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Faulkner and Van Buren Regional Library Board Minutes
Faulkner-Van Buren Regional Library Board Meetings
Minutes for March 25, 2026
The Faulkner-Van Buren Regional Library Board came to order on October 22, 2025 at 5:31PM. In attendance were Regional Board members Kellie Cardin, Katie Eisenhower, John Gray, David Jeffries, Cindy Stage, and Kelly Tester, as well as Network Administrator Christopher Bowen, Van Buren County Library Director Deb Meyer and Regional Director John McGraw.
There was discussion of Chair and Vice-chair. John Gray volunteered to serve as chair, Katie Eisenhower volunteered to serve as vice-chair.
Minutes of the October 22 meeting were reviewed. David moved to approve the minutes. Kellie seconded the motion, which passed.
Bookkeeper reports for October, November, December, January and February were reviewed. There was discussion around the scholarship budget line, which will serve as a pass-through for the state library’s scholarship assistance to Mary Spears Polk, who is in her second semester and may apply after 12 hours are completed.
State aid expenditures were reviewed. There was discussion of summer performers, all of whom will perform at each location, one per week. David moved to approve the expenditures. Kelly seconded the motion, which passed unanimously on a roll-call vote.
Statistics were reviewed.
Old Business
There was a call for old business.
New Business:
State Aid to Public Libraries: The state library board resumed funding public libraries and held a working meeting with the Department of Education to discuss standards for aid, many of which focused on reporting to the board on how aid is spent.
Christopher Bowen presented a proposal from Visionamp, the internet service provider handling the Regional system’s website. This would provide ADA compliance required by a new law for governmental websites. The Director asked the board to approve the Visionamp proposal and amend the website budget line with a $1,000 increase. Cindy moved to amend the budget and approve the Visionamp proposal. David seconded the motion, which passed unanimously on a roll-call vote.
The Director presented a case for abolishing overdue fines. Studies have demonstrated that they do little to drive returns but do create barriers to access. Looking at a year of transactions, overdue fines constitute about 6% ($657) of Van Buren County’s revenue in 2025, and 5% ($2,200) of Faulkner County’s revenue in 2025. Abolishing overdue fines would be good press and reopen access to many families who have accumulated fines over a long period of time and have demonstrated little ability to pay. Damaged and Lost-Parts fees will still apply, and if the loss of income is an issue, the board could look at the broader schedule of fees to see if printing and faxing costs (the majority of income) are in line with current library charges. The Director asked that the board abolish overdue fines going forward and waive past charges. Kelly moved to waive overdue fines past, present and future. Cindy seconded the motion, which passed unanimously on a roll-call vote.
The Director shared the current state of the search for the Regional system’s next Integrated Library System (ILS). Four vendors, including the current one, have products in our budget. The Faulkner County Attorney wishes to handle the bidding process if the costs run $43,000 annually, which would be considerably more than the budget allows at present. After discussion of the merits of requesting bids via the county attorney, David moved to collect bids directly. Cindy seconded the motion, which passed unanimously on a roll-call vote.
There was discussion about the timing of the second-quarter meeting to select an ILS proposal. May 6th was the consensus date, to be conducted in person.
State Aid to Public Libraries: The state library board resumed funding public libraries and held a working meeting with the Department of Education to discuss standards for aid, many of which focused on reporting to the board on how aid is spent.
Christopher Bowen presented a proposal from Visionamp, the internet service provider handling the Regional system’s website. This would provide ADA compliance required by a new law for governmental websites. The Director asked the board to approve the Visionamp proposal and amend the website budget line with a $1,000 increase. Cindy moved to amend the budget and approve the Visionamp proposal. David seconded the motion, which passed unanimously on a roll-call vote.
The Director presented a case for abolishing overdue fines. Studies have demonstrated that they do little to drive returns but do create barriers to access. Looking at a year of transactions, overdue fines constitute about 6% ($657) of Van Buren County’s revenue in 2025, and 5% ($2,200) of Faulkner County’s revenue in 2025. Abolishing overdue fines would be good press and reopen access to many families who have accumulated fines over a long period of time and have demonstrated little ability to pay. Damaged and Lost-Parts fees will still apply, and if the loss of income is an issue, the board could look at the broader schedule of fees to see if printing and faxing costs (the majority of income) are in line with current library charges. The Director asked that the board abolish overdue fines going forward and waive past charges. Kelly moved to waive overdue fines past, present and future. Cindy seconded the motion, which passed unanimously on a roll-call vote.
The Director shared the current state of the search for the Regional system’s next Integrated Library System (ILS). Four vendors, including the current one, have products in our budget. The Faulkner County Attorney wishes to handle the bidding process if the costs run $43,000 annually, which would be considerably more than the budget allows at present. After discussion of the merits of requesting bids via the county attorney, David moved to collect bids directly. Cindy seconded the motion, which passed unanimously on a roll-call vote.
There was discussion about the timing of the second-quarter meeting to select an ILS proposal. May 6th was the consensus date, to be conducted in person.