Mississauga considers scrapping library late charges

Mississauga residents who find themselves with an overdue book or other material from the city’s libraries won’t have to worry about paying fines anymore if a proposed plan gets the go-ahead next week at City Council. 

City of Mississauga number crunchers presented to Budget Committee today a series of recommendations related to user fees and charges for City services and programs as the annual budget process continues. 

Proposed changes will result in additional budgeted revenues in 2022 of about $1 million, according to City staff. 

“These changes include plans for Mississauga Library to eliminate fines for overdue materials, which will promote equitable access to library services and also support community recovery coming out of the pandemic,” said Shari Lichterman, the City’s chief financial officer and commissioner of corporate services. 

She added the proposed elimination of overdue charges aligns with many other library systems across North America, “notably Brampton, Hamilton, Toronto and Vaughan.”  

Currently, library late fines range from 35 cents per day (books, DVDs, magazines, CDs) to $10 per day for chromebooks and laptops. 

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Fees and charges discussed today go to next week’s Council meeting for final approval. 

As part of the City’s annual budget process, Budget Committee was presented with and deliberated on new and increased user fees and charges for City services and programs such as swimming classes and permits for people or businesses using those services.  

Revenue collected through user fees and charges helps to offset the costs of delivering services and programs in areas of Fire and Emergency Services; Roads; Transit (MiWay); Parks, Forestry and Environment; Libraries; Recreation; Land Development Services; Culture; Regulatory Services; Legislative Services and supporting services such as 311. 

“As the City continues its pandemic recovery efforts, staff carefully reviewed fees and charges based on the projected uses and needs of the community and people using the services for 2022. The revenue collected from the fees and charges are used to ease pressures on the 2022 property tax rate,” said Lichterman. “We encourage residents and business owners to get involved in our budget process as we work together with Council to achieve a budget that balances service delivery with sound fiscal management.” 

All Budget Committee meetings are open to the public. The next meeting is scheduled for Nov. 22, at 9:30 a.m.