BPL goes fine free

As of April 5, the Bremen Public Library announced that patrons will no longer have to pay fines for overdue materials, and there is now no rental fee for DVDS.

“This decision ensures that our institution is living up to its commitment to provide free and equal access to information,” the library announced. “One of the primary reasons a library exists is to foster literacy, knowledge, and lifelong learning.”

As its first step, all outstanding overdue fines have been cleared from patron records.

This does not extend to replacement fees for materials that were lost or damaged.

In January 2019, the Americal Library Association passed a resolution calling on libraries to do away with overdue fines, since the system perpetrates a “form of social inequity.”

According to a report by NPR, Chicago saw a 240% increase in the return of materials. For smaller communities like Bremen, eliminating late fees and forgiving past fines allows residents of all socioeconomic backgrounds to continue using the library and its services.

And the lack of revenue from fines has little impact on the library’s budget, according to BPL.

“While some might perceive fines as a major source of income for the library, they’re not,” the library’s statement reads, going on to cite the 2020 Indiana Public Library annual report: Around 88% of library’s budget comes from sources like property takes; 0.006% comes from fines.

The library emphasized that “no overdue fines does not mean ‘no responsibility.” Once an item is 14 days past its final due date, the item will be marked as lost. At this time, patrons become responsible for the cost of a

replacement copy.

Accounts will be blocked from checking out materials when the fees on a patron’s card exceed $10; this is the same system that is currently in place for library cardholders.

BPL is the latest to join nearly half of Indiana libraries, which are fine free to some degree.