Public libraries typically follow a very standard practice: you check materials out and return them by a certain date. If you miss the deadline, you pay a fee.
That fee could range anywhere from a dime to a dollar, depending on your local library. These days, more and more public libraries are doing away with overdue fines altogether.
On March 18, the Omaha Public Library Board of Trustees voted to do just that.
The Board unanimously passed a resolution which would eliminate late fees on all books and other materials borrowed from Omaha libraries.
Omaha Public Library’s Assistant Director, Rachel Steiner, said that eliminating overdue fees would only be an expansion on what they have always done.
“We’ve always done that for kids using kids’ materials,” Steiner said. “So, this really is taking the whole system into consideration.”
While Steiner said the goal of eliminating late fees is to encourage more people to utilize the libraries, some patrons are skeptical about how well this will work.
“I think it’s kind of a deterrent for people if they know they owe something that they should get those books back up to the library,” said Terry Lassek, a library patron.
In a recent news release, OPL director Laura Marlane said that in the past, overdue fines have only accounted for a fraction of the library’s budget, so they are not concerned about this having any negative effects.
If this resolution is passed, Steiner said it would not only eliminate any future overdue fees, but it would also waive patrons’ outstanding fees that exist now.
“Our director is requesting that we do away with all of those and start everyone with a clean slate,” Steiner said.
Steiner said that under the new resolution, while most fees will be forgiven, fines will not be waived in the case of lost or missing items, which is a rule applied if an item is more than three weeks overdue.
The resolution is not scheduled to come before the city council until mid-April, so late fees are still in effect until then.
