Accessibility Services FAQs

  • General Questions

    Alameda County Library is always working to make our facilities and services more welcoming and accessible.

    Available accommodations include (but are not limited to):

    Requests for specific accommodations can be made by contacting your local Alameda County Library location or Accessibility Services. More information can be found on our Accessibility page.

    Every library provides Pocketalkers for in-library use. Pocketalkers are personal sound amplifiers that help users hear more of what they want to hear and less of what they don't. They achieve this by reducing background noise and allowing the user to focus on and amplify specific sounds.

    Pocketalkers are ideal for library programs, film showings, group discussions, one-on-one conversation, and for library use in general. Using a Pocketalker is as simple as plugging in a pair of headphones (or using the included pair), positioning the microphone near the preferred sound, and adjusting the volume to your desired setting. 

    Visit any of our libraries' Reference Desks to borrow a Pocketalker for use during your next library visit. 

    In addition, we have RF (radio frequency)-based assistive listening systems from Listen Technologies at the Albany, Castro Valley, Dublin, Fremont Main and Newark libraries. These systems are great for larger events and programs. Users can adjust the volume of the presentation audio on an individual basis using an RF receiver. Simply let staff know if you would like the presenters to provide event or program audio through one of these systems. 

    If you require accommodations for a specific library program, please contact the library where the program is being held or message Accessibility Services at least seven (7) days in advance. 

    Yes! You can request an ADA-friendly Library Locker. When you place your hold, select one of these options:

    • Wally Pond Locker - ADA Accessible
    • Warm Springs Locker - ADA Accessible

    If you need help, let us know.

    Service animals are welcome in all of our libraries. We love all animals, but pets, emotional support animals, and other animals that have not been trained to perform specific acts directly related to an individual’s disability are not allowed into our libraries.

    For your convenience, Alameda County Library allows Library Cardholders to add authorized users to their account by submitting a completed Additional Users Authorization form, either online or print. These forms are also available at each location's Circulation Desk.

    An Additional User can:

    • Check out the primary member’s holds
    • Borrow and request items on the primary member’s account
    • Pay fees
    • View borrowing records and account balance

    To access the account to which one is an approved user, the Additional User must do one of the following:

    • Present the primary member’s library card
    • Present an approved form of ID, know the name and address of the member, and be listed as an approved additional user on the account
      • Please note: Exceptions to the ID requirement may be permitted for Additional Users under 13 years old.

    Revoking Additional User access must be done in person or by submitting an Additional Users Removal form, either online or in print. Copies of this form are also available at each location's Circulation Desk.

    If you require accommodations for a specific library program or event, please contact the library where the program is being held or message Accessibility Services at least seven (7) days in advance. This will help us ensure the needed accommodations are in place in time for the event.

    Yes! All TTY users can dial 888-663-0660 to contact the Alameda County Library about their accounts, the library's services, or brief reference questions.

    Alternatively, you can simply dial 711 to be connected to the California Relay Service. To have your call immediately answered in your language and preferred mode of communication, please dial using one of the numbers below:

    • TTY/VCO/HCO to Voice
      • English: 800-735-2929
      • Spanish: 800-855-3000
    • Voice to TTY/VCO/HCO
      • English: 800-735-2922
      • Spanish: 800-855-3000
    • From or To Speech-to-Speech (English & Spanish): 800-854-7784

    Extended Services Library Cards are intended to ease access to library materials for our members with disabilities or mobility issues. These cards allow members to borrow items for 30 days (as opposed to the normal 21 days). 

    To have an account updated to an Extended Services Library Card, the member just needs to show some form of verification of disability, including (but not limited to):

    • A statement or letter on a physician's/medical professional's letterhead stationary.
    • A statement, record, or letter from a government agency that issues or provides disability benefits.
    • Certification from a vocational rehabilitation counselor or another counselor that issues or provides disability benefits.

    If you cannot easily provide this verification, just speak with your local Alameda County Library staff or contact Accessibility Services. We'll find a solution.

    Members that have a hard time physically visiting a library may also be interested in adding an Additional User to their account (to designate another person that is allowed to pick up and borrow library items on their behalf).

    The Braille & Talking Book Library (BTBL) in Sacramento, CA is our local outpost of the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS).  BTBL lends braille books, talking books (physical and digital audiobooks), audio magazines, and descriptive video DVDs to eligible readers in Alameda County by mail, for free!

    Who Is Eligible?

    To be eligible for BTBL service, a person must have a certified authority* confirm that she/he is permanently or temporarily:

    • Legally blind, with vision in the better eye of 20/200 or less with corrective glasses, or
    • Have a visual field no greater than 20 degrees in diameter, or
    • Be unable to see well enough or focus long enough to read standard print, even with corrective glasses, or
    • Be unable to handle print books or turn pages because of a physical disability, or
    • Be certified as having a perceptual or reading disability of sufficient severity to prevent reading printed material in the usual manner.

    *As of February 2021, certification may be made by librarians.

    Provided For FREE:

    • Talking book players
    • Audiobooks and magazines on digital cartridge (no late fees)
    • Free delivery and mailing – no postage required
    • Downloadable/streaming audiobooks and electronic braille
    • Braille

    Reading Material Available

    • Over 100,000+ books
    • 3,000 to 5,000+ new audiobooks and 600+ Braille books added each year
    • 50 new locally recorded books on California interest added each year
    • Popular magazines
    • Foreign languages

    Sign Up

    • Downloadable application: btbl.ca.gov/apply
    • Need an application mailed? Request one: btbl@library.ca.gov or 1-800-952-5666
    • Need assistance completing and/or certifying a Braille & Talking Book Library application? Ask us! In-person or online. 

    • Screens with enhanced display and blue light reduction
    • Windows Narrator
    • ZoomText
    • Large format keyboard with high visibility keys