There will be no more fines for overdue materials at the Joplin Public Library. And, if you owe money to the library for overdue books, you’ll be cleared of your debt as of August 1. The library district has moved to a “fine free” format, and any overdue fines patrons currently owe will be erased.
But not everyone is off the hook for fines: Anyone who has items that are lost, damaged or not returned will still owe for those items, plus a non-refundable administrative fee. If an account has to be referred to a collection agency to get items returned, a collection agency fee will also be charged. And items received through interlibrary loan will continue to accrue overdue fines.
Library director, Jacque Gage, hopes the new fine free format will allow more people to use the new facility, including those who haven’t been able to do so because of overdue fines.
