If community members want to donate books to the library, it is useful to have a donations policy. First, check and see if your board has an approved policy. If not, it can be helpful to develop your own.
Donated Library Materials Policy
A school library strives to provide a collection of exciting, new and relevant books which support the curriculum, are age and subject appropriate, and meet the California Curriculum Standards.
Gifts of materials are accepted by the school library with the understanding that upon receipt, the library becomes the owner of the materials. Inclusion of these materials into the collection is based upon the same selection criteria as purchased materials (see selection policy below). The disposition of materials not added to the collection is left to the discretion of the library staff in charge.
Donation Receipts
When donating materials to the library, you can request a receipt to use for your tax records to record charitable donations.
It is up to the taxpayer to determine the value of items. The Salvation Army provides a list of fair market values, which list hardcovers at $1-$3 and paperbacks at $.75-$1.50
Resources for determining Fair Market Value:
Determining Fair Market Value of Chairtable Contributions from the IRS.gov
A form letter for acknowledging gifts.
Gifts of $500 and over should be submitted to be acknowledged by the AUHSD board.
Gifts and Donations Policy adopted by the AUHSD School Board
Ideas for soliciting donations:
Sample Donation Policy
A receipt for tax purposes
If the patron wants a receipt, you can notate the number of hardcovers and paperbacks, but should always let the patron determine the value of items to avoid problems with the IRS. The salvation army provides a list of fair market values, which list hardcovers at $1-$3 and paperbacks at $.75-$1.50