Carroll County Public Library’s trustees vote unanimously to keep the system fine free

On Tuesday, the Carroll County Public Library Board of Trustees voted unanimously to maintain its practice of not charging fees for overdue library materials.

As board member Joyce Muller read through library staff comments Tuesday, one stuck out to her: “If the penalty for a crime is a fine, then that law only exists for the lower class.” The quote was submitted as a part of a survey sent to all library staff, after the board delayed a decision last month on reinstatement of overdue fines.

“One of our greatest goals and values is to treat everybody equally and with respect,” Muller said Tuesday night. “After reading all of this, and hearing this discussion, there is no doubt. We should not [reinstitute] the fines, and continue to be fine free.”

The library system became fine free on Sept. 1, 2020 and forgave all overdue fines that existed before that date. The policy was put in place to ensure that all “community members have equitable access to CCPL’s resources and services, while eliminating the financial barrier of overdue fines,” according to the system’s website . The system charges a replacement fee for the full cost of a library item that is more than 35 days overdue. Customers have 90 days to return overdue materials to have the fee removed, according to the library’s website.

A study on the possible reinstatement of overdue fines and another on the feasibility of opening some library branches on Sundays were requested by Carroll County Commissioner President Ken Kiler during county budget discussions. Commissioners ordered the studies in order for the system to receive its full allocated funding in the fiscal 2025 budget. The new fiscal year started on July 1.

The completed overdue fines study, presented by library system Executive Director Andrea Berstler in June, projected about $27,000 in actual revenue in 2024 from collecting fines, after paying for credit card devices and fees, software adjustments and staff time.

Earlier this month Berstler opened a survey to library staff. More than half of the staff replied to the survey, which got 161 responses.

In the responses, 79% of staff said overdue fines had a “highly negative or somewhat negative impact” on customer relations, 72% said they had a “highly negative or somewhat negative impact” on their work environment, and 74% of respondents said dealing with overdue fines has a “highly negative or somewhat negative impact” on their work stress levels.

In addition, about 90% of the respondents said they believe reinstating overdue fines is not a good decision, according to survey results.

Board member Garima Chaturvedi said the Carroll library system’s core values are reflected in being fine free in order to ensure “accessibility to information.”

Berstler added that the process of having to “ask for that forgiveness” of overdue fines can also be “a walk of shame” for customers who can’t get to a library in time to return borrowed items.

Board member Steve Wantz said it was important to hear from staff members because that’s where “the rubber meets the road.”

“We can sit here, talking, decide or whatever but in a previous life, the job that I had, I relied on the staff almost all the time because they’re the ones that know best,” Wantz said.

Board of Trustees President Kendra Hart said she had heard from staff that collecting overdue fines from frustrated patrons can make them feel unsafe, and it was those concerns that decided her vote against reinstating overdue fines.

In her presentation last month on the impact of overdue fines, Berstler discussed a law passed by the Maryland General Assembly last session. The law, which goes into effect Oct. 1, prohibits a public library system from charging fines for overdue library materials “borrowed by a minor or intended for children or teens.” The “intention” part of the law complicates matters for library staff, Berstler said, since some customers could be checking out books with the intention of giving them to minors.

Now that the studies are complete, the library system must ask Carroll County commissioners to add discussion of the studies to an upcoming agenda, so the commissioners can agree to release the restricted funds in the fiscal 2025 budget, Berstler said.

The board of trustees will next meet at 7 p.m., Sept. 25 at the North Carroll Library Branch. For more information about past and future meetings, go to library.carr.org/about/board .