Reopening NH Libraries Task Force Report

The Reopening NH Libraries Task Force is working diligently to cull information and put together a best practices/resource document that can be used by our libraries to create sound reopening plans for their physical facilities. The task force will attempt to release an initial document on Thursday 5/21.  Please understand that this document will be a living document – meaning that there will be new information forthcoming that needs to be included after that initial release date, and that some best practices will need to be revised based on this new data over the coming months.

Until that best practices document is released, here are brief replies to the top three questions we are receiving regarding reopening our NH library buildings:

1.       When should my library reopen? This is a local decision to be made by your governing body (for most libraries, the elected board of trustees), and should take a phased, gradual approach that strongly emphasizes employee and public safety. Reopening decisions cannot be made in a vacuum and should take into account federal/state guidelines are for safety of employees and the public (CDC, NH DHHS, OSHA), what the state is doing (stay-at-home order; Governor’s Economic Reopening Task Force recommendations), what local/town departments and organizations are doing, the number of COVID19 cases in your community, the level of risk your governing body is willing to assume, etc.  Remember, libraries are NOT restaurants or retail establishments. Our "product" is not purchased and removed from our premises, never to be returned. Our physical facilities business model involves continual exchange of physical materials among library staff and community members that relies on close proximity of people to each other. While state reopening guidelines for retail and restaurants may have some useful procedural pieces, they should not be the sole basis for a library reopening plan or timeline.

2.       Where can I find the guidelines for safe materials handling through that new partnership? IMLS, OCLC, and Bartelle (a global scientific laboratory) partnered at the end of April to obtain specific scientific data that can be used to create materials handling guidelines for museums, libraries, and cultural institutions. One of our task force librarians called IMLS last week to ask about a timeline for this information to be released, and IMLS does NOT have a timeline to share yet. Testing has started, but there is no indication of when guidelines will be available. For updates, please sign up for IMLS alerts through their press release, or follow IMLS on social media.

3.       Where can my library get PPE? First, medical-grade PPE is still restricted to medical personnel and first responders. PPE for libraries is the same as for regular citizens and other businesses.  There will not be one source for these materials, which range from face masks and hand sanitizer to disinfectants and paper towels.  Sources could include: your regular library vendors for custodial supplies; partnering with other town/city departments for supply orders; and obtaining items through your town Emergency Management Committee or your town health officer. NHSL is working on a bulk hand sanitizer purchase/distribution for all public libraries, but that is not finalized yet.  Bottom line: have multiple potential suppliers in place to use, and plan for delays in obtaining supplies when creating a reopening timeline.

As Governor Sununu has said, reopening is a process that needs to be based on scientific data. The Governor also emphasized that reopening is NOT mandated, in fact, he strongly suggests that staying home is still the safest option right now, and he does not want these steps forward to turn into steps backward -- but they can if a second surge seems imminent.  Reopening stages for physical library buildings and in-person services will NOT look like how we used to be open to the public pre-pandemic. The sooner we embrace that idea and that solutions need to be phased carefully and with reference to good sources of information, the better each library can communicate a reasonable phased and flexible plan to their specific community and stakeholders.

{This is a reprint of the report issued by Lori Fisher to the NHAIS-L listserv}