Hermon BishopHermon Bishop

Hermon Bishop, former town attorney of Westhampton Beach, has hit the “obstructionist mindset” of the appointed board of the WH library in an opinion piece in the Southampton Press.

“Throughout American history there have been obstructionists to voting rights who have fought strenuously and violently to prevent a varied and diverse list of individuals and groups from having the right to vote,” he wrote in the Nov. 19 SH Press.

“Were it not for the brave, consistent and inspiring efforts of those who fought for our right to vote, our model of democracy would be substantially different from what it is today,” he said.

Full text of the 825-word opinion piece in the SH Press is pasted in below. Most of the paper is searchable on its website and most articles can be linked and downloaded, but not opinion pieces and letters to the editor.

The title of the Bishop piece as provided to the paper was “All Taxpayers Should Have a Say in Library Elections.” The SH Press changed the word “Taxpayers” to “Cardholders.” Bishop, noting that “cardholders” can include children, is pointing this out to editor Frank Costanza, SH Press Western edition editor.

SH Press reporter Greg Wehner, who did not attend the Nov. 18 library board meeting, quoted resigned board member Karen Andrews in a story Nov. 19 as saying she quit the board after 12 years because she needed to concentrate on her work as a real estate agent for the Corcoran Group. Andrews, who announced her resignation and then walked out of the Nov. 18 meeting without an explanation, said she works seven days a week and between family and work does not have much time. She called the library "a terrific community center and everyone should embrace it."

Library Board Resists Change

Members of the library board, headed by Tom Moore, husband of WHB Mayor Maria Moore, displayed resistance to any immediate change in the selection process of trustees at the board’s meeting Nov. 18.

Tom Moore said board members are already pre-occupied with a number of issues including complaints of unfair treatment of staff members that have been lodged with the National Labor Relations Board.

Susan Rosenberg, retired high school teacher who joined the board as treasurer last week, said she had already done “30 hours of reading this week alone in an effort to research” various issues facing the board.

NY State Ed Dept. Urges Elections

Bishop noted that the New York State Dept. of Education provides guidelines for choosing trustees at association libraries which are 501/c/3 non-profit corporations rather than “public” libraries.

“Although an association library district is not a public entity, the library can emulate the basic characteristic of a public library district by providing a process for the public election of its trustees,” says NYS.

It adds: “Association library by-laws should be amended by the board of trustees to ensure that all eligible voters within the library’s service area can join the library association and participate in annual elections to select library trustees. It is usually best to hold the annual trustee election at the time of the vote on the library’s budget.”

13 of 19 Suffolk Assn. Libraries Have Elections

Bishop noted that 13 of the 19 association libraries in Suffolk County have elected boards. “Voting gives the ability and authority to the people to directly voice their opinions about library governance and gives rise to a level of accountability which will benefit the library an its supporting taxpayers.”

Some appointed trustees “feel they are the repositories of ultimate wisdom as to what the library needs,” he continued.

“However, this is hardly the case. As evidenced by the recent exodus of trustees, no individual on the board is indispensable…the fact that $2.9 million is paid by taxpayers and residents annually to operate the library makes clear that they should be afforded the right to be heard in a meaningful way.”

The library board has also been told to shift its attention from proposals to spend $3.1 million on“ capital improvements” to a five-year-old building to providing intellectual stimulation to the community in the form of expert speakers on various topics and conducting public discussions of them.

Other demands are for the library to have an interactive website so residents can post opinions on the site and for email addresses of the individual board members to be made public which is the policy for trustees of WHB. Residents can only send comments to the general email address of [email protected]. The only response that comes back is an acknowledgement that an email has been received. Questions are not answered either by the board or individual trustees.

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Viewpoint

On October 30th, 2015, three self-appointed Board of Trustee members of the Westhampton Free Library resigned. The resident/taxpayers at that meeting had come to call for the resignation of the Board President, Joan Levan, to demand library reform to expand the membership of the library association so that the Board would be elected by the taxpayers, and to insist that meetings be held in the evenings, allowing more of the public to attend. Three new Board members were unexpectedly named, including Thomas Moore, who was ultimately appointed President of the Board in a meeting closed to the public. Having no experience nor knowledge as to the operation of the Board of Trustees, upon taking office Mr. Moore stated: “I have serious reservations on moving to an elected board for something that has worked for over 100 years.”

Hopefully, the rest of the Board members will not choose this same position. The continued struggle for the right to vote has existed in this country for over 239 years, commencing in 1776 with the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Throughout American history there have been obstructionists to voting rights who have fought strenuously and violently to prevent a varied and diverse list of individuals and groups from having the right to vote. Were it not for the brave, consistent and inspiring efforts of those who fought for our right to vote, our model of democracy would be substantially different than what it is today.

The struggle may have to continue here, if the same type of obstructionist mindset prevails with the newest members of the Westhampton Free Library Board, by continuing to deny residents and taxpayers the right to elect board members. This would underscore the trustees’ archaic thinking, as they cling to a position that is contrary to the present guidelines set forth by the NYS Department of Education, which oversees all libraries in the State of New York.

The NYS Department of Education has formulated the current model for association libraries like the Westhampton Free Library: “This model (association library district model) is available to libraries currently chartered as association libraries that do not want to relinquish their “private” status. Although an association library district is not a public entity, the library can emulate the basic characteristics of a public library district by providing a process for: (A) public election of its trustees… .”

In addition, the NYS Department of Education provides specific guidelines for choosing trustees in association libraries: “Association library by-laws should be amended by the Board of Trustees to ensure that all eligible voters within the library’s service area can join the library association and participate in annual elections to select library trustees. It is usually best to hold the annual trustee election at the time of the vote on the library’s budget.” Clearly, the NYS Department of Education favors allowing eligible voters to join the membership of their library association so that those members can elect library trustees. The Westhampton Free Library is currently at variance with guidelines that are the norms of the times.

Moreover, Suffolk County presently has 19 association libraries that are similar to the Westhampton Free Library. Out of those 19 libraries, 13 have elected boards, and only six have appointed boards. Accordingly, 68% of the association libraries in Suffolk County have elected boards, while only 32% still have appointed boards. Voting gives the ability and authority to the people to directly voice their opinions about library governance and gives rise to a level of accountability, which will benefit the library and its supporting taxpayers.

Some appointed board members feel that they are the repositories of ultimate wisdom as to what the library needs. However, this is hardly the case. As evidenced by the recent exodus of trustees, no individual on the Board is indispensible. An individual so inclined to become a candidate for the Board of Trustees would be more motivated to become an effective member and to act in the best interests of the library, as opposed to being a mere rubber stamp placeholder. The fact that $2.9 million dollars are paid by taxpayers and residents annually to operate the library, makes clear that they should be afforded the right to be heard in a meaningful way. The best way to do this is by welcoming taxpayers and residents as members of the Westhampton Free Library association, giving them the right to vote.

If this Board were to change the method of the selection of trustees in the Westhampton Free Library, this change would be a lasting legacy to the present Board of Trustees. In allowing free elections, generations to come will benefit from the forward thinking and leadership that the Board of Trustees will have demonstrated. I disagree with Mr. Moore - we should not be looking back at the past 100 years of the Westhampton Free Library, but forward to the next 100 years.

Hermon J. Bishop, Esq.Westhampton Beach, NY