With finals, the holidays and registering for classes, the last thing on most student’s minds is a notice for a recalled book.

According to Doris Beeson, the circulation manager for Pius XII Memorial Library, as it stands now, a student can check out a book from the library for 21 days.

After 12 days have passed, if another student or a teacher needs the book, the library has the right to recall it. To do this, a librarian must either call, e-mail or send a letter to the individual who has the book.

The person then has seven days to return the recalled item. If it is returned after the appointed time, the library will charge a 10-cent fine for every day that the item is overdue.

“I’ve never heard of a recall policy with the library. The idea that I can get a book I really need though, sounds like a good idea,” said freshman Angela Colford.

Recently, the Student Government Association has taken notice of this recall policy and proposed a bill to abolish it.

“We think that the policy is unnecessary,” said Monica Dickinson, Senator of Arts and Sciences and sponsor of the bill.

This bill stated several reasons why the recall policy should be terminated, including:

 there are no posted policies of procedures, fines or recall systems

 no written policy could be provided upon inquiry

 there is no apparent purpose for the current recall system

 in certain circumstances, little, if any, notification has been given, and fines have been issued.

SGA passed the bill on Nov. 15 to abolish the recall policy.

Saint Louis University is not the only university in the St. Louis area that has policies for recalling books. Washington University, for example, has a recall policy almost identical SLU’s, with the exceptions that when a book is needed for reserve, books are recalled immediately, and when a borrower is late in returning a recalled book they are charged 40 cents a day.