NYC public libraries will end late fees in push for equity

NEW YORK (AP) — Officials have announced that New York City’s public libraries will no longer charge late fees and will waive existing fines for overdue books and other materials. Late fees had already been suspended since March 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. The new policy covers the New York Public Library, the Brooklyn Public Library and the Queens Public Library. The three library systems join libraries in cities such as San Francisco, Chicago and Philadelphia that no longer charge overdue fines. Officials say more than half of the New Yorkers whose library cards had been blocked for late fees live in high-needs communities.