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Exporting Blocks, Fines and Fees (New UI)

1. Exporting Blocks, Fines and Fees

1.1 User Management

Notes:

Welcome to this session of the Alma Administration Fundamentals Training. During this session, we will discuss configuration of two integration profiles and an API that can be used for exporting user blocks, fines and fees.

1.2 Agenda

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Notes:

This session will begin with a brief overview of blocks, fines and fees in Alma. The discussion will continue with three different methods for exporting user blocks, fines and fees to an external system: the Bursar integration, the User integration, and the ‘Get user fines and fees’ API.

These methods are not mutually exclusive. Each method may have advantages and disadvantages in any given use case. By becoming familiar with each method, you will be able to decide upon the best method or methods for your institution.

1.3 Overview

Notes:

Alma may be configured to assess fines and fees to patrons automatically, for example overdue items and lost item fees. You may also assess fines and fees manually to handle charges related to a Damaged Item fine, a library card replacement or registration fee.

When a patron’s outstanding balance of fines and fees reaches a certain threshold, which you can define per user group, Alma will automatically block the patron from borrowing, requesting or renewing. This is an example of a system-generated block.


1.4 Overview

Notes:

System-generated blocks result from configuration of Loan Limits, Patron Limits and Terms of Use. Loan Limits provide an opportunity to define the maximum number of concurrent loans per user group. Patron Limits permit you to define the maximum current cash balance, maximum number of concurrent overdue loans, maximum number of concurrent requests, etc. per user group. Terms of Use allow you, for example, to limit lending of certain items to certain user groups.

Alma calculates and applies system-generated blocks at the point of transaction. When a patron attempts to request, check-out or renew physical items, Alma checks the Loan Limits, Patron Limits and applicable TOU and allows or blocks the transaction, based on your configuration.

System-generated blocks are not persistent. They may change depending on circumstances. If a patron has already borrowed a laptop, they may still be able to borrow a book. In this situation, the patron is not blocked from borrowing, per se, rather the particular transaction might be blocked because of the configuration which applies to that transaction. Another example: if a patron has reached the threshold of their allowable cash balance, they are blocked from borrowing. Even with this block in place, however, the patron may still be able to submit hold requests. Once the balance is paid off, Alma no longer generates a block when the patron attempts to borrow an item.


1.5 Overview

Notes:

Alma also allows you to assign persistent blocks to patrons. Persistent blocks are applied manually by library staff, not generated automatically by Alma, and are not dependent on the circumstances of a particular transaction or the applicable configuration. A patron to whom the library has assigned a persistent block will be blocked from requesting, borrowing and/or renewing until the library manually removes the block from the patron’s record.

1.6 Agenda

Notes:

Alma provides several methods for exporting user block, fine and fee information: two different integrations and an API.


1.7 Bursar Integration

Notes:

First, let’s have a look at the Bursar integration. The Bursar integration is intended to export a file of patron fines and fees to an FTP site where the file can be picked up by your institution’s bursar system. You may need to write a script to convert the XML in Alma’s export file to a format that can be accepted by your bursar system. Fines and fees exported in this way will be closed in Alma, the cash amount set to zero, and the patron’s active balance updated accordingly. For this reason, the Bursar integration is usually configured to export only those fines and fees that are handled by the institutional bursar. Potentially, the Bursar job can avert certain system-generated blocks. So, if a patron had reached the maximum cash limit and consequently was blocked from borrowing, exporting some fines and fees may lower the patron’s current balance below the threshold, thus precluding the block.


1.8 Bursar Integration

Notes:

The content of the output file for the Bursar job in which user’s fines and fees will be exported, can be configured according to: Time before export - that is, how many days after the fine/fee creation date should the

fine/fee be included in the report, in order to allow for waiving, dispute or payment of those fines and fees before they would be exported.

Minimum amount for user defines a lower threshold. Only users with a total fines/fees balance equal to or above this amount will have fines/fees exported

User groups Fine/Fee types - which fines and fees will be exported, for example overdue fines, lost item

fees, service or registration fees, etc. Again, since fines and fees exported by the Bursar job will be closed on the patron’s record in Alma, fines and fees which are not handled by the Bursar should not be included in the export. Doing so will leave you with no mechanism for collecting those fines and fees.

Ownership of fines and fees - those assessed by the institution, namely Card Renewal, New user fee and some migrated fines/fees; and/or Fines and fees issued by a particular library or libraries.


1.9 User Integration

Notes:

The User integration, which we discussed in the previous session, contains a mode for exporting user persistent blocks, fines and fees - aptly named ‘Export user blocks’ mode. ‘Export user blocks’ mode creates and exports a report of users who have persistent blocks and/or fines and fees associated with them.

For users included in the report, all persistent blocks, fines and fees will be included in the report.No change is made to the user record as a result of the export. The institutional department responsible for such matters receives the file and can process the user records according to institutional policy.

1.10 User Integration

Notes:


You can define which users will be included in the report according to: User group Block type - loan, cash, demerits, etc. Fine/fee age - how long ago was the fine or fee assessed to the patron Threshold amount - the minimum cash balance to be reported

1.11 User vs. Bursar Integration

Notes:

In this respect, the ‘Export Blocks’ mode of the User integration job differs from the Bursar job, which modifies the user’s balance. Another difference is that the export file created by the User integration includes information about persistent blocks, in addition to fines and fees, whereas the Bursar export file contains only information about fines and fees, nothing related to blocks.

In other words, the User integration Export Blocks mode produces a report of user fines, fees and persistent blocks, but has no functional effect on those fines, fees or blocks. The Bursar integration produces a report of user fines and fees, closes those fines and fees in the user record and, in this way, may prevent certain system-generated blocks.


1.12 API – Get User Fines and Fees

Notes:

In addition to the integrations described above, you may also use the ‘Get User fines and fees’ API to retrieve a list of all fines and fees for a specific user. Like the Bursar integration, the API returns only user fine and fee information, not persistent blocks. Like the User integration, the API has no functional effect on the fines and fees retrieved.

1.13 Agenda

Notes:

In this session, we covered an overview of fines, fees and blocks in Alma. We explored the difference between system-generated blocks - which result from configuration of Loan Limits, Patron Limits and Terms of Use - and persistent blocks, which are applied manually by library staff.


We discussed three different methods for exporting user blocks, fines and fees:

The Bursar integration - which produces a report of user fines and fees, closes those fines and fees in the user record and, consequently, may prevent certain system-generated blocks.

The User integration - which produces a report of user fines, fees and persistent blocks, but has no functional effect on those fines, fees or blocks, and

The ‘Get user fines and fees’ API - which returns only user fine and fee information, not persistent blocks, and has no effect on the user record.

1.14 Thank you!

Notes:

Thanks for joining us. For more information visit the Ex Libris Knowledge Center.

1.15 About this Training


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