The American Library Association’s Policy 61 entitled, “Library Services to the Poor,” highlights the removal of all barriers to library and information services, particularly fees and overdue charges”. Librarians have had a longstanding debate over whether or not to charge late fines. Other libraries may block access to library privileges until materials are returned. Some libraries offer children and teens the option to "read down" their fines by reducing fines based on the amount of time spent reading or the number of books read. "Food for Fines" programs, in which borrowers donate canned food in exchange for fine forgiveness, are common in libraries all over the world. Many libraries also offer alternatives and amnesties in order to encourage patrons to return overdue books. The Public Library Association and the Association of Library Services to Children have asked libraries to reconsider policies that keep low-income teens away for fear of fines. In recent years, many libraries have stopped charging fines. Before removing late fees in October 2021, the most common fee among New York City public libraries was 25 cents/day. That increased to 2 cents/day in 1954 and 5 cents/day in 1959. Public libraries in New York began charging overdue fees in the late 1800s at a rate of 1 cent/day. For example, when the Aberdeen Free Library in Scotland opened in 1886, borrowers were fined a penny a week for every week a book was held longer than a fortnight. To encourage the return of books and to help fund the replacement acquisition of new books, libraries began assessing a fee on late books. In the late 1800s, as modern circulating libraries began making checking out books possible for the general public, concerns rose about books being taken out and never returned. Library fines are a small percentage of overall library budgets, but lost, stolen or un-returned library books can be costly for various levels of government that fund. Fines are usually assessed for only a few days or months, until a pre-set limit is reached. Library fines do not typically accumulate over years or decades. Library fines are an enforcement mechanism designed to ensure that library books are returned within a certain period of time and to provide increasing penalties for late items. Library fines, also known as overdue fines, late fees, or overdue fees, are small daily or weekly fees that libraries in many countries charge borrowers after a book or other borrowed item is kept past its due date. An illustration fine slip from A Library Primer (1899)
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