To ensure the effective delivery of service and to provide full access to library resources, libraries should develop policies and procedures to address user behavior that may interfere with others’ use and enjoyment of the library. Library governing bodies should approach the regulation of user behavior within the framework of the Code of Ethics of the American Library Association, the Library Bill of Rights, and federal, tribal, state, and local law, including the First and Fourteenth Amendments.
Menu Toggle navigationTo ensure the effective delivery of service and to provide full access to library resources, libraries should develop policies and procedures to address user behavior that may interfere with others’ use and enjoyment 1 of the library. Library governing bodies should approach the regulation of user behavior within the framework of the Code of Ethics of the American Library Association, the Library Bill of Rights, and federal, tribal, state, and local law, including the First and Fourteenth Amendments.
There is a significant government interest in maintaining a library environment that is conducive to all users’ exercise of their constitutionally protected right to receive information. 2 This significant interest authorizes publicly supported libraries to maintain a safe and healthy environment in which library users and staff can be free from harassment and threats to their safety and well-being. In order to protect all library users’ right to access library facilities, to ensure the safety of users and staff, and to protect library resources and facilities from damage, the library’s governing authority may impose reasonable restrictions on the time, place, or manner of library access. Since the Library Bill of Rights “affirms that all libraries are forums for information and ideas,” all libraries are encouraged to observe these guidelines as they develop policies, regulations, and procedures.
The American Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Committee recommends that publicly supported libraries use the following guidelines to develop policies and procedures governing the use of library facilities:
The user behaviors addressed in these guidelines are the result of a wide variety of individual and societal conditions. Libraries should take advantage of the expertise of local social service agencies, advocacy groups, mental-health professionals, law-enforcement officials, and other community resources to develop community strategies for addressing the needs of a diverse population.
The policy and its descriptions should be continuously and clearly communicated to all library users in all languages in common use in the library’s communities.
1. The word “enjoyment” is used in a number of court decisions addressing regulation of library users’ behavior and appearance. For example, the seminal Kreimer v. Morristown decision states that libraries may adopt regulations that prevent individuals from “unreasonably interfering with other patrons' use and enjoyment of the Library.” In the law, the usage “quiet enjoyment” is used to refer to undisturbed occupancy and use of a space or property.
2. Kreimer v. Bureau of Police for Morristown, 958 F.2d 1242 (3d Cir. 1992)
Due process: The principle, encapsulated in the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments, that neither the federal nor state and local governments may deprive of life, liberty, or property without appropriate legal procedures and safeguards, such as a right to appeal an adverse decision by a court or a government agency.
Protected speech: Speech that is protected from government censorship or regulation under the First Amendment, as interpreted by the U.S. Supreme Court. Under the law, speech is considered protected speech until a court determines that it falls into a category of unprotected speech. The U.S. Supreme Court has identified several categories of speech that are unprotected by the First Amendment.
Publicly supported libraries: Libraries established by a government entity or libraries that received the majority of their financial support from government funding.
Significant or Compelling government interest: A term used by courts when assessing the burden of government regulation or action upon the exercise of a fundamental right, such as freedom of speech. For sure a rule to withstand constitutional challenge, the government must show more than a merely important reason for the rule. The reason for the rule must be compelling; that is, it must be so important that it outweighs even the most valued and basic freedom it negatively affects.
Strict scrutiny: Test applied to determine whether a restriction on speech is unconstitutional under the First Amendment. To justify a restriction on speech, the government must show that: (1) it has a compelling interest in enforcing the restriction; (2) the restriction is narrowly tailored to achieve that compelling interest; and (3) there is no less restrictive alternative to achieving that interest.
Unprotected speech: Speech or expressive activity that is not protected by the First Amendment. The main categories of unprotected speech identified by the U.S. Supreme Court include obscenity, child pornography, defamation and expression intended and likely to incite imminent lawless action, such as fighting words or true threats.
Adopted by the Intellectual Freedom Committee, January 24, 1993; revised November 17, 2000; January 19, 2005; March 29, 2014; March 24, 2019; July 29, 2019; and August 16, 2020.