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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAGENDA REPORT 2023 0517 CCSA REG ITEM 10GCITY OF MOORPARK, CALIFORNIA City Council Meeting of May 17, 2023 ACTION NO ACTION TAKEN; CONSENSUS TO RESCHEDULE ITEM TO A FUTURE MEETING (DATE UNCERTAIN) FOR BROADER DISCUSSION. BY A. Hurtado. G. Consider Waiving Past Due Library Fines. Staff Recommendation: Approve wavier of $62,273.49 in late fines at the Moorpark City Library. (Staff: Jessica Sandifer, Community Services Manager) Item: 10.G. MOORPARK CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT TO: Honorable City Council FROM: Jessica Sandifer, Community Services Manager DATE: 05/17/2023 Regular Meeting SUBJECT: Consider Waiving Past Due Library Fines BACKGROUND Throughout the United States, libraries are recognizing that fines for overdue materials returned late are a barrier to the public accessing library materials and early learning opportunities. In addition to not being able to access library materials, oftentimes, the stigma associated with the fine or overdue material keeps patrons with blocked accounts or fines from returning to the Library to access early learning programs and activities such as Storytime, summer reading program activities, and access to Discovery Learning Kits. To reduce these barriers, 400 libraries across the Country have transitioned to a fine free model, according to the Urban Libraries Council. Major cities that have gone fine free include Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, Oakland, Philadelphia, San Diego, San Francisco and Seattle, to name a few. Locally, the cities of Thousand Oaks, Camarillo, Simi Valley, and the County of Ventura Library System have gone fine free. Removing overdue fines for materials attracts customers who may not be using the library due to overdue fines. Furthermore, studies show that overdue fines disproportionately impact low-income library patrons, who tend to use the library at a higher frequency to access resources like computers or high-speed internet that they are unable to supply with their limited incomes. DISCUSSION On February 8, 2022, the Library Board considered whether or not it was appropriate to implement a Fine Free Policy at the Moorpark City Library (MCL). Staff presented the following benefits associated with implementing a fine free program and recommended adoption of the program: •Increase patron access to materials and services: A fine free program attracts patrons back to the library who may not be using the library due to overdue fines. Item: 10.G. 491 Honorable City Council 05/17/2023 Regular Meeting Page 2 Overdue fines lead to blocked accounts which dissuade users from using the library. Currently 3,781 Moorpark Library accounts are blocked. When the fine free program is implemented, it is recommended that all past overdue fines be cleared from all blocked accounts. Once the overdue fines are cleared under the fine free program, approximately 2,300 of the currently blocked users could immediately return to the library and begin using resources. The remaining 1,481 patron accounts are blocked due to missing materials and those accounts would continue to be blocked until the materials are returned or the lost item fee is paid. •Optimize library staff time and increase efficiency: Collecting overdue fines impacts staff time. In 2019, the MCL implemented automatic renewals, in an effort to reduce the number of overdue fines. Automatic renewals automatically renew overdue items for one additional two-week period, reducing fines based on patrons not renewing their checked-out materials. But even with the implementation of auto-renewals it costs at a minimum 50% of the fine revenue to collect it. As an example, in Fiscal Year (FY) 2018/19 MCL staff spent 572 hours in staff time at a cost of $8,549 to collect $10,849 in fines. In FY 2019/20, after auto-renewals were implemented, MCL staff spent 239 hours and $3,568 in staffing to collect $6,174 in fines. The hours spent collecting overdue fines could have been spent assisting library patrons or planning and conducting library programming. •Encourages the return of library materials so that many items do not have to be re- purchased: Oftentimes patrons just choose to hold on to the materials, rather than returning them and dealing with the fine. In these instances, patrons are charged the overdue fines in addition to the replacement cost of the item. Among libraries that have gone fine free, they report an increase in the number of items returned to the library and increases in lost items returned to the library. Chicago reported a 240% increase in book returns within the first month of going fine free. High Plains Library District in Colorado saw an increase in circulation and 95% of their materials returned within one week of the original due date. •Provides for equity and inclusion for all library patrons: As mentioned, fines and fees disproportionately affect low-income library patrons. In Moorpark, it is no different. The areas that have the highest number of blocked accounts also happen to be the areas that have a lower median income by almost half of the median income of the City ($62,956, as compared to the City Median income of $112,842). Approximately 34% of blocked accounts come from census blocks with lower median incomes. In addition, overdue library fine revenues over the last three fiscal years prior to the pandemic averaged $10,794. As mentioned, collecting this revenue involves staff time attempting to collect the fines, which removes staff from assisting patrons in the library and reduces their ability to focus on other programs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, in 492 Honorable City Council 05/17/2023 Regular Meeting Page 3 recognition of the economic hardships of the pandemic, library overdue fines were suspended, and the library budget has been operating since without benefit of this revenue, with no impact. It was also recommended that the past due library fines incurred prior to the pandemic be waived. In consideration of the various benefits, the Library Board concurred with staff’s recommendation including waiver of the existing fines. In May 2022, the City Council approved the incorporation of certain policies into the Moorpark Administrative Procedure (MAP) document to be managed by the individual Departments. Former City Council Policy 6.18 - Moorpark City Library Circulation was moved to the MAP. However, City Council approval of the waiver of the fines is still needed to fully implement the Fine Free Policy. With the concurrence of the Library Board, the Parks and Recreation Director approved the implementation of the Fine Free Policy at the Library, which began in March 2022. Prior to the pandemic and implementing the Fine Free Policy, library patrons accrued overdue fines until the book is returned. If the book remained overdue for 28 days, it is considered lost. Once deemed lost, the patron then accrues the replacement book cost in addition to the overdue fines. Under current Policy, accounts are blocked once they reach a $5.00 minimum overdue fine. However, accounts are not sent to collections until they reach a minimum of $50.00. Since very few accounts reach the $50.00 minimum, very few accounts achieve successful collection. Since 2007, the MCL has accrued a balance of uncollected overdue fines totaling $62,273.49 across 8,586 patron accounts, which is an average of $7.25 per account. Currently 3,781 of the accounts are blocked meaning they cannot use the library until the fines are paid. These blocked accounts average $14.00 per account which still does not reach the $50.00 minimum to qualify for collection. Collection is only conducted on an account-by-account basis, so even though the total balance exceeds $50.00, the fact the individual accounts do not exceed the $50.00 makes them ineligible for collection. Although fine free does away with overdue library fees, it does not get rid of fees for lost or damaged materials. Patrons are still required to pay for these materials consistent with adopted library policies. Once an item is deemed lost (after 28 days) those accounts become blocked and a replacement fee charged to their account. In this scenario, patrons would be unable to use the library. Staff is not requesting waiver of any fees related to lost materials. Staff is requesting approval to waive $62,273.49 in uncollected late fines. 493 Honorable City Council 05/17/2023 Regular Meeting Page 4 ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION This action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as it does not constitute a project, as defined by Section 15378 of the State CEQA Guidelines. Therefore, no further environmental review is required. FISCAL IMPACT The fiscal impact of the fee waiver is minimal. Since the fees have been accruing since 2007, and staff has made every effort to collect these fees throughout this time period, it is highly unlikely that the fees would have ever been collected therefore no financial impact will be felt from waiver of the fines. COUNCIL GOAL COMPLIANCE This action supports the City Council Strategic Priority of Equity and Inclusion, Goal 2: Practice Respect, Equity, and Inclusion Citywide. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Approve wavier of $62,273.49 in late fines at the Moorpark City Library. 494