Illinois Freedom of Information Act

Herrin City Library

The Illinois Freedom of Information Act

 Part I: A brief description of our public body is as follows:

  1. Our purpose is to provide materials and services for the recreational, social, informational, and educational needs of the community.
  2. An organizational chart is attached.
  3. The total amount of our operating budget in meeting minutes. Funding sources are property and personal property replacement taxes, state and federal grants, fines, charges, and donations. Tax levies are:
  1. Corporate purposes (for general operating expenditures)
  2. IMRF (provides for employee’s retirement and related expenses)
  3. Social Security (provides for employee’s FICA costs and related expenses)
  4. Audit (for annual audit and related expenses)
  5. Maintenance (for maintaining the building)
  6. Tort Liability (for insurance premiums, risk management, attorney’s fees and related expenses, unemployment and worker’s compensation insurance

4. The office is located at this address: 120 North 13th Street, Herrin IL 62948-3233.

5. We have approximately the following number of persons employed:

a. Full-time          Three (3)

b. Part-time          Six (6)

6. The following organization exercises control over our policies and procedures: The Herrin City Library Board of Trustees, which meets monthly on the second Tuesday of each month, 6:30 p.m., at the library. More information about the Herrin City Library Board of Trustees may be found on our Board of Trustees Page.

7. We are required to report and be answerable for our operations to:

  •  City of Herrin, Illinois = Mayor Steve Frattini and the Herrin City Council.
  • Illinois State Library, Springfield, Illinois. Its members are: State Librarian, Jesse White (Secretary of State); Director of State Library, Anne Craig; and various other staff.

Part II:You may request the information and the records available to the public in the following manner:

  1. Use request form (see below).
  2. Your request should be directed to the following individual: Miss Susan Mullen – Library Director & Dr. Kelly Caringer – FOIA officers[4].
  3. You must indicate whether you have a “commercial purpose” in your request.
  4. You must specify the records requested to be disclosed for inspection or to be copied. If you desire that any records be certified, you must specify which ones.
  5. To reimburse us our actual costs for reproducing and certifying (if requested) the records, you will be charged the following fees:

            There is a $1.00 charge for each certification of records.

            There is no charge for the first fifty (50) pages of black and white text either letter or legal size;

There is a $.15 per page charge for copied records in excess of 50 pages;

The actual copying cost of color copies and other sized copies will be charged.

  1. If the records are kept in electronic format, you may request a specific format and if feasible, they will be so provided, but if not, they will be provided either in the electronic format in which they are kept (and you would be required to pay the actual cost of the medium only, i.e. disc, diskette, tape, etc.) or in paper as you select.
  2. The office will respond to a written request within five (5) working days or sooner if possible. An extension of an additional five (5) working days may be necessary to properly respond.
  3. Records may be inspected or copied. If inspected, an employee must be present throughout the inspection.
  4. The place and times where the records will be available are as follows:

10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday

10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Friday

12 Noon to 5:00 p.m. Saturday

Herrin City Library, Administrative Offices

Part III:

  Certain types of information maintained by us are exempt from inspection and copying. However, the following types or categories of records are maintained under our control:

  1. Monthly Financial Statements
  2. Annual Receipts and Disbursements Reports
  3. Budget and Appropriation Ordinances
  4. Levy Ordinances
  5. Operating Budgets
  6. Minutes of the Board of Library Trustees
  7. Library Policies, including Materials Selection
  8. Adopted Ordinances and Resolutions of the Board
  9. Annual Reports to the Illinois State Library

 

Herrin City Library

Organizational Chart

 nine member board

Board of Library Trustees

President/Library Board of Trustees

Vice-President

Secretary

Treasurer

Trustee             Trustee

Trustee            Trustee

Trustee

Library Director

Assistant Librarian

Children’s Librarian

Circulation Desk Librarian

Part-time Library Staff

 Herrin City Library – Freedom of Information Request

Restorer’s Name (or business name, if applicable)   Date of Request                       Phone number

Street Address                                                              Certification requested:

             Yes                             No

City                  State                 Zip

Description of Records Requested:

Is the reason for this request a “commercial purpose” as defined in the Act?   ___ Yes          ___ No

Library Response (Requester does not fill in below this line)

A         (  )        The documents requested are enclosed.

P          (  )        You may inspect the records at                                                                       

P                      on the date of                          .

R          (  )        The documents will be made available upon payment of copying costs of

O                     $                      .

V

E          (  )        For “commercial requests” only: the estimated time of when the documents

D                     will be available is _______________, at the prepaid costs stated above.

            (  )        The request creates an undue burden on the public body in accordance with

Section 3(g) of the Freedom of Information Act, and we are unable to negotiate a more reasonable request.

D         (  )        The materials requested are exempt under Section 7                of the

E                      Freedom of Information Act for the following reasons:

N                                                                                                                                            

I                                                                                                                                              

E                      Individual(s) that determined request to be denied and title: _________________

D                                                                                                                     ______                        .

In the event of a denial, you have the right to seek review by the Public Access

Counselor at (217) 558-0486 or 500 S. Second St., Springfield, IL 62705

Or you have the right to judicial review under section 11 of FOIA.

(  )        Request delayed, for the following reasons (in accordance with 3(e) of the                FOIA):                                     .  You will be notified by the date of               __        as to the action taken on your request.

NOTE: This form cannot be MANDATORY under FOIA, but it is preferred.  Failure to use it may result in the request not being properly or promptly processed. 

 
  

FOIA Officer                                                               Date of Reply

[1] If the public body maintains a website, the information in Section I must be posted there as well.

[2] Delete any source that does not apply, e.g. personal property replacement taxes.

[3] Delete any of the listed types that are NOT used by the Library.

[4] P.A. 96-542 requires the FOIA designated officer(s), and there can be multiples, must be “trained” with the on-line training program to be developed by the Illinois Attorney General’s office and tested as well, within the first six months of the effective date which is January 1, 2010 (i.e. training and testing by July 1, 2010) AND annually thereafter, and within 30 days of any new appointment.

[5] “Commercial purpose” is defined in the Act as “the use of any part of a public record or records, or information derived from public records, in any form for sale, resale, or solicitation or advertisement for sales or services.”  However, there are exceptions for news media, non-profits, scientific and academic organizations for disseminate news, articles or opinions of public interest, or research or education.

[6] In the event a “commercial interest” is involved, additional questions can be asked of the requestor by the public body FOIA officer in order to determine the classification, then the public body has up to 21 days to respond and either deny the request based on exemptions or undue burden; or estimate the time and cost of the copying for prepayment; or provide the documents requested.

updated 9-13-2022