Amended October 2023

BRADFORD PUBLIC LIBRARY DISTRICT

THE ILLINOIS FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT

I. A brief description of our public body is as follows: The Bradford Public Library

District was established in 1924 to provide access to and help using library resources for information, education, business and pleasure.

A. Our purpose is to provide materials and services for the recreational, social,

informational, and educational needs of the community.

B. An organizational chart is attached.

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. Social Security (provides for employee’s FICA costs and related expenses)

3. Audit (for annual audit if any, annual financial report to Illinois Comptroller, and related  expenses)

4. Maintenance (for maintaining the building)

5. Tort Liability (for insurance premiums, risk management, attorney’s fees and related

expenses, unemployment, and worker’s compensation insurance)

 C.  The office is located at this address: 111 South Peoria Street, Bradford, IL 61421

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

1. Full-time 0

2. Part-time 4

E. The following organization exercises control over our policies and procedures: The

Bradford Public Library District Board of Library Trustees, which meets monthly on the

third Monday of each month, 6:00 p.m., at the library.  Its members are: David Atteberry, President; James Owens, Vice President; Hollie Scott, Secretary, Barbara Fehr, Treasurer; Reva Young, Letitia Leeper, Mary Robbins.

F.  The following organization operates in an advisory capacity regarding our operation:  Reaching Across Illinois Libraries System.

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

Illinois State Library, Springfield, Illinois. Its members are: State Librarian, Alexi Giannoulias

(Secretary of State); Director of State Library, Greg McCormick; and various other staff.

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

A.  Use request form (see attached).

B. Your request should be directed to the following individual: Sarah Boehm FOIA Officer.

C. You must indicate whether you have a “commercial purpose” in your request.

D. 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.

E. 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 $.20 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.

     F. 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.

    G. 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.

    H. Records may be inspected or copied. If inspected, an employee must be present

throughout the inspection.

    I. The place and times where the records will be available are as follows:

111 South Peoria Street, 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. – Monday - Friday

Bradford Public Library District

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:

A. Monthly Financial Statements

B. Annual Receipts and Disbursements Reports

C. Budget and Appropriation Ordinances

D. Levy Ordinances

E. Operating Budgets

F. Annual Audits if any and Annual Financial Report to Illinois Comptroller

G. Minutes of the Board of Library Trustees

H. Library Policies, including Materials Selection

I. Adopted Ordinances and Resolutions of the Board

J. Annual Reports to the Illinois State Library                                                                                                                              

BRADFORD PUBLIC LIBRARY DISTRICT ORGANIZATIONAL CHART

SEVEN MEMBER BOARD

Board of Library Trustees

James Owens, Vice President

Hollie Scott, Secretary

Barbara Fehr, Treasurer

Reva Young, Trustee

Letitia Leeper, Trustee

Mary Robbins, Trustee│

David Atteberry

President/Board of Library Trustees

Sarah Boehm - FOIA Officer

Library Director

---------------------

Nicholas Poignant

Youth Services Librarian

│

BRADFORD PUBLIC LIBRARY DISTRICT

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST 

Requestor’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 (Requestor 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

____________________                                               __________________

FOIA Officer                                                               Date of Reply