Who is eligible to participate in the NELINET ILL
Reciprocal Code?

Libraries that receive their OCLC services through NELINET as an Unlimited Member.

How are the libraries participating in the Code identified?

Libraries participating in the Code are profiled in the resource sharing group called NELINET Online Code $igner$ (NO$$). You can view the current list of libraries in NO$$ by searching the OCLC ILL Policies Directory.

In addition, NELINET maintains web pages of Code signers by OCLC symbol and by OCLC symbol and library name. These pages are updated periodically.

You can also perform a Custom Holdings Search for OCLC Symbols for members of the NO$$ group.

When initiating OCLC ILL requests, signers of the Code are required to input "@N" (commercial "at" sign and capital N) in the MAXCOST field of the OCLC ILL workform. If the library also utilizes IFM, "@N" is followed by a slash, a dollar amount and the letters "IFM". For example: @N/$10 IFM. In addition, the phrase "NELINET ILL Code" is found in the AFFIL'N field of the library's ILL NAD record.

How can membership in the NO$$ group be used to
identify holdings?

When seeking a non-serial title held by Code signers, retrieve the bibliographic record and type dhno$$ <F11>. The list of Code signers owning the item displays, sorted by state (your state displays first).

When seeking a serial title held by Code signers, retrieve the bibliographic record and type ulno$$ <F11>. The list displays the union list holdings of the owning Code signers, in alphabetical order by OCLC symbol.

The membership of NO$$ can also be incorporated into your Custom Holdings Groups and Paths and used with the display commands dhc and dhu.

How is the Code administered?

Activity is monitored by NELINET and includes an annual review of OCLC ILL statistics. NELINET is particularly concerned with the ratios set forth in Section III, B.7. Action taken may include letters of warning and, in severe cases, referral to the NELINET Board of Directors for removal from the Code and the NO$$ group.

What if my library doesn't abide by the guidelines set
forth in Section III, B.7?

The guidelines are intended to distribute as much as possible the burden of resource sharing among all signers of the Code. Cooperation is important.

If as a borrower, a library exceeds the recommended borrowing to lending ratio, then NELINET expects the library to far exceed the minimum requirements of a lender. A library needs to achieve an annual fill rate of at least 50% (the average fill rate for all libraries doing OCLC ILL within the network) for requests coming to the library.

If as a lender, a library fails to reach the 20% fill rate (50% for libraries exceeding the borrowing to lending ratio) for incoming requests, then continued participation in the Code may be at risk.

In deciding what action to take, NELINET reviews as many as three calendar years of OCLC ILL activity for a library.

What about ILL activity that does not take place on OCLC?

The Code applies to OCLC ILL activity only. The obligations (borrowing and lending) outlined in the document do not apply to ILL requests that occur in other systems, such as DOCLINE, reQuest ILL, and manual ALA forms. If you wish to offer free lending to a Code signer for requests generated in these and other alternate systems, the choice is yours!

July 14, 2008