Library Board

The next regular Library Board Meeting will be Thursday, May 22, at 7 AM.  All are welcome to attend.  

Please find Agendas and Minutes below:

Meetings are held in the Library Meeting Room at 105 Perimeter Rd. Mount Horeb, WI 53572.

Library Board Members

Meeting Minutes & Agendas

Library Board Bylaws (click here)

Powers and duties of the board

Mount Horeb Library Board of Trustees/Job Description (Reference: Wisconsin Statutes, Chapter 43.58, 43.60):

Legal Responsibilities
Members of the library board are mandated by Wisconsin law to control:
• Library funds
• Library property
• Library expenditures
• Selection and hiring of a library director

Members of the library board are required to maintain open records and hold open meetings under the requirements of Chapter 19 of the Wisconsin Statutes.

Fiduciary Responsibilities
Public library trustees are public officials and therefore have a responsibility to:
• Obey federal, state, county, and local laws as they relate to libraries
• Conform practices to board by-laws
• Manage all library assets wisely
• Recognize that the library's best interests must prevail over any individual interest
• Attend board meetings regularly, participate actively, and ensure adequate record keeping and documentation
• Be diligent in developing library plans and policies

Examples of Duties:
• Select, hire, and oversee a competent and qualified library director.
• Determine and adopt written policies to govern the operation and program of the library.
• Develop a long-range plan for the commitment of resources to meet the changing needs of the service population.
• Submit an annual report to the State.
• Prepare a statement of purpose, service goals and objectives.
• Adopt an annual budget adequate for meeting goals and objectives; work actively for public and official support of the budget.
• Review monthly financial statements in the context of the annual budget, approve reasonable expenditures that are within the approved budget, forward approved bills for payment by the village.
• Develop and maintain capital improvement plan.
• Establish, support, and participate in a planned public relations program.
• Interpret the library's role and plans to community boards and committees, governing officials and the general public.

Qualifications for Library Trustees:
• Willingness to devote time and talents
• Ability to think clearly, question objectively, and plan creatively
• Skill in communicating and cooperating
• Awareness and appreciation of the library's past, present and future role in society.
• Willingness to become more knowledgeable about library services and standards of operation.
• Ability to represent the Library Board in public forums, to act as an advocate for library services, and to reflect the concerns of the public at library board meetings.

Composition of the Library Board of Trustees:
• A five-member board; two additional members may be appointed for a seven-member board
• Not more than 2 members may be residents outside the village
• When annual sum appropriated by the county equals or exceeds one-sixth of the annual sum appropriated to the public library by the village, a county resident may be appointed to the library board of trustees.
• Members are appointed by the village president. One member to be appointed is a school district administrator or administrator's representative. Not more than one member of the village board shall at any one time be a member of the library board.
• The Library Board of Trustees should represent: a diversity of interests; a balance of age, race, sex and socioeconomic levels, a variety of occupational and personal backgrounds.
• Appointment of a term is for 3 years.

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