× Thanks for reading! Log in to continue. Enjoy more articles by logging in or creating a free account. No credit card required. Log in Sign up {{featured_button_text}}

The RTD news story “Richmond Public Library eliminates overdue book fines,” by Holly Prestidge, caught our eye. The city library has decided to discontinue the fees because they constituted “a punitive, inefficient and misguided barrier blocking our most vulnerable users,” according to Richmond Public Library (RPL) Director Scott Firestone.

Richmond libraries are one of more than 200 library systems in the nation that have opted to stop charging overdue fees. In January 2019, the American Library Association passed a resolution recognizing fines as “a form of social inequity.” The resolution called on all libraries to end the practice. Apparently accrued penalties are driving away the very people who most require the free resources that public libraries provide — low-income residents and children.

Our immediate reaction — and that of several letter writers — was to question why, once this policy takes effect, anyone would ever bother to return library property in a timely fashion. And, we thought, aren’t late fees an important tool that help teach borrowers personal responsibility? We were surprised to learn that research shows library fines have little to no impact on prompt returns — if anything, they tend to discourage people from ever returning to the library.