LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Starting July 1, the Louisville Free Public Library (LFPL) system is eliminating fines for overdue books and other materials. Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer joined with library officials Thursday to make the announcement.
LFPL eliminated fees during the coronavirus pandemic, but the system received enough funding through Louisville's budget for the next fiscal year to make the move permanent.
According to officials, these fines don't encourage people to return their items. In fact, they often act as a barrier to library services, especially for people who may need them the most.
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“Libraries are foundational to our city’s core value of lifelong learning, and access to these resources is vital to increasing opportunity and advancing racial equity, a focus of the budget we’re implementing today,” Mayor Fischer said.
Officials expect that getting rid of overdue fines will encourage more people to return their items, which will reduce the need to replace them. According to LFPL, overdue fines generate around $225,000 each year, which is about 1% of the library's budget.
“By going fine free we are welcoming back to the Library thousands of people across our community—providing them equal access to the tools and knowledge that can help them reach their fullest potential,” said Library Director Lee Burchfield
Existing overdue fines and fees will also be eliminated starting July 1.
If an item is not returned at all, the person who checked it out will be responsible for paying to replace it and will be banned from checking out more materials until the item is replaced or returned.
In Louisville's budget for the 2022 fiscal year, library services in Louisville received more than $3 million. Portions of those funds are expected to be used to replace a closed library in Fern Creek, renovate the Portland Library and restart library services in Parkland.
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