New Hampshire laws, RSA 91-A:5 and RSA 201-D:11, protect the privacy of library users except as provided therein in cases involving subpoenas, court orders or other state or federal statutes. Confidentiality extends to information sought or received, and materials consulted, borrowed, or acquired, and includes registration records, circulation records, database search records, reference interviews, interlibrary loan records, and all other personally identifiable uses of library materials, facilities, or services. The Rye Public Library shall adhere to these laws and protect patrons’ privacy in accordance with them.
The Library also subscribes to the American Library Association’s Code of Ethics. Article III states, “We protect each library user’s right to privacy and confidentiality with respect to information sought or received and resources consulted, borrowed, acquired or transmitted.”
The First Amendment of the United States Constitution and Part I Article 22 of the New Hampshire Constitution guarantee freedom of speech. This includes the right to hear what is spoken and read what is written, free from fear of intrusion, intimidation, or reprisal. Confidentiality of library patrons’ use of the Library is essential to protect the exercise of these rights from invasions of privacy.
One of the Library’s important roles is to be an impartial resource providing information on all points of view, available to all persons regardless of age, sex, race, color, religious creed, national origin, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, social or political views, economic status, or any other characteristic. The Library shall use all reasonable efforts not to compromise this role or to allow an erosion of the privacy rights of the Library’s patrons.
New Hampshire law does not prohibit the Library from releasing statistical information and other data regarding the circulation or use of library materials, provided that the identity of the users of the materials remains confidential.
The Library recognizes that patrons often have family members involved in the pick-up and delivery of materials and therefore these are exceptions to the policy to be decided at the discretion of the library staff.
The Library also has a separate policy on computer and Internet use, as these activities raise difficult privacy issues. Patrons should review this policy as well.
Adopted by the Rye Public Library Board of Trustees on August 14, 2008.
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