Obtaining a Library Card with the MARSHALL COUNTY LIBRARY SYSTEM

Any person who:

Lives, works, or owns property in Marshall County, Mississippi, and who is old enough to sign their first and last names, may obtain a free library card for borrowing materials from the library. Children under 18 must have a parent or legal guardian so-sign the registration card. Students from outside Marshall County who are temporarily in residence at Rust College may not get a regular resident card. (See: Out-of-County Registration, below.)

To register for a library card, the patron:

Must appear in person must provide proof of a current mailing address in Marshall County.

Proof may consist of a current Mississippi Driver’s License or State-issued ID, showing an address in Marshall County; a current piece of business correspondence addressed to the applicant and showing a work address in Marshall County; or a current utility bill addressed to the applicant and delivered to an address in Marshall County. A library staff member will photocopy the proof of address and affix this copy to the back of the patron registration card. The patron will then have an account opened for them in the Library System’s automated circulation system. This electronic account will keep track of material checked out to the patron, their return, and any overdue fines accrued by the late return of materials. This information is not made available to anyone else.

If the patron does not have proof of a valid current mailing address with them, a card application will be taken, and the library card will be mailed to the address on the application. If the card is delivered to the applicant, that will be accepted as proof that they receive mail at that address. No materials may be borrowed until a valid card is held by the patron.

The library card is honored at any of the three branches of the Marshall County Library System, and materials borrowed at one branch may be returned to any of the branches.

Materials may be borrowed for one two-week period, and may be renewed once if no other patron is waiting for the item. A reserve may be placed on a requested item in the computer system, and the requesting patron will be notified when the item comes in. Renewals are accepted in person and by telephone. A fine of $.10 per day per item, to a maximum of $3.00 per item will be collected for overdue items. If overdue fines are not paid, the patron’s account will be blocked and no more items may be borrowed until the account in cleared. This policy is in keeping with Mississippi State Law, Title 39, Chapter 3. Library materials are very expensive and need to be shared equitably among the County’s citizens. Returning them in a timely manner facilitates this sharing.

The library card needs to be presented when materials are to be borrowed. A lost or damaged library card will be replaced for a fee of $1.00. Anyone lending their library card to anyone else will be held responsible for any materials borrowed on that account.

A limit of 10 items may be borrowed on one account at one time, with only three of those non-fiction books on any one subject. Again, this is an attempt to fairly share the resources of the library. These limitations apply to all borrowers, including teachers. Schools in Marshall County all have libraries, and those facilities must be the first resource for any teacher attempting to place supplemental materials in their classrooms. Any teacher who borrows materials will be subject to the same limitations and overdue fines as any other patron.

Out-of-County Registration

The Marshall County Library System is supported the tax-payers of Marshall County, and the library’s primary responsibility is to make its materials available to those citizens. Anyone who is temporarily in residence in the County and who wants to borrow library materials while they are here may pay a one-time, non-refundable “Out-of-County Fee” of $25.00. This applies to Rust College students and any other college students who do not otherwise meet the residency requirement described above. Rust College has a very fine library of its own for its students. Marshall County Library System will, however, try to accommodate Interlibrary Loan requests for students, as long as those requests are made through the Librarian at the college library, and the college library then takes responsibility for their safe return.

4/2003