The following Changes are in effect as of October 1, 2008
Library Accounts
- Fines on materials other than DVDs and Games, which will remain at $1.00 per day, will increase from 20 cents to 25 cents per day. Any item returned late or renewed late after October 1, 2008 will accrue a 25 cent fine per day, regardless of the date on which it was checked out. For example, an item due on September 15, 2008, returned on October 2, 2008 will be charged fines of 25 cents per day from September 16, 2008 through the return date.
- The cost of a replacement library card will increase from $2.00 to $3.00.
- A fee of $2.00 per title will apply to initiate an Inter Library Loan request.
- Any account accruing a balance of $10.00 or more will need to be paid in full to a zero balance before further use of the library card is possible.
- All accounts will need to have a balance of zero in order for the card holder to book a meeting room, sign up for a computer class, sign up to use a computer, initiate an Inter Library Loan request, or access our wireless network.
Computer Use
- In order for any card holder to sign up to use a computer their library account balance must be zero.
- Residents and PC Pass holders will continue to have access to up to two free computer sessions per day. Sessions in excess of that number will be $5.00 per session.
- Non-residents will continue to have access to a PC Pass for $10.00 for 7 days. They will also now have the option to purchase a $5.00 pass for a single session.
- The Library will no longer circulate headphones. Computer users are invited to bring their own headphones or purchase earbuds available at the Library for $5.00.
Background Regarding These Changes
The Library undertook a review of our Fee and Fine structure earlier this year. Our last adjustment to charges was in October 2002. Our process began with a series of meetings with staff in all library locations to gather input from the front lines. In March 2008, we took recommendations generated from those discussions to the Library Board and gained their approval for the changes.
Our emphasis in considering these changes was not to generate revenue from the use of standard library services. In fact the Library provides numerous ways in which we can assist our borrowers in avoiding fines. Materials returned in a timely and responsible manner don't generate fines and help the library control costs for materials purchases by providing for use of a single item by the greatest number of borrowers. A win win for the Library and the public.
We are revising charges in several key areas:
- the collection of fees and fines already incurred and owed the Library
- charging for additional services which are outside of normal parameters, such as additional time on a computer
- charging for added value services which are costly to provide and are not considered among our core library services
In challenging economic times, we have determined that our emphasis will be on providing services which are core to the Library's mission. These include library programming, the development of robust collections and the support of our heavily used computer network. The Library believes strongly that we are here to support our community and do not want to place financial barriers in place to keep these core services from being accessed. Fees for materials kept for extended periods of time, fines for materials never returned, and nominal charges for value added services outside the scope of our core mission help us to offset the cost of providing our core services.
*You may view and pay fines online through My OCLS using your MasterCard or Visa. Please note it may take up to 24 hours for card privileges to be fully restored.
