VENANGO — It isn’t entirely clear when or how, but some time ago the official book of borough laws disappeared.

When some newly appointed Venango Borough Council members went to review the rules last year, they couldn’t find the book.

That triggered a process to remake the book of local laws, commonly known as ordinances. Borough officials went through meeting minutes, correspondence and collected separately-filed copies of ordinances in their effort to reconstruct the book.

The reconstructed book contains 15 ordinances, according to borough Secretary Renee Hays, who also works part-time as Woodcock’s secretary.

Hays said the new book is available for public inspection at the Woodcock Township Building, Route 86, Meadville, before 3 p.m. daily.

While Hays has the official copy, other copies have been made and put in safe storage to avoid a problem like this in the future.

Hays said the ordinances contain nothing new and nothing unusual.

The original book was kept in the community room on the second floor of the Venango Fire Hall. It wasn’t under lock and key and was accessible to anybody.

Somehow, it came up missing.

Former council member Chuck Knoedler said the book was missing when he served more than five years ago.

However, current member Gerry Merritt said the book was there a year or so ago.

The current borough secretary, Hays, has only been in place for about two years and was never in possession of the book, according to Merritt. She was hired after previous secretaries resigned or moved out of the borough and didn’t want to commute.

Merritt said that now the book is to be kept by the secretary at all times. She will make copies of ordinances should anyone want one. Merritt, who is in his third year of a four-year term, previously had served three or four other times on council.

“It’s just a renewal of old ones,” said Merritt of the ordinances in the reconstructed book.