Community Corner

Jefferson County Library Offers 'Food for Fines' Amnesty

The library district will forgive fines in return for donations of canned goods.

Jefferson County Library is continuing its popular “Food for Fines” amnesty program by scheduling it once a month. The next amnesty date is Friday.

Customers with outstanding fines for overdue materials may have their fines erased by donating canned food items. During 2011 the library will forgive up to one dollar in fines for each can of food donated.

On Jan. 28 the library collected 761 canned food items and waived $674 in overdue fines. All the food collected is donated to local food pantries.

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Last year, library collected a total of 7,687 canned food items and waived $6,979 in overdue fines, a 5.7% increase in food collected in 2009, said library director Pam Klipsch.

“We are very pleased with the success of the Food for Fines program,” Klipsch said. "The steady growth shows that library patrons appreciate the opportunity to support people in our community who need a helping hand during these tough times.”

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All the food collected during the Food for Fines program is donated to local food pantries.

Although The Jefferson County Library District collected $30,847 in actual fines in 2010, Klipsch said it is a drop in the bucket in the fines that are owed, not even reaching the $50,000 average in monthly fines.

"We do have a certain amount of fines that never do get paid," Klipsch said. "The (Food for Fines program revenue) is a small amount of the fines we accumulate over the course of the year."

Klipsch said the overdue fines and, more importantly, the unreturned books and other materials eat in to the libray's $3 million annual budget.

"People are usually pretty good, but we do lose an substantial amount each year," she said. "Our money keeps getting smaller all the time and the cost of books keeps going up."

Klipsch said the library spends about $250,000 per year on books.

There is no limit on the number or amount of fines that can be cleared, but bills for lost or damaged library items, or fines or bills for items that have been borrowed from other libraries outside Jefferson County, are not eligible for the 'Food for Fines' program.

The library does not accept home-canned items, cans that are past their expiration dates or are dented or damaged or cans with bar codes that have been lined or scratched through, Klipsch said.

For more information call the local branch of the Jefferson County Library: Arnold Branch, 1701 Missouri State Road, Arnold (636-296-2204); , 5680 State Road PP, High Ridge (636-677-8186); Windsor Branch, 7479 Metropolitan Boulevard, Barnhart (636-461-1914).


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