Sudbury's Goodnow Library Eliminates Late Fees

Sudbury MA

20 December, 2021

11:32 AM

Description

SUDBURY, MA — Here's an early Christmas gift from the Goodnow Library: no more late fees. The town's main library is doing away with the "19th century" idea of late fees, which harm low-income patrons, and may actually keep people away from the library, according to experts. "Our goal is to encourage, not enforce. We strive to remove barriers and welcome all. We are proud to take this step to eliminate late fees to advance our goal of inclusion and accessibility," the library said announcing the decision this week. But the elimination of late fees doesn't mean patrons can ignore due dates. The library will keep track of late items by adding a "billed item" charge to individual accounts. Patrons won't have to pay money for those billed items, but anyone who has $100 or more in billed items will have their borrowing privileges revoked. The billed items disappear when patrons return late items. And, patrons who use the Goodnow Library to borrow items from other libraries in the Minuteman system may still have to pay late fees. Only a few local systems have eliminated fines completely. In recent months, the library systems in Wayland, Worcester, Natick, Hopkinton, Belmont and Boston have ended fines. The library announced the late-fee elimination policy before Christmas, but it will not go into effect until Jan. 1. The Goodnow Library will be closed during the holidays on these days: Dec. 24, 25, 26 and 31; Jan. 1 and 2.