Evidence has shown that everyday Ohio's public libraries are having to deal with theft of materials, unattended youth, behavior problems with teens, and the inappropriate use of computers by patrons. Disruptive adults, medical emergencies, dealing with the mentally ill and homeless patrons, and criminal activity such as vandalism, drug use and disputes between library users have been reported as common incidents.
In response, the Ohio Library Council's Library Safety and Security Task Force is working to develop ways to aid libraries in responding to the ever-increasing security issues and concerns.
In a survey 
conducted in 2008, a large majority of libraries reported having policies in place that aid them in dealing with safety and security issues but most do not feel they have adequate procedures in place for staff to follow when incidents occur. Inadequate training on policies and procedures was evident as nearly 80% of the libraries either do not provide any training, or such training is provided only as a part of new staff orientation or only occasionally. Only one in 25 libraries offer training opportunities at least once every six months.
The survey results showed that for a large number of libraries only a minimal amount of security is provided. Twenty-eight percent of the libraries stated they employ no security measures of any kind. For those libraries with security measures in place, cameras and security gates are used most often. Only about one in four libraries offer any kind of security staffing with off duty police officers used about half the time. Over 70% responded that they regularly have only one staff member on duty at a time.
The Safety and Security Task Force found that libraries are keenly interested in receiving practical advice and assistance in improving security within their libraries. Providing support to the Ohio library community is complicated because there are wide ranges of security needs and expertise around the state. Ohio's major metropolitan libraries generally have a full-time dedicated manager responsible for library security with full time guards supplementing library staff in maintaining safe and secure environments. Those library environments demand greater security investments due to heightened levels of drug related crime in urban areas. However, more than two out of every three libraries in Ohio depend on the library director to manage security in his or her spare time or that responsibility is shared among other staff.
The Task Force has been collecting a wide range of existing policies and procedures from various libraries around the state. These sample policies and procedures are available for other libraries to modify and adopt to suit their local conditions and needs of their boards and patrons.
