Saint Paul University - Bibliothèque - Politiques

This document explains the policy of the Saint Paul University, Jean-Léon Allie Library regarding donations of books.

If possible, a librarian will discuss with a potential donor the type of collection being offered, and, if the collection is housed locally, may offer to view it in order to estimate the extent to which it is likely to be a useful library acquisition.
Should a donor be willing to supply a list of the materials available, this list will be reviewed promptly and the donor will be informed as to which of the proposed books or journals will be accepted for the Library collection.
If no advance list is supplied, or if the collection is not viewed, a collection is accepted on the understanding that the Library staff will review it and select from it only those items judged useful for the Library.
In the case of materials which are not accepted, the Library personnel will dispose of them as they see fit. Usually, they are placed in the duplicate section of the Library where mission libraries, students or professors at the University can freely take them.

A bookplate bearing the name of the donor or former owner will be placed inside each volume accepted for the Library collection.

Income tax receipts will be issued to donors for all gifts accepted for the Library collection when such gifts exceed a fair market value (FMV) of at least $10. These receipts are issued by the Alumni and Development Office. The Alumni and Development Office will also provide an official letter and a cc copy to the Chief Librarian.

The value of a “gift in kind” (that is, a gift of property other than cash) is calculated according to an estimate of its fair market value.
In many cases, qualified Library staff will be able to provide a valuation of books accepted as gifts. The same staff are permitted by Canada Revenue Agency to do so provided that the value of the total gift is no more than $1 000.00.
Many book collections offered to the Library lend themselves to appraisal by formula, using, for example, the rule-of-thumb estimate that hardcover books in good condition have a fair market value of $10-$20, scholarly paperbacks of $5-$10, etc. Recently published books in new condition are assessed at face value.
Rare books or those that are in some other way exceptional must be assessed individually. It may be necessary to obtain the services of an independent professional appraiser for this purpose.
Any accepted gift of books which has a total value of more than $1 000.00 should be evaluated by an external appraiser. In certain cases, the University may underwrite the costs of such appraisals.

1. The Alumni and Development Office of Saint Paul University did formulate a document entitled Gift Acceptance Policies and Procedures. This policy is based upon this document, as well as on a document of Carleton University Library entitled Book Donations Guidelines.