As part of its quest to make a wide variety of materials available to its patrons, the Schertz Public Library participates in an Interlibrary Loan (ILL) program. The conditions of this service are based on the interlibrary loan protocols established in the national Interlibrary Loan Code and the policies established by the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) for its statewide interlibrary loan program.

An ILL is a transaction in which library material, or a copy of the material, is made available by one library to another upon request. The purpose of ILL is to obtain library material not available in the Schertz Public Library and to lend material found at the Schertz Public Library to other libraries. ILL service is available free of charge to all Schertz Public Library cardholders in good standing.

Schertz Public Library has participated as a borrower in the State's ILL program since it became accredited more than 40 years ago. The Library began lending materials to other libraries and participating in the reimbursement program in 2016. 

TSLAC supports a statewide ILL program in order to assure Texans will have access to shared library resources to meet learning and informational needs. The goal of the reimbursement grant is to encourage libraries to participate in the system as lenders, as well as borrowers. The Interlibrary Loan Lending Reimbursement Program helps support Texas libraries with reimbursements for direct, out-of-pocket costs associated with participating in statewide resource sharing such as postage and shipping costs. The reimbursements pertain to loans made between August 1, 2023 - July 31, 2024, and they are pass-through awards of the Grants to States program provided to TSLAC from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

ILL service is essential to the vitality of libraries of all types and sizes as a means of greatly expanding the range of materials available to users. Lending between libraries is in the public interest and should be encouraged. It allows the Library to provide access to a far broader range of materials than we have room to house or funds to purchase, including genealogy materials, research documents, out-of-print materials, or items only found in special collections.

As a reminder, ILL serves as an adjunct to, not a substitute for, collection development at the local level.

Staff recommends adoption of Resolution 24-R-63 allowing Schertz Public Library to participate in the ILL Lending Reimbursement Program in order to receive reimbursement for lending our library materials to other participating libraries.

Last fiscal year, the Library was reimbursed at the rate of $6.95 per item lent and received $7,520.00 to offset the cost of our courier service, supplies and postage. It is anticipated the library will lend approximately 1,200 items to other libraries during the current cycle. The actual reimbursement amount per lend is yet to be determined and will depend on the number of actual loans made, the number of participants in the program and the available funding from IMLS. In the past, the reimbursement amount per lend has ranged roughly between $6-$10. 

Adoption of Resolution 24-R-63