The El Paso Public Library is very concerned with the safety and well-being of all Library users and goes to great lengths to ensure their safety. The Library has an Internet-access policy for the public that has stood the test of time.

As it pertains to Intenet usage, currently, the public library does not filter Internet content because:

a. It is a matter of library policy based on the fact that filters are not completely effective in blocking out potentially offensive material. Some filters are as little as 75% effective.

b. Filters can block important health information such as information on breast or colon cancer, or things as innocuous as a recipe for chicken breasts.

c. The use of ineffective filters may give parents a false sense of security regarding what their children may be accessing at public libraries.

d. Filtering the Internet could be a violation of an individual's First Amendment right to access constitutionally protected material.

In order to protect the safety of children the library currently:

a. Trains staff to monitor the behavior of library patrons and take appropriate action when necessary.

b. Provides recessed computer desks for many computers, and provides privacy screens on most others.

c. Has established separate computer areas for the general public, teens and children to minimize the potential exposure of children to content that may be offensive to them.

d. Requires that all adult computer users sign in to use the computer, and have read and accepted the library computer use policy before they use the computers.

e. Requires that parents read and acknowledge to have read an internet permission form, which states that there is material available on the Internet that may be offensive to minors, before their children under the age of 18 can use a computer.

e. Encourages parents to use the computers along with their children in order to provide guidance and support.

As it pertains to the recently opened Esperanza Acosta Moreno Branch, privacy screens have been ordered for all public access computers and are slated to arrive within 30 days.