No more late fees at Fredericksburg-area libraries; Fines disproportionately affect poor, ‘people of color,’ says director

Late fees at public libraries in the Fredericksburg region are a thing of the past.

Central Rappahannock Regional Library’s Board of Trustees approved a proposal to permanently eliminate fines on overdue materials on December 12, 2022.

The library eliminated fines for children’s and teen materials in July 2017 to support the educational development of children and teenagers and suspended fines on adult materials in March 2020 due to the onset of covid and the difficulty in accepting returned materials.

The regional library system has not reinstated fines since and is taking a major step toward improving access. As of January 3, 2023, all fines on customers’ records will be waived, and future fines on overdue materials will be eliminated. Fees will still be charged for lost or damaged materials.

“Eliminating fines supports CRRL’s mission of inclusivity and is an important step in making the library even more accessible,” said Central Rappahannock Regional Library’s Board of Trustees Chair Diana Risavi.

“Studies have shown that low-income individuals and families are disproportionately affected by overdue fines, with people of color even more so. Eliminating fines allows us to address this inequity and remove a barrier to access,” added Library Director Martha Hutzel.

Studies have shown that eliminating fines reduces financial barriers and improves access for everyone.

Eliminating fines also often results in an influx of returned materials from cardholders whose accounts had previously accumulated fines, and increased requests for library cards from residents who would otherwise be concerned about accumulating fines, according to the press release.

Eliminating fines also results in significant savings in staff salaries required to collect and process fines and the small amount of lost revenue will be addressed with other strategies, the press release states.

Currently, 51% of Virginia public libraries have eliminated fines for all age levels, including Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, Richmond, and Williamsburg. CRRL is proud to join this movement of eliminating overdue fees to increase inclusion and lower barriers to access.