Carson City Library trustees authorize director to finalize $14,000 interlocal contract with NSHE for strategic plan

The Carson City Library Board of Trustees on a unanimous voice vote authorized Director Joy Holt to finalize and execute an interlocal agreement with the Board of Regents, Nevada System of Higher Education, for a five‑year organizational strategic plan for an amount not to exceed $14,000.

The board’s discussion focused on timeline adjustments, community outreach and a question about data protections for survey results. Holt said the contract’s cost and order of work will remain the same despite schedule changes and legal review: "it will change the timeline, because we've had to...delay having to move through the approval process," and that the kickoff is expected at a staff training day on Aug. 4 with a draft expected by November and completion by December, subject to the university’s legal review.

Trustees pressed for clarity about public engagement. Holt described plans to condense the engagement period to keep the work timely and to broaden outreach methods compared with earlier planning, including digital and paper surveys, Spanish and English language versions and a mix of community meeting times and locations. "We're really gonna try and see...it might be more advantageous that we're expediting it," she said, adding the survey will be both digital and on paper and that outreach may include press releases to Carson Now and the Nevada Appeal.

A trustee asked whether the contract includes protections against third‑party use of survey data (for example, use of generative AI platforms). Holt replied that the draft agreement does not include an explicit data‑protection clause for those items, noting in the meeting record: "Not not that explicitly because all of that information is public record anyway." The board’s deputy district attorney advised trustees of options: table until the final contract is received, direct staff to propose changes to the university, or authorize the director to finalize and execute the contract with minor adjustments.

The trustees chose to authorize Director Holt to finalize the contract, with the financial cap of $14,000 and the expectation that only minor adjustments remain pending university legal review. The authorization was made to avoid unnecessary delay in starting the work; trustees also discussed that the library has budgeted funds in its professional services line to cover the expense.

Next steps: Holt will complete final edits with the university’s counsel and, if consistent with the board’s guidance on cost and scope, execute the contract and begin scheduling community surveys and meetings. The library expects the consultant to begin staff meetings in August and to present draft work papers by late fall.