New South Wales Bills Explanatory Notes

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LIBRARY (AMENDMENT) BILL 1992

                                                                   Act 1992 No. 40




                 LIBRARY (AMENDMENT) BILL 1992*

                                NEW SOUTH WALES




                               EXPLANATORY NOTE

   (This Explanatory Note relates to this Bill as introduced into Parliament)

   The objects of this Bill are as follows:
    (a) to extend the range of library services that local libraries are required to
         provide free of charge (see details below);
    (b) to remove restrictions on the power of local libraries to charge for services that
         they provide (other than services that are required to be provided free);
    (c) to ensure that local libraries do not provide commercial services that are
         unfairly competitive with the private sector;
    (d) to ensure that local libraries spend the Government subsidies that they receive
         only on providing services that are required by the Act to be provided free of
         charge;
    (e) to give recognition to arrangements between local authorities for the conferral
         of reciprocal borrowing rights on residents and ratepayers of their areas.
   The current range of services that a library is required to provide for free are as
follows:
     *  use of books on the library premises by any person;
     *  borrowing of literary, informative and educational books by residents and
       ratepayers for use away from the library (other persons may borrow on payment
       of a charge).
   The Bill will add the following services to the list of services to be provided free:
     *  membership of the library for residents and ratepayers;
     *  access to the information services of the library by any person on the library
       premises;


* Amended in committee--see table at end of volume.
 
 
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              Library (Amendment) 1992 [Act 1992 No. 40]

     *  delivery of books to members of the library who by reason of sickness or
        disability are unable to attend the library to borrow;
     *  provision of basic reference services to members of the library (what constitutes
        a basic reference service is to be provided for in guidelines issued by the Library
        Council);
     *  the ordering of books for purchase by members of the library.
   Current restrictions on the borrowing of reference books are retained.
   Compliance with the requirements that the Act imposes on local libraries is a
pre-condition to entitlement to a Government subsidy under the Act.

   Clause 1 specifies the short title of the proposed Act.
  Clause 2 provides for the commencement of the proposed Act on a day to be
appointed by proclamation.
  Clause 3 gives effect to Schedule 1 which contains the amendments described
above.
 
 

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