Why late fees don't work: Madison County Library eliminates overdue charges

Late fees for library items are a thing of the past in Madison County. Patrons holding on to a paperback, audiobook or movie past the due date don’t have to worry about running up a big bill after the county’s board of commissioners voted unanimously Nov. 10 to do away with late charges.

Fines for lost or damaged books will remain in place as part of a plan advanced by Madison County Library Director Kim Bellofatto.

“For many of our patrons, those fines have become prohibitive, particularly during COVID,” Bellofatto told commissioners inside the Cooperative Extension Center. “This is a real problem with a face on it.”

In her presentation, Bellofatto spoke with passion about the library’s mission to serve the community, outlining three reasons why charging readers for late books runs counter to that ideal.

Impact on the youngest readers

Bellofatto shared first-hand accounts of how even the potential of late fees have prevented Madison County families from checking out books for their children. She told the story of a father who was hesitant to get books supporting school research because he couldn’t afford the risk of not getting them back on time. 

“I could tell you a story a day on that,” she said. “The people that we should be serving, we’re not serving to the degree we should be.”

The fines, Bellofatto said, have the greatest impact on those who can least afford it. 

"They really impact lower income patrons," she said. "We're have a mission to foster and support a love of reading and fines don't do that."

Fines don't change behavior

While libraries have typically assessed late fees under the assumption that the fines would motivate patrons to return items on time, Bellofatto said research shows that's not the case. 

"They're not effective," Bellofatto said of fines. "If you have a book and you’re not finished, is that late fine going to make you turn it in before you’re done? No."

Bellofatto said fees sometimes even act as a deterrent from returning items, with patrons holding onto books believing that it's a way to avoid paying fines. She said when the library temporarily suspended fees during the initial lockdown period this past spring, books that been accruing large fines began trickling back in to library branches. 

"Research shows that around 95% of books are returned within a week of the due date," she said in a Nov. 12 phone call. "I don’t want to be in the business of charging someone for reading." 

The move to eliminate fines in Madison County is part of a nationwide trend, Bellofatto said, with roughly 20 library systems in North Carolina no longer charging late fees.

Minimal budget impact

Bellofatto stressed to commissioners that eliminating fines would not have a significant impact on the library's budget. While acknowledging that "no one wants to cut income," she said the public library system had collected about $3,100 in fines – or less than 1% of the library's budget – in the most recent fiscal year.

"We are causing more harm to our patrons, to our community, than that amount of money warrants," she said.

Though new library policy ends late fees, Bellofatto stressed that fines will remain in place for lost or damaged books. Items that have not been returned within 45 days from their due date will still be assessed a lost book fee. 

"We're not a free book store," she said, adding that fines will be removed and no penalty assessed even when items are returned after that 45-day period. "The book drop is waiting for those books to come home."

For patrons with the ability to support the local library system, Bellofatto suggested making donations to any of the three Friends groups serving each local branch.

"We'll never say no to that," she said. "All donations to the Friends or the library are used for books or for programming. Patron contributions always go back to the library."