Daniel Lewandowski, the general manager of the Crane Branch Library, supports the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library System’s elimination of all overdue fines, effective this month. He says fines can be counterproductive, because library patrons not only suffer from the consequences of late fees but can no longer be able to use their library cards as a result of those fines despite returning the materials. “Our overdue fees would max out at around $10 an item, sometimes $15 an item, so you could get $30 in overdue fees from three books that you returned in perfect condition,” he said. “In a fine-free system, you can just return those books, and not get punished if they’re still in great condition, and there’s nothing wrong with them. You’re actually incentivized then to return the materials.” Fines account for less than 1% of the library system operating revenue. Lewandowski described that this is a win-win for patrons and library employees as it attracts more people to use the library by making patron interactions more enjoyable and saves time and money by alleviating the workload on employees such as paperwork for those who dispute fines. “When a book was lost before, I would just replace it because the patron may not return it due to the overdue fees, so now people are going to be returning the books, and I’m going to be spending less money on replacement copies I think,” Lewandowski said. By Cait Malilay and Natalie Gravino
