Opinion letter to the Honorable Joseph S. Kenton

JOHN C . D A NFORTH ATTO R NEY GE N ERA L O l<'FI($S OF 'i'JIE A'Jf'T<IDIRNEY G llilNIDlRA.IL. ({))F l):!In:§ §(1])11JJI~J( J EFlFER s o .:v CITY May 30 , 1974 OPINION LETTER NO . 5 Honorable Joseph S . Kenton State Representative , 32nd District 8553 Holmes Kansas City , Missouri 64131 Dear Representative Kenton : This is in response to your request for an opinion on the following question : " !)::::~:::: ~ fx-cc ~-at, lie libr a.l.·y :itct v t:: l..!u::~ L " i yil i: to charge a free public school a f e e for audio-visual equipment and material s if the school district is entirely within the li- brary district and the citizens of the school district pay taxes to support the library? " From the facts stated in your opinion request, we are able to ascertain that the library district in question is actually a multi-county public library service organizat ion formed pur- suant· to a cooperative agreement under Chapter 70 I RSMo I made up of several county library districts . However , with respect to this opinion request this fact is not material and for the purposes of our answer we will assume that the district in question is a county library district . · · Article IX , Section 10 of the Constitution provides as follows·: "It is hereby declared to be t h e pol icy of the state to promote the establ ishment and development of free public libraries and to accept the obligation of their support by Honorable JosephS. Kenton the state and its subdivisions and munici- palities in such manner as may be provided by law. When any such subdivision or muni- cipality supports a free library, the general assembly shall grant aid to such public li- brary in such manner and in such amounts as may be provided by law. " Chapter 182 provides that county library districts are under control of a board of trustees. The board of trustees of such districts are authorized to establish a "free county library 11 , Section 182.060, RSMo 1969. Your opinion request presents the issue of whether the charg- ing of school districts for the use of films is inconsistent with the provisions in the statutes and the State Constitution for free public libraries. In our opinion, such charges are consistent. We understand that the library district contains two 16mm film collections. One is available to the public, the other to schools. With respect to the school collection, which is parti- cularly suited for school instructional purposes, the library makes collections available to school districts at a specified ·ch:trgc p'2!:" boc;}:i::J.g. B:t" tl:is method ~1.:~.Inc.:cous .sclJ.cVl ~.is ·LJ.: ic ~;::, ~li the area have access to a larger film collection than would be available if each district were to depend upon its resources. No state law requires that the libraries contain film col- ,: lections for the use of school districts. Therefore, the mainte- nance of such a collection is not among the primary or essential purposes for which the library exists. Rather, the maintenance of such a collection is incidental to the library's primary func- tions. In Opinion No. 66, May 7, 1973, this office considered various questions posed by local schools in view of the provision of Article IX, section l(a) of the Constitution providing for the maintenance of "free public schools 11 • ~\fe held that a school dis- trict may charge·for extracurricular activities such as yearbooks and athletic events since such activities were not a necessary element of attending school. Likewise, we find that the provid- ing of 16mm films to school districts by a library is not a nec- essary element of providing a free public library, but of an "extracurricular" nature. Such a position is consistent with the views expressed by the Rhode Island Supreme Court in Gregory's Book Store v. Provi- dence Public Librarv, 46 R.I. 283, 127 A. 150 (1924). There the Rhode Island Court held that a library could impose a charge for the use of a duplicate collection of recent fiction volumes, even - 2 - Honorable Joseph s. Kenton though the library was classified as a 11 free public library". The court determined that the phrase 11 free public library" should be used in the popular sense of "a library the use of the books of which are free to the public" ,· and that · the service at issue was an additional, supplemental service provided by the library for a small fee beyond the basic service of providing free books . In a similar vein the maintenance of a special film collection for schools is an additional , supplemental activity of ·aMissouri " free public library" and charging school districts for use of such film is not inconsistent with the statutes of a l ibrary as a "free publ·ic library." Encl osure : Op . No . 66 3-7-73 , Mallor y Ver y truly yours , JOHN C. DANFORTH At torney General - 3 -