Change expands access to Hobbs Public Library
Andy Brosig/News-Sun
The Hobbs Public Library Board of Directors on Tuesday voted to approve policy changes that will expand access to library materials across the state line.
Library Director Nicki Lawless presented the proposal to the board at its regular November meeting, recommending residents of Gaines County, Texas, be added to the list of people who can obtain a library card in Hobbs. The idea was based in how libraries in New Mexico are funded, receiving money from individual city’s gross receipt taxes — the portion of state sales tax returned to communities periodically.
“People in Gaines County (who shop in Hobbs) contribute to those gross receipt taxes,” Lawless said. There’s a significant population who live closer to Hobbs than to Seminole, Texas, she said, who rely on services in Hobbs, mostly temporary oil field workers.
“And people who live on the the state line have to drive 30 miles in to Seminole versus five miles to Hobbs,” board member Julie McGuinness said. “They contribute to those gross receipt taxes.”
The changes won’t affect just Gaines County residents. Under the previous policy, individuals had to show proof of Lea County residency to obtain a library card. That excluded temporary workers living in hotels and other, non-permanent dwellings.
Under the new policy, applicants will still be required to show photo identification proving who they are. If the ID showed an address anywhere in Lea County, no additional proof was requested.
Now, two additional forms of identification — mail including packages, utility statements or cancelled checks — will allow temporary residents to be issued a card, Lawless said. The policy change also expands the age limit on who can receive a library card, she said.
Previously, children younger than 5-years-old couldn’t get their own card, whether their parents had a library card or not. Now, youth younger than 18 will be able to receive a library card, separate but associated to their parent or guardian’s library card account. That will allow families with young children to check out more items such as DVD movies or children’s books, Lawless said.
Previously, if a family had two or three children younger than 5-years-old, they were limited to how many items they could check out at one time.
That meant if the parents wanted to borrow a couple of movies on DVD, the children sometimes couldn’t get movies they wanted to watch at the same time, Lawless said.
The new policy increases access to material appropriate for younger children, she said.
The board also voted to give Lawless more control over the day-to-day operation of the library by moving some things that were policy items — requiring approval by the full board to change — to the realm of “procedural” items Lawless could adjust as needed.
Those items include lending limits on items and fines for overdue materials.
Under current policy, the library was losing money collecting overdue fines, for example, Lawless said. She got the go-ahead to do away with fines for overdue books, magazines or movies in the future and to increase the loan period to 21 days across the board with the option for automatic renewal twice.
“I’m just trying to make things easier on our patrons,” Lawless said. “Rather than nickel-and-dime them on fines.”
She further noted cost of repair or replacement would still be levied against library patrons in cases of damaged or lost materials.
In other business:
• Lawless announced the city has hired Tiffany London as the assistant library director for HPL. London will start her new job Monday, coming to Hobbs from the Harris County Library in Houston, Texas.
The position had been open for some time but was placed on hold by the city after previous library director Sandy Farrell resigned in December 2022 to focus on Farrell’s replacement. Assistant director is not a new position at HPL, Lawless said.
“There were people in that position before,” she said. “Just not real recently.”
The position of assistant director encompasses the role of a circulation librarian, responsible for administrative and supervisory duties at the library. London will also be effective second in command in the line of succession in management at the library.
“The city wants a plan of succession,” Lawless said. “(London) will be able to take over (the day-to-day operations) in my absence.”
• The board voted to change the date and time of its regular monthly meetings to 3 p.m. on the first Wednesday of the month, beginning on Jan. 3. The board currently meets at 4 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month.
