Patron Blocks Table

To view circulation parameters, you must be assigned permission 373 (View Circulation Parameters). To edit the Patron Blocks table, you must be assigned permission 379 (Edit Patron Blocks). See Permissions Used by Sierra for more information.

The Patron Blocks table specifies the conditions under which to block patrons from performing all, or certain types of, circulation transactions. When the patron performs a transaction (such as checking out an item or placing a hold), the system compares the value in the patron's P TYPE and PAT AGENCY fixed-length fields to the blocking conditions specified for this patron type and agency in the Patron Blocks table.

You can access the Patron Blocks table via the following menu path:

Admin | Parameters | General | Patron Blocks

For information on modifying this table, see Maintaining System Parameter Tables and Maintaining Circulation Parameters.

For more information, see Functionality Information and Data Elements.

Functionality Information

When viewing and modifying the Patron Blocks table, note the following:

Maximum Number of Entries
The Patron Blocks table can contain a maximum of 900 entries.
Table Read Top to Bottom
The system reads the Patron Blocks table from top to bottom. General entries (such as those that contain wildcards) should appear lower in the table than more specific entries.The very last entry in the table should be set up to apply to all patron types and agencies (that is, the Patron Type element should be set to "999" (Sierra 3.4 and earlier) or "9999" (Sierra 4.0 and later), and the Patron Agency element should be set to "999").

Data Elements

Entries in the Patron Blocks table contain the following data elements:

Element Description Possible Values
Patron Type The P TYPE fixed-length field values to which the block criteria in this entry apply. A single value from the Patron Type table, or a wildcard code to represent all patron types (999 in Sierra 3.4 and earlier or 9999 in Sierra 4.0 and later).
Patron Agency The PAT AGENCY fixed-length field values to which the block criteria in this entry apply. The system applies this element only if your library has acquired Consortium Management Extensions and enabled the PAT AGENCY field. A single value from the Agency table, or a wildcard code 999 to represent all agencies.
Patron Exp. Date Determines whether to block expired patrons from checking out items. An expired patron is one with an EXP DATE fixed-length field value earlier than or equal to the current date.

If the Check-out: Limit due date to expiration date circulation option is set to "YES," this element also determines whether the system limits the due date for checked-out items to the patron's expiration date. For more information, see How Sierra Calculates the Due Date for a Checkout.
y Block expired patrons from checking out items.
n Do not block expired patrons at checkout.
Max Owed The maximum amount the patron can owe (from the MONEY OWED fixed-length field in the patron record) before being blocked. 0.00 - 9,999,999.00. A value of 0 blocks patrons from checking out items.
Highest Level Odues The level of overdue notice at which the patron is blocked. The system tracks a patron's overdue level in the HLODUES fixed-length field and blocks patrons who have received more than the specified number of overdue notices for any currently checked-out item. A number between 1 and the highest level of overdue notice your library generates (up to 6). A value of 7 represents an overdue notice for a recalled item. A value higher than 7 means that the system does not apply this block.
Max Items The maximum number of items the patron can have checked out at one time, including INN-Reach and ILL items.

Note that at INN-Reach Central Servers, the MAX ITEMS element represents INN-Reach items only. For more information, see Central Patron Blocks Table.		 0-2100. A value of 0 blocks patrons from checking out items.
Max Holds The maximum number of outstanding holds the patron can have. This maximum includes standard circulation and INN-Reach holds but excludes ILL requests, which are limited by the Max ILL (at one time) element. Patrons who exceed this limit are prevented from placing additional holds, but not from performing other types of transactions. 0-999. Note that the maximum number of holds the system allows any single patron to place is 400.
Max ILL (at one time)

The maximum number of concurrent interlibrary loan requests that can be acquired for a patron before the patron is blocked from further ILL requests.

The total count includes ILL requests lent to or acquired for the patron, but not yet returned to the supplier. (Non-returnable items given to the patron are not counted.)

You can configure the system to include both acquired and unacquired requests (for example, ILL requests placed via the WebPAC) when blocking patrons. To change your library's configuration, contact Innovative.

 0-999. A value of 999 indicates that there is no limit to the number of ILL items that the patron can request. A value of 0 disables ILL for the patron.
Max ILL (per interval)

The maximum number of interlibrary loan requests the patron can have over a period of time. The time period is determined by how often your library resets the value of the ILL REQUES fixed-length field in your patron records.

To use this element, you must set the Limit Maximum ILL Requests Per Interval circulation option to "YES," contact Innovative to enable the Allow Rapid Updating of the ILL REQUES Field feature, and periodically use the Rapid Update function to reset the value of the ILL REQUES fixed-length field in your patron records.

 0-999. A value of 999 indicates that there is no limit to the number of ILL items that the patron can request. A value of 0 disables ILL for the patron.
Max Itema
Max Itemb
Max Itemc
Max Itemd		 The maximum number of items from each of four library-defined item categories that the patron can have checked out at any one time (up to the maximum number of items that can be checked out according to the Max Items element). Your library can define item categories in the Item types & locs for category <letter> circulation option.

0-999. A value of 0 indicates that the patron can check out an unlimited number of items from a given category.

To prevent patrons from checking out any item from a particular category, set the patron block to -1 for the category. Note that you can also use loan rules to block checkouts based on item type and location. See How Sierra Determines the Loan Rule for a Transaction for more information.
Max Programs

The maximum number of current programs for which a patron can register (including waitlisted registrations). If the Max Programs value is equal to or lower than the sum of current registrations and waitlists, the patron cannot register for any additional programs, but can perform other types of circulation transactions.

For more information about program registration maximums, see the Patron Registration Block feature and the description of the REGPERPAT fixed-length field.

 0-999. A value of 0 means that the patron cannot register for any programs. The value 999 indicates that there is no limit to the number of programs for which the patron can register.
Highest # Overdue Points The highest number of overdue penalty points (demerits) the patron can accrue before being blocked. 0-9999. If set to 0, penalty points are disabled for the patron type.
Block Days Number of days that the patron is blocked after accruing the maximum number of overdue penalty points. The system adds this value to the BLK UNTIL fixed-length field in the patron record. 0-999.