Camas Mayor Appoints Library Board

Elected Representatives Best - Camas Library Board Appointments
By Margaret Tweet
Letter to editor in the Post-Record
September, 2005

State law requires the Camas Mayor with city council consent to make yearly appointments to the 5-member library board for terms of 5 years. Vacancies are to be filled as soon as possible. However, in 2004, a board member left, and the position was not filled for 4 months. During this time frame, the library board made the most significant update to Internet policy since 1998.

Only 4 library board members were present for this vote, and one of those had been absent the previous 2 months and admitted that he hadn’t read all the materials in the packet. He missed full discussion of complaints from women who noticed men porn surfing on computers outside the children’s area and reported it. He missed the complete written policies of libraries like Tacoma who filter out pornography and chat on all but 1 of 150 computers. A petition from citizens requesting Internet filters like those used by Camas schools and the Jack, Will, and Rob Center was dismissed by all.

The partial board voted not to require active filters on the 8 computers adjacent to the children’s area. Anybody 17 and older may freely request unfiltered access on these computers. On Saturday morning,(9-17-2005) I saw porno that a man at one of these computers was taking in. Meanwhile, kids were nearby. I reported it, and the man left. According to the assistant library director, this has happened to others since the vote. How many times must a citizen or innocent child be exposed before the city takes action? Or a sex offender lures a minor via chat such as happened in the Mollala, OR library?

Now, another library board member has resigned. A library staff member, an appointed library board member, and a city councilor will interview applicants. This decision is too important for non-elected persons and staff with highly vested interests to make in closed sessions, since it affects the entire city for many years. In SW Washington, elected officials conduct library board interviews themselves, mostly in open public meetings. It is time that our Mayor and city council interview library board applicants directly and openly. Perhaps we will get a board that will take citizen concerns and important votes more seriously.

 

Camas City Council Response to letter and input

RCW 27.12.190 - Library trustees — Appointment, election, removal, (Camas is a city library). In cities and towns five trustees shall be appointed by the mayor with the consent of the legislative body. ..a trustee shall be appointed annually to serve for five years…Vacancies shall be filled for unexpired terms as soon as possible in the manner in which members of the board are regularly chosen.

The Camas City Council was urged to adopt an elected officials interview panel at council meetings (January and September 2005) to no avail.

Liz Pike suggested that library staff should not be part of the interview panel. ( 9-19-2005)

The Mayor responded by adding another city councilor to the interview panel and keeping the staff and unelected board member on. The second councilor triggered the open public meetings Act. Prior to this, during the Mayor’s term, the interviews were closed to the public. However, the unelected staff and appointed library board member have remained on the interview panel. Camas Library staff have consistently provided information opposed to filtering out porn to the appointed Camas Library Board since 1998. In addition, during library board interviews, library staff have consistently spoken against filtering out pornography.