Patrons at the Bloomfield NJ Public Library don’t like it at all: the $1/hr fee now being imposed for use of the internet. [Newsday story] .
In addition to complaints on-site, the ALA has chimed in with a criticism to the library board. Deborah Caldwell-Stone, deputy director of American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, said charging for library services creates economic barriers.
“Who gets hurt by these kinds of fees? It is not the wealthy or middle-class person. This just sets up another barrier for those who already have a lot of barriers in society.”
Paying for time.
If you use the computer for fifteen minutes do you only have to pay 25 cents or do you always have to pay a dollar? I don’t think people should have to pay a dollar if they check their email for ten minutes.
Budget?
I’m not all that against charging a reasonable amount of money (and a $1 per hour is extremely reasonable compared to Internet cafes) if it is to help pay for the service. If they didn’t institute this charge, would they have cut the service? Some places might. I think that charging for the service rather than cutting it due to the inability to pay for it is the much better option. Also, what about the libraries that charge non-residents a fee for using the services? Are they barring access to patrons? Yes, but you don’t hear people complaining about that one.