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District Library Center Guide

A guide to assist district library centers and district library center consulting staff.

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This guide was developed by district consultant librarians in conjunction with the Bureau of Library Development (BLD) in the Office of Commonwealth Libraries (OCL). The guide is a tool to assist consulting staff with their day-to-day work and as a resource for common questions and key work of consultants across the state. 

If any information in a LibGuide is discovered to be incorrect or needs to be changed or in the event that a new resource is discovered, and it should be added to a guide, please fill out this form: https://forms.office.com/g/9682KBhefh

Brief definition clarification - when the term "Statute" is used, it is referencing the Law written by the General Assembly and generally starts with 93XX. When the term "Regulation(s)" is used, it is referencing the material that operationalizes the law (Statute) and is promulgated by the agency (PA Department of Education/OCL) and generally starts with 13X or 14X. When the term "Policy" is used, it is referencing clarifications, interpretations, processes, and procedures, developed by the Governor's Advisory Council (GAC) and/or OCL to assist in compliance with the requirements of regulation.

The Public Library Code (Statute) requires the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) to appoint a State Librarian to serve as its Deputy Secretary for Libraries who has specific powers and duties as outlined in 24 Pa. C.S. § 9311. The Statute also establishes the GAC on Library Development and a system of financial aid for public libraries that meet requirements established by the Statute and Regulations.

Regulatory or policy language, when read in tandem with the Public Library Code, may conflict with language contained in the Statute. When this occurs, the statutory language contained in the Public Library Code always controls and takes precedence. In the absence of any statutory language, regulatory language that conflicts with policy takes precedence. Put simply, in situations where there is conflict between standards, the following hierarchy is to be followed in determining which standard applies: Public Library Code Statutes → Pennsylvania Code Regulations → Governor’s Advisory Council Guidelines and Office of Commonwealth Libraries Policy.

The provisions of the Statute are the state laws that govern state aided libraries and their boards in Pennsylvania. It includes:

  • Definitions for the different types of libraries.
  • The duties and responsibilities of each kind of library and OCL.
  • The eligibility, qualification, and distribution of state aid.
  • Guidelines for the Access Pennsylvania library card program.
  • Continuing education requirements for library staff.
  • Certification definitions/standards.
  • Information on when and how a library should apply for a waiver of standards, and much more.

The Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC) is appointed by the governor and:

  • Advises the Governor and Secretary of Education on the appointment of a State Librarian.
  • Advises the Governor, Secretary of Education, and the State Librarian on policies and operations of the State Library and state aided libraries.
  • Acts as a board of appeal for any disputes between state aided libraries and the State Librarian that affect the amount of state aid a library will receive.
  • Creates rules and regulations for plans of the use of state aid, and the process/procedure for appealing funding and eligibility decisions.
  • Approves a library district service area.

Office of Commonwealth Libraries (OCL).

  • OCL operates as a deputate within the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE).
  • OCL has an administrative unit and two bureaus: the Bureau of State Library (State Library of Pennsylvania) (BSL) and the Bureau of Library Development (BLD).
    • The primary role of the State Library of Pennsylvania is to collect, preserve, and provide access to materials for, by, and about Pennsylvania for the information and research needs of all branches of state government, libraries, and the public. The State Library’s collection consists of more than one million print volumes, newspapers, and Pennsylvania and U.S. government documents. This unique and rare collection includes the original Assembly Collection, a collection of colonial imprints dating from 1745, and the largest collection of historic Pennsylvania newspapers in the world. The State Library also provides access to electronic resources to support state government, serves as one of four Statewide Resource Centers in the Commonwealth, and offers rapid access to the collections of other major research and academic libraries of Pennsylvania and worldwide.
    • BLD supports libraries and library services for Pennsylvanians through the administration of state and federally funded programs and grant opportunities including LSTA (Library Services and Technology Act), Library Access, LAMP (Library of Accessible Media for Pennsylvanians), the Public Library Subsidy, and Keystone Grants for Public Library Facilities. BLD also provides advisory services, professional development, and continuing education for library staff at public, school, academic, and special libraries.

Statewide Library Resource Centers (SLRCs)

  • The Statute requires that four statewide library resources centers be designated at the following locations:
    • Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
    • Free Library of Philadelphia
    • Pennsylvania State University Library
    • State Library of Pennsylvania
  • The statewide library resource centers are required to:
    • Acquire major research collections.
    • Make those collections available to all residents of Pennsylvania.

District Library Centers - this section is particularly important for consultants.

  • According to the Statute, the State Librarian may designate up to 30 libraries as district library centers. Currently there are 29 district library centers.
  • District library centers may:
    • Coordinate the services of local libraries in the district.
    • Provide free library services to all district residents.
    • Provide supplementary service to local libraries in the district.
    • Work with other district centers to provide library services.
  • District library centers are required to meet additional standards to be eligible for district library center aid.

Federated Library System

  • A consortium made up of independent public libraries. Library systems should have a system-membership agreement in place which outlines the scope of expectations and activities of the library system and the member libraries.  Where library systems are in place, OCL channels state aid to libraries via library systems. Library system boards are responsible for determining how state aid is distributed amongst its members. Library system boards also have responsibility for evaluating and determining library service areas and for approving system-wide library policies. A library system agreement identifies all policies and membership expectations that are created by the federation board of directors. 

State Aid to Libraries

  • Libraries can qualify for quality library aid, incentive for excellence aid, equal distribution grants, and equalization aid. Libraries can seek help from consultants to understand which type of aid they qualify for and which standards they need to meet to receive state aid.

County Coordination Aid

  • County libraries and library systems can qualify for county coordination aid.

Overview of the Regulations

The Pennsylvania Code (Regulations) contains the state's library regulations found at §§ 131 - 143.  These regulations explain how to implement the statutory provisions contained in the Statute found at §§ 9301-9376. The regulations include library standards, certification and continuing education requirements, and requirements for the submission of plans for the use of state aid.