pardon me, all of our team members who are doing
Tom Fay: that work every single day. So thanks Ron for the kind words for the
Tom Fay: team.
Faith Pettis: And I'm sorry, I do need to duck out now, but it was great to see everybody.
W Tali Hairston: Well, it is 12:30 and our meeting is adjourned.
W Tali Hairston: Thank you everyone. Have a great day.
Tom Fay: And so.
Ron Chew: Thank you.
Faith Pettis: Thank you.