AGENDA #4k

 

MEMORANDUM

 

TO:                  Mayor and Town Council

 

FROM:            W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager

           

SUBJECT:       Response to Petitions regarding Library Fines and Fees

 

DATE:             November 11, 2002

 

 

This purpose of this report is to respond to the recommendation by the Library Board (Attachment 1) and petitions by citizens (Attachments 2, 3, 4, and 5) to lower or eliminate fines for interlibrary loans, children’s overdue materials and fees for reserved materials.

 

Adoption of the attached resolution would reduce the current interlibrary loan fee from $10 to $1.  No change is recommended to decrease fines for children’s overdue materials or fees for reserved materials.

 

BACKGROUND

 

On April 3, 2002 the Manager presented the Council with staff options for reducing costs or enhancing revenues in 2002-2003 (Attachment 6), including raising interlibrary loan fees from $1 to $10, overdue fines for children from $.15 to $.20 per day and reserve fees from $.50 to $1.

 

On June 18, 2002, the Library Board of Trustees recommended against increasing children’s overdue fines, reserve fees or the interlibrary loan fee (Attachment 5).

 

On June 24, 2002, the Council adopted the Manager’s proposed rate increases for all eligible Town departments, including the Library (Attachment 7).  The Library’s rate increases remained the same as the ones proposed by the Manager on April 3, except interlibrary loan fees increased from $1 to $10 and reserve fees increased from $.50 to $1.  The Library’s new fines and fees schedule was implemented on July 1, 2002, along with other rate increases (Attachment 8). 

 

Library fines and fees generated $116,761 in 2001-2002.  Through the first quarter of 2002-2003 and since the new rate schedule was instituted, library fines and fees totaled $34,011.  This is 9% higher than last year at this time. 

DISCUSSION

 

1.      Interlibrary Loan Fees  

2.       

Since July 1, 2002, the Town has received four petitions from the Library Board and citizens requesting reduction or elimination of interlibrary loan fees.  Key issues include the following:

 

·        Chapel Hill Public Library is the only area library that charges an interlibrary loan fee;  libraries usually do not charge for this service.

·        Interlibrary loan encourages cooperation among libraries.

·        Interlibrary loan is a cost effective way to borrow “fairly ordinary materials.”

·        The increased fee is likely to reduce the number of loans and thus fail to meet some patrons’ needs without providing much benefit to the General Fund.

·        Chapel Hill should provide affordable Library service for all its citizens.

 

Comments

 

Interlibrary loan is a cooperative service by which one library makes a material available to another library. 

 

We introduced interlibrary loan fees in 1991 to insure the genuine interest of the borrower, to discourage interlibrary loans of easily available materials and to recover new computer search fees charged by the State Library to lending libraries. The fee was not intended to generate significant offsetting revenue.

 

An advantage of charging the increased interlibrary loan fee was to generate significant new revenue ($7200) during a difficult economic period.  A disadvantage of charging the increased fee is that it may limit access to the service to those who can afford to pay. 

 

Key issues raised by citizens asking reduction or elimination of the fee are presented below.

 

Issue 1:  Chapel Hill Public Library is the only area library that charges an interlibrary loan fee; libraries usually do not charge for this service.

 

This is correct.  Other area libraries do not charge interlibrary loan fees. Interlibrary loan is usually considered to be a no-fee, basic service. 

 

Issue 2:  Interlibrary loan encourages cooperation among libraries.

 

This is true.  However, libraries borrow materials from other libraries for different reasons, depending on the communities they serve.  Their collection may be limited. Their materials-purchasing budget may be too small.  A material may be out-of-print and no longer available for purchase.  A patron may need a material in a specialized subject area that the library does not wish to add to the collection but is willing to borrow. 

 

Chapel Hill Public Library has an excellent general collection.  It also will purchase patron-requested materials when that item is appropriate for the general collection. Therefore, we do not borrow materials as frequently as do libraries with more limited collections.  Last year the library borrowed 798 materials, only 0.1% of last year’s total circulation (755,080).  

 

The majority of the Chapel Hill Public Library interlibrary loans are for items that are out of print or are of a specialized subject nature that is outside the scope of a general public library collection.  Even then, the number of loans is reduced because we can direct patrons to excellent academic library collections located in this area.

 

 

Issue 3:  Interlibrary loan is a cost effective way to borrow “fairly ordinary materials.”

 

We encourage use of the interlibrary loan service only for hard-to-obtain materials. 

 

We estimate that the cost of each Chapel Hill interlibrary loan averages $21-$22, compared to the $2.40 it costs to loan a material already owned by the library (Attachment 9).  Time intensive tasks required for each interlibrary loan includes searching on-line to locate a lending library, requesting the material, receiving the mailed item, notifying the patron that the material is ready to be picked up, preparing the material for circulation and mailing it back to the lending library.

 

Issue 4:  The increased fee is likely to reduce the number of loans and thus fail to meet some patrons’ needs without providing much benefit to the general fund.

 

Many patrons have indicated that they will not request interlibrary loan materials because of the new fee.  

 

The current $10 fee was introduced to recover approximately half of the library’s actual interlibrary loan cost during a difficult budget year.  However, our estimate of revenues did not take into account the effect on demand for this service. Since July 1, 2002, interlibrary loan requests have decreased 88%, from an average of 67 per month to 8 per month.

 

Based on the current use trends and the increased fee for a reduced number of loans, we believe that maintaining the $10 fee would generate approximately the same amount of revenue as last year.  If the interlibrary loan fee were lowered to $1, we believe that patron use of the interlibrary loan service would resume at its past rate.

 

Issue 5:  Chapel Hill should provide affordable Library service for all its citizens.

 

We agree and are concerned that patrons may not have the same access to special materials that they have had in the past.  Ways to minimize library expenditures this year to make up the $7,200 loss in anticipated new revenue could include careful management of expenditures for supplies, materials and holding staff vacancies open longer.

 

Recommendation:

 

We recommend that the interlibrary loan fee be reduced to $1 so that patrons with not be discouraged from using this service.  

 

2.         Children’s Overdue Materials Fines

 

The petition requests that the Council consider a lower fine per book for children’s materials.  Key issues include the following: 

 

·        Families use the library heavily and it is easy to misplace one of many materials.

·        Overdue notification is made when the patron already owes a high fee.

·        Children’s books don’t usually have a waiting list for a particular book and therefore fewer patrons are inconvenienced by a material returned late.   

 

Comments:

 

Libraries use overdue procedures to shorten what is hoped will be a temporary loss of a library material. 

 

In 1997, Chapel Hill Public Library’s loan period was extended from two to three weeks to give patrons more time to read and return library materials.  There is a year-round three-day grace period on overdue fines.  Children’s overdue materials have a maximum set fine of $3.50 per item.  This is intentionally set lower than the adult’s maximum set fine of $10 to minimize family fines and encourage children’s use of the library.

 

To prevent overdue materials, patrons may renew materials by phone or by computer from home.  The library computer also reminds patrons when their materials are 7 days overdue.

 

Advantages to the higher overdue fine include the additional new revenue for the Town this year and that materials are returned promptly.  We also believe that fines in general teach children to become responsible users of the library.  A disadvantage to charging the new overdue fine is that it may discourage some families from checking out as many materials as they might have in the past.  

 

Key issues raised by citizens seeking reduction of the fine are presented below.

 

Issue 1:  Families use the library heavily and it is easy to misplace one of many materials.

 

Families do use the library heavily.  Children’s materials circulation last year totaled 325,167, approximately 43% of the library’s circulation.  Parents are permitted to check out 40 items at a time because easy and picture books are quickly read by children.  Most parents want to check out enough books to last their family until the next library visit.  As a result, the Library has intentionally set a higher maximum number of materials that can be checked out. 

 

We agree that it may be easy to misplace library materials.  However, we believe that the high number of materials permitted to be checked out is a privilege, extended to families at their request.  Patrons agree to be responsible for the library materials in their possession when they apply for a library card. 

 

Issue 2:  Overdue notification is made when the patron already owes a high fee.

 

Patrons are charged no fine for materials returned within the three-day grace period.  When reminded by the Library’s telephone notification system that their materials are 7 days overdue, patrons are charged a minimum of $1.40 each, depending on the type of overdue material.

 

The telephone notification system can be reprogrammed to contact patrons on the third day of the overdue, instead of the seventh day.  Patrons would then be notified when each material is a minimum fine of $.60.  We will change the notice schedule.

 

Issue 3:  Children’s books don’t usually have a waiting list for a particular book and therefore fewer patrons are inconvenienced by a material returned late.   

 

It is true that patrons place more holds on adult materials than on children’s materials. However, we believe that it is important to keep a reliable and steady flow of materials coming back into the library. 

 

Chapel Hill Public Library’s materials have a very high rate of annual turnover.  On average, each item is checked out 5.63 times per year, compared to the State’s average of 2.42 times per year.  This statistic means that the collection is not large when compared to its readership.  Timely returns mean that library materials are available for others to use. 

 

Recommendations  

 

We believe that recovery methods practiced by the Library are reasonable and recommend that children’s overdue materials fine remain $.20 per day.  We also recommend that the Library contact the patron with the first overdue notice when a material is 3 days overdue.

 

3.         Reserve Fees

 

At its June 18, 2002 meeting, the Library Board recommended that the Council reduce the reserves fee to $.50 from $1.  Since the new fee went into effect, staff has received similar verbal requests from patrons.  Key issues for reducing the fee include: 

 

• Area libraries do not charge for reserved materials.
• Library materials ought to be free.
• The new fee makes it a service for patrons who can afford to pay. 

 

Comments:

 

The reserve service is intended to be a convenience for patrons who wish to obtain high demand materials quickly.  The Friends of the Chapel Hill Public Library provide additional copies of some of the high demand, popular materials on the Friends Bookshelf.  These books may not be reserved and are available for patrons on a first come, first serve basis.

 

An advantage of charging the increased reserves fee is to generate new revenue during a difficult economic period and to insure the interest of the patron.  A disadvantage of charging the increased fee is that it may limit access to the service to those who can afford to pay. 

 

Key issues for consideration include the following: 

 

 

Issue 1:  Area libraries do not charge for reserved materials.

 

This is correct.  Other area libraries do not charge reserve fees.  Reserving materials is usually considered to be a no-fee, basic service. 

 

Issue 2:  Library materials ought to be free.

 

We agree that library materials ought to be freely available to all.  There is no fee to use the library collection that is on the shelves.  Because of the Friends bookshelf, the Library does have in-demand materials available for walk-in patrons to check out when the material is on the shelf. 

 

Reserve service includes requesting a material, often a high-demand material, that is currently checked out.  This service requires special handling of the material, includes pulling the item when it returns to the library and notifying the patron.

 

We instituted reserve fees to discourage patrons from reserving long lists of the newest and most popular materials.  The library would hold the materials for 10 days after notifying the patron.  These individuals sometimes did not come in to pick up the materials until the ninth or tenth day, and would often select only a few titles from those on hold.  This meant that many in-demand materials were regularly unavailable for other users to find on the shelves.  We believe that the reserve fee keeps more materials available for the walk-in patron.

 

Issue 3:  The new fee makes it a service for patrons who can afford to pay. 

 

The library originally instituted a $.25 fee to cover only the cost of sending the postcard notifying the patron that the material was in.  This fee was raised in 1995, primarily to cover postage increases, but also to insure the interest of the requester.  The fee has never included the staff cost to provide the reserve service. 

 

The fee was increased to $1 this year because of the Town’s and State’s economic difficulties.  We believed it to be reasonable when viewed in the light of the average cost of a new book ($22), the fact that the cost does not include reserve staff time to perform the service, and the patron’s advantage to being the first to read popular materials.

 

Recommendation:  We recommend that the reserve fee remain $1.

 

CONCLUSION

 

The increase in interlibrary loan fees has resulted in a significantly reduced use of the service and no anticipatable new revenue for the Town.  Reducing the fee to $1 should encourage patrons to resume use of this service.  While we believe that children’s overdue fines encourage timely return of library materials, we also believe that it would be appropriate to notify patrons within three days of an impending overdue fine.  The purpose of the reserve fees is to insure quicker use by patrons for materials that are in demand.  Because additional in-demand materials are available for walk-in patrons to find on the shelf and because of the cost to the patron to purchase these materials themselves, we believe that it is an appropriate way for the Town to generate new revenue this year. 

RECOMMENDATIONS

 

Library Board Recommendation: That the Town Council reduce the children’s materials daily fine to $.15, the reserve materials fee to $.50 and the interlibrary loan fee to $1.

 

Manager’s Recommendation:  That the Council adopt the attached resolution. 

 

ATTACHMENTS

 

1.      Ray and Pat Carpenter petition re interlibrary loan fees (p. 9).

2.      Tom Krakow petition re interlibrary loan fees (p. 10).

3.      Janet Johnston petition re interlibrary loan fees (p. 11).

4.      Diane Davis petition re children’s fines (p. 12).

5.      June 18, 2002 Library Board recommendations (p. 13).

6.      April 3, 2002 Town Council memo:  “2002-2003 Budget Reduction Options (p. 15).

7.      June 24, 2002 Town Council memo:  “User Fee Schedules and Policies” (p. 17).

8.      Library Fines and Fees Schedule, 2002-2003 (p. 24).

9.      Interlibrary loan transaction costs (p. 25).

 

 

 

 

A RESOLUTION REVISING THE LIBRARY’S USER FEE SCHEDULE AND REDUCING THE INTERLIBRARY LOAN FEE TO $1 (2002-11-11/R-7)

 

WHEREAS, the Library Board of Trustees and various citizens have requested that the interlibrary loan fee be reduced from $10 to $1; and

 

WHEREAS, the demand for has been significantly reduced due to the fee introduced on July 1, 2002; and

 

WHEREAS, a decrease in the interlibrary loan fee may generate an increased use of this service; 

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Town interlibrary loan fee is reduced to $1.00.

 

This the 11th day of November, 2002.