VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — In an effort to create an equal access to information, the Virginia Beach Public Library will no longer charge overdue fees on youth accounts.
The city made the announcement Thursday, saying fees for lost or damaged items will still apply, but there will now be fewer monetary strings attached to library books.
"Inability to pay fines may prevent families from returning materials or visiting the library at all. The goal is to get the materials back into our collection, and to encourage families to continue using the library," said Director of Libraries Eva Poole.
Teen and student accounts are also included in this change. According to a news release, student accounts provide automatic digital library and computer access for all Virginia Beach City Public School students.
The library said it will continue to monitor its collection and usage data in hopes that staff can remove overdue fees on all accounts in the future.
All fines that were accrued before July 1 still must be paid, even with this change.
Another move the Virginia Beach Public Library has made to remove economic barriers is taking away the $1 fee for materials placed on hold but not picked up.
They also are now allowing account holders who are blocked from checking out, access to computers and digital resources.
According to a news release, the library is one of many around the country to change its overdue fine policies.
These changes came after the American Library Associated passed a resolution that stated overdue fines were a barrier to equitable access, and encouraged libraries to do away with those fees.
