Texas State Library and Archives Commission
June 5, 2015

Minutes

The Texas State Library and Archives Commission met on Friday, June 5, 2015, at the Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library Building, 1201 Brazos Street, Austin, Texas.

Commissioners Present:

Michael C. Waters, chair

Sharon T. Carr, vice chair

Martha Doty Freeman

F. Lynwood Givens

Larry G. Holt

Wm. Scott McAfee

 
Commissioners Absent:

Sandra J. Pickett

 
Staff Present:

Mark Smith, director and librarian

Edward Seidenberg, deputy director

Manuel Alvarez, director, Information Resource Technologies

Jelain Chubb, director, Archives and Information Services

Craig Kelso, director, State and Local Records Management

Deborah Littrell, director, Library Development and Networking

Donna Osborne, director, Administrative Services Division

Ava Smith, director, Talking Book Program

Stephen Siwinski, communications officer

Tracy Kuhn Lash, executive assistant

Alana Inman, manager, Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center

Rebecca Romanchuk, archivist, Archives and Information Services

Todd Rusch, library collections coordinator, Talking Book Program

 
Guests:

Joe Thrash, Office of the Attorney General

Paul Waak, Connecting Texas Libraries Statewide

Kathleen Krause-Thompson

 

Chairman Waters called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m.

  1. Welcome, introductions and general announcements.

    Chairman Waters welcomed everyone to the meeting. Mark Smith introduced TSLAC Employees of the Quarter Rebecca Romanchuk and Todd Rusch.

  2. Consideration of commemorative resolutions.

    Mark Smith requested approval of commemorative resolutions for retired employees Kathleen Krause- Thompson and Julie Burson. Commissioner Holt moved to adopt the resolutions. Commissioner Carr seconded. Motion passed. Chairman Waters presented the resolution to Ms. Krause-Thompson and thanked her for her service to the agency.

  3. Approve minutes of April 14, 2015 Audit Committee and Commission meetings.

    Commissioner Carr moved to approve minutes of the April 14, 2015 commission meeting as amended. Commissioner McAfee seconded. Motion passed.

  4. Public Comment. There was no public comment at this time.

  5. Conflict of interest disclosures. Commissioner Carr advised the commission of a possible conflict of interest concerning a vendor providing digital imaging services to the Council of Competitive Governments. After discussion, Joe Thrash determined it not to be a conflict of interest.

  6. Review of consent agenda: non-substantive corrections in other agenda items such as spelling, numbering, punctuation, grammar, or other revisions. Non-substantive items were noted.

  7. Review and approve Audit Committee recommendations regarding the Internal Audit Follow-Up Report on Prior Year Internal Audits and Post-Payment Audit.

    Commissioner McAfee reported that the Audit Committee approved the Internal Audit Follow-Up Report on Prior Year Internal Audits and Post-Payment Audit and moved to recommend approval. No second required. Motion passed.
     
  8. Review and approve acceptance of grants, and gifts greater than $500.

    Ava Smith requested approval for the following gifts to the Talking Book Program:

    • $500 from the Dallas Association for the Blind
    • $500 from the Burris family of Saginaw

    Jelain Chubb requested approval for the following gift to the Archives and Information Services Division:

    • $2,000 from the Fleur de Lis Chapter of the Huguenot Society of Texas

    Commissioner McAfee moved to accept all gifts. Commissioner Carr seconded. Motion passed.
     
  9. Review and approve contracts greater than $ 100,000, and contract renewals.

    Deborah Littrell requested approval of online database contract renewals with Adam Matthew, Gale Cengage Learning and ProQuest LLC as recommended by the Electronic Information Working Group as follows:
    Vendor TSLAC portion Subscription duration
    Adam Matthew: Ongoing Access Fee $7,876 11/1/15-10/31/16
    Gale Cengage Learning: Health Reference Center Academic $437,750 10/1/15 – 9/30/16
    ProQuest: HeritageQuest $341,539.76 10/1/15 - 9/30/16
    ProQuest: Ongoing Access Fee for Sanborn Maps, 20th Century American and English Poetry $ 30,391 10/1/15 - 9/30/16
    Total $817,556.76  

    Commissioner Carr moved to approve. Commissioner Freeman seconded. Motion passed.

    Deborah Littrell requested approval of a TexSelect contract renewal in the amount of $334,134 for the subscription period August 1, 2015 through July 31, 2016 with Teton Data’s Stat!Ref, an electronic, full-text medical library. The database is provided to Texas libraries through the TexShare consortium and is negotiated by the agency at a statewide level with no TSLAC funds expended. Commissioner Carr moved to approve. Commissioner Givens seconded. Motion passed.

    Deborah Littrell requested approval of a contract renewal with the Education Service Center Region 20, the K-12 Program Educational Partner in the amount of $257,500 for the contract period September 1, 2015 through August 31, 2016. ESC 20 provides outreach, training and a help desk in the implementation and operation of the K-12 school database program, TexQuest. Commissioner Carr moved to approve. Commissioner McAfee seconded. Motion passed.

    Deborah Littrell requested approval of a contract renewal with OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc., for WebJunction Cooperative Support services and SkillSoft Course Access for employees and staff of Texas public libraries at a cost of $15,000 for each product for the contract period of July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016. Commissioner Carr moved to approve. Commissioner Freeman seconded. Motion passed.

  10. Discussion of upcoming events and long term planning cycle.

    Mark Smith provided a timeline of agency initiatives and activities leading up to the next legislative session in 2017 which will include preparation of the Agency Strategic Plan and Legislative Appropriations Request. He asked commissioners to begin thinking about strategic priorities for the agency to culminate in a planning session in February 2016. Within the agency, staff will begin discussing future strategic direction, what resources are needed to move forward, and will conduct some type of organizational review as part of the strategic planning process. At the same time, staff will begin meeting with constituents and stakeholder groups to collect their input on the agency’s direction.
     
  11. Update on results of 84th Legislature regarding budget and legislation.

    Mark Smith reported on the status of agency appropriations for the next biennium by the 84th Legislature and provided a list of individual bills that impact agency operations and responded to questions from commissioners. He said TSLAC’s base request of $55.1 million was fully funded and 80% of the agency’s requested exceptional items were funded, increasing the agency’s appropriation by $7.6 million. In addition to increasing funding for TexShare and TexQuest programs, the funding will support the Texas Digital Archive, will help TSLAC address certain salary needs and begin implementation of a new automated accounting and payroll system. Director Smith thanked the commissioners for their participation in the legislative process and also expressed gratitude for partner organizations’ support. Commissioner Freeman and Chairman Waters thanked Director Smith for his work before and during the session.

    At 10:20 a.m., Chairman Waters recessed the meeting and called the meeting back to order at 10:34 a.m.
     
  12. Report of the Director and Librarian.

    In addition to a written report presented to the commission, Mark Smith provided an update on other activities and responded to questions regarding the report. He also reported that TSLAC is moving forward to acquire the Center for the Book which is currently located with the Dallas Public Library. Edward Seidenberg reported on a recent meeting he attended to learn more about the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress.
     
  13. Approval of Final Records Storage and Imaging fee schedules for 2016.

    Craig Kelso requested approval of Final FY 2016 fee schedules for records storage and imaging services at the State Records Center. After discussion, Commissioner Carr moved to approve. Commissioner Givens seconded. Motion passed.
     
  14. Report on the current status and future plans for renovation and repair work at the Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center.

    Jelain Chubb and Alana Inman reported on renovations and repairs at the Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center in Liberty and responded to questions regarding the status of repairs. To learn the status of repairs and to determine future work at the Center, Chairman Waters suggested reconvening the Ad Hoc Committee on the Sam Houston Center prior to the next commission meeting. The meeting was set for Sunday, August 2, 2015 at 2 p.m.
     
  15. Report on agency financial information.

    Donna Osborne presented a report on agency financial information requiring no action.
     
  16. Executive session, as authorized by Texas Government Code 551.071, 551.074, & 551.076, regarding consultations with attorney, personnel matters, and security devices respectively.

    No executive session took place.

    There being no further business before the commission, Chairman Waters adjourned the meeting at 11:25 a.m.

Page last modified: August 5, 2015