Beginning August 15th, Champaign Public Library is going to stop charging for overdue items, and will waive fees that are on your account already. From an email they sent out to cardholders:
“There are many reasons why we have decided to stop charging overdue fines, but the main one is that overdue fines are widely recognized as a form of social inequity. The American Library Association and others have confirmed that imposing fines neither teaches responsibility nor motivates borrowers to return items on time. Instead, charging fines makes people less likely to return to the library. It also can keep people, including families and children, from using the library in the first place if they fear being responsible for fines they cannot pay.”
They are hoping that cardholders will still get their books and other items back to the library so that others will be able to enjoy them. You can read more about the change in policy here.
Photo from Champaign Public Library Facebook page.
