UM Library Cancels All Late Fees For Students

Well, here's one less thing for students to stress out about.

The University of Montana's Mansfield Library has decided to eliminate late fees, following the example of public libraries from Chicago, Boston, and Los Angeles over the last few months.

They've also extended the amount of time undergraduate students are allowed to borrow a book, upgrading from three weeks to four months. Previously, if students had a book longer than three weeks, they'd be charged 10 cents a day.

The reason for the change, according to librarian Megan Stark, is that the late fees created an economic barrier for students trying to use the library, and also prevented them from checking out more books if they had outstanding late fees.

And before you ask what incentive students will have to return anything now - there is still a catch. If the book is still missing for 45 days after it's due, the library considers it "lost" and the student will have to reimburse the cost of the book to the library.

I think this is a great move! Anything to encourage more students to use the library more often. What do you think?