Because the library must maintain trust with members of the public, the Atchison Public Library
shall make every reasonable effort to see that information about the patron and the patron’s
individual information choices remain confidential. For people to make full and effective use of
library resources, they must feel unconstrained by the possibility of others being aware of the
books they read, the materials they use, or the questions they ask.
Patron registration and circulation records are exempt from required disclosure pursuant to the
Kansas Open Records Act (KORA), K.S.A. 45-215 et seq., although this exemption from
disclosure has been preempted to a certain extent in the U.S.A. Patriot Act.
The Board has adopted the following guidelines concerning the disclosure of information about
the library patrons:
Information regarding or including:
1. a patron’s name (or whether an individual is a registered borrower or has been a patron)
2. a patron’s address
3. a patron’s telephone number
4. the library’s circulation records and their contents
5. the library’s borrower’s records and their contents
6. the type of questions asked by patrons
7. the frequency or content of a patron’s visits to the library or any other information
supplied to the library (or gathered by it) shall not be given, made available or disclosed to any individual, corporation, institution or
government agency without a court order or subpoena authorized under federal, state or local
law. Any requests for information will immediately be given to NEKLS.
Parents or legal guardians of children under 14 years of age may, upon presentation of proper
identification, obtain the current status of their child’s circulation record or withdraw their
authorization for the child’s library card.
Approved by the Atchison Library Board of Trustees on March 25, 2024
