Why did Wilmington's libraries join the nationwide 'wave' to end late book fines?

New Hanover County's public library system eliminated fines this summer for books and other library materials that are turned in late.

The change, which aims to promote equity among library users, went into effect at the beginning of July. Getting rid of fines, especially late fees, is a national movement among libraries that Paige Owens, director of New Hanover County's public library system, said started more than a decade ago in 2010 and has since spread.

“It’s a wave,” Owens said. “So many libraries across the state and most libraries that are similar in size and usage to New Hanover County are already fine free.”

Owens, who became library director in 2019, said the idea of cutting fines was appealing because of its potential to benefit both library users and library staff.

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In a presentation to New Hanover County leaders earlier this year, Owens estimated library staff spent approximately 780 hours processing 15,606 overdue fines in a six month span last year. For staff, collecting fines also makes interactions with patrons more "confrontational," Owens said.

In 2019, the American Library Association issued a resolution that deemed fines of any kind an "economic barrier" to library use and stated that libraries "need to take determined and pragmatic action to dismantle practices of collecting monetary fines."

“By eliminating these barriers to access, we’re really becoming those library spaces that are truly for everyone,” said current American Library Association president  Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada.

Owens and other library staff began looking at how other North Carolina libraries were approaching fines. Then during the last fiscal year, which ran from July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022, the library system ran a "test case," making its children's collections late-fine-free.

The library system had initially delayed getting rid of late fines because it wasn't clear how the move would impact book returns, Owens said, but after eliminating late fines, the library saw children's book circulation increase by nearly 14%.

Building on that success, the library system decided to ask New Hanover County administrators to eliminate late fees for all materials by building the measure into the system's more than $6.43 million budget. The library still charges fees for lost materials.

When putting together the proposal, Owens found roughly 15,000 library users owed around $97,000 in overdue library fines in New Hanover County. In addition, approximately 2,500 library accounts were blocked due to charges of $10 or more. The library system recently increased the fine amount required to block a card from $10 to $25.

The late fees and blocked cards disproportionately affect library users in low income areas of New Hanover County, Owens said.

“We found that many of the people whose cards were blocked for overdue fines were concentrated in areas of the community that are more challenged and have trouble accessing services,” she said.

A map showing the concentration of fined library accounts shows the accounts are concentrated in census tracts with a relatively low area median income, including areas on Wilmington's Northside.

“These are people who live close enough to walk to the Main Library and probably aren't using the library because of overdue fines,” Owens said.

Anecdotally, worries about late fines impact families the most, since kids often check out multiple books at a time, and it can be easy to rack up late fees. Owens said library staff know families who aren't using the library because of overdue fees and has overheard parents telling their children they can't check out books to avoid the chance of accumulating a late fee.

New Hanover County had anticipated collecting $45,650 in library late fees in this fiscal year, which started July 1, 2022. Eliminating those fines forces the system to make up the difference using cost-saving-measures in other parts of its operations, according to Owens.

The public library systems in Pender and Brunswick Counties still charge fines for materials returned after their due date. However, Brunswick County Library Director Patricia Dew acknowledged that going fine-free is something the library system may explore in future budget cycles.

“The thing about libraries is they’re very, very localized," said Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada, the American Library Association president, "so it’s very dependent upon every individual community how libraries operate and how they make their policies and decisions.”

Owens said she hopes eliminating late fines will knock down a barrier that could prevent some from checking out library materials and using other library services.

“It’s not about the money. It was never about the money. It’s about getting our materials back,” she said. “This is a goodwill gesture to say, ‘All is forgiven, come on back to the library.’”

Reporter Emma Dill can be reached at 910-343-2096 or edill@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wilmington area libraries eliminate late fines in push for equity