Library will forgive late fees

KENT — As of January 2020, the Kent Memorial Library will no longer charge late fees to patrons’ accounts for overdue items. Recent studies show that late fees affect lower income patrons detrimentally.

“A major two-year Colorado State Library study (2016) investigated how to promote early learning among low-income children and found that one of the greatest barriers to public library use was fines and fees. At many libraries, financial punishment for materials returned a few days late can quickly add up for families and individuals on a budget and lead to account blocks, which cut off access to both print and electronic resources, for balances as low as $5 or $10. Such costs inherently disproportionately affect people with lower incomes, a segment of the population arguably in greatest need of the social services and resources offered by libraries.”

“The Library endeavors to serve all our patrons and to encourage use of all materials and other resources,” members said in a statement. “The board supports this shift in our expected income, and we hope to see more patrons returning to the Library now that fines are no longer a deterrent. Going forward, the only fees on our patrons’ accounts will be for lost items or materials from other libraries with different policies. There will be a “Conscience Jar” on the front desk to accept any donations. Visit www.kentmemoriallibrary.org for more information.