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What Every Borrower Should Know
These policies apply to OCPL Central and city libraries only.
Policies at suburban member libraries may vary.
Your Responsibilities
You are responsible for all materials borrowed on your card. Parents and guardians of minors are
responsible for materials borrowed on their children’s cards. Change of address or a lost or stolen card
should be reported to the library immediately. Materials borrowed on an unreported lost or stolen card
remain the responsibility of the cardholder.
Where Your Card is Honored
An Onondaga County Public Library (OCPL) card may be used at the Central Library downtown, at
eight branch and two satellite libraries in Syracuse, and at 21 independent suburban libraries in Onondaga
County.
Loan Periods
Most materials are loaned for 3 weeks or 7 days; some special materials, like Interlibrary Loan,
Fast Flicks and holiday books, may have different loan periods. Your receipt, issued when you borrow
materials, indicates the return dates. You can view the due dates of all items you currently have checked
out by accessing the library catalog and selecting My Account.
Managing Your Library Account
With your library card number and PIN (Personal Identification Number), you can access your library
account information online. Go to the catalog, and select My Account. Once logged in, some of the options are: a complete list of all items checked out on your
card, due dates, late items, fines owed, or materials being held for you. By providing OCPL with your
e-mail address, you can be notified of hold information and overdue notices quickly and efficiently.
(You can also receive text messages by providing a cell phone number and carrier).
Renewals
To renew materials, you may telephone 435-1430 or visit any OCPL city or suburban library, with or
without the materials in hand. By telephone, you will need your library card number. If you need to
discuss specific titles, staff will ask questions to verify your identity. In person, you need your library
card, and another form of ID. If there is no other request for the title, the materials will be renewed. There
is a limit of two renewals on most library materials. You can also renew online by accessing the library
catalog and selecting My Account. You will need your library card number and PIN
(Personal Identification Number). (Special restrictions apply to the renewal of Interlibrary Loan items.)
Returning Materials
Most library materials borrowed from one OCPL library may be returned to any other OCPL library
in Onondaga County. Information on exceptions – short loans (e.g., “Rapid Reads,” “Fast Flicks”), all
Interlibrary Loan materials, some media, and equipment – is posted where applicable. Bookdrops may
be used for the return of printed materials, videos, DVDs, and audiobooks, but are not recommended
for CDs and other sound recordings.
Fines & Charges
Each item returned after the due date will be subject to a per day charge capped as follows:
Magazines 25¢ / max $5
Paperback books 25¢ / max $5
Hardcover books 25¢ / max $10
DVDs, videos, CDs, and other recordings 25¢ / max $10
Children’s materials 10¢ / max $5
OCPL sends overdue notices as a courtesy, but no bills for fines and charges. Your receipt, issued
when you borrow materials, indicates the return dates. Borrowers will be charged the cost of replacing
lost or damaged items. The schedule of charges for lost or damaged materials is available at the Central
Library and all city branches. Charges for Interlibrary Loan materials are determined by the owning
library. The Central Library and city branch libraries allow the use of credit cards for payment of their
fines and fees with a $3.00 minimum.
Cards of borrowers who owe more than $4.99 in fines or fees or who have long-overdue materials are
not valid until charges are paid or materials returned. In addition, all overdue library accounts in the
amount of $50 or more will be referred to Unique Management Services, a collection agency. A service charge of $10 is applied to each account submitted for collection.
Confidentiality
All user records are confidential. Each user’s right to privacy and unrestricted access is reaffirmed by
the ALA’s Library Bill of Rights and New York State Law, Article 45, Section 4509 on confidentiality.
Information on the status of any card is available upon request to the cardholder only. Parents and legal
guardians may request information about a child’s library records only if the child is present and consents
to the release, or if the child is not present but provides dated written consent.
Please call 435-1900 for information and other available services such as ebooks, story hours, programs, etc.
Last updated December 9, 2011