Higher Library Fines to Go on the Books : Borrowers: The county will double the charge and contract with a collection agency. Supervisors will consider a three-week amnesty period.

To crack down on book-borrowing scofflaws, the Ventura County libraries will soon double their fines on overdue books.

The fines will jump from 10 cents to 20 cents a day, beginning Jan. 22. But to cushion the impact, the libraries first plan a three-week amnesty period during which delinquent borrowers may return overdue books without a fine.

Last month, the County Board of Supervisors approved the increase and agreed to contract with a collection agency to pursue the borrowers more aggressively.

On Tuesday, the supervisors will consider the amnesty program, which would run from Dec. 31 through Jan. 21.

“We’re trying to emphasize to people that these are valuable materials,” said Alan Langville, community library division manager. “Ten cents a day is not a lot of money.”

Langville said that the county’s network of 15 libraries and one bookmobile circulate more than 1.6 million books a year. As of Friday, 63,212 books were checked out and 11.7% of those--or 7,373--were overdue.

Langville and others perceive a change in the attitudes of borrowers who don’t return books within the three-week checkout time.

“There seems to be less of a feeling that it’s important,” he said. “And we hope the fine increase will make it more important.”

The libraries send out about 700 overdue-book notices a day, he said. The cost of the mailings is increasing with rising postal rates. Also, he said, “People can’t find the books they need when they come in.”

The fines have not increased since the late 1970s, he said. The countywide system does not include libraries in Thousand Oaks, Oxnard and Santa Paula, where fines will remain 10 cents a day or less.

The county libraries also have doubled the fees to use their meeting rooms. The rates will go from $10 to $20. In addition, the fines for overdue reference books or books from other libraries will jump from 25 cents to 50 cents a day.

Library officials expect to lose about $6,000 in fines and fees during the proposed amnesty period. But they anticipate the money will be recovered once the new rates are in effect.

Langville said the libraries will begin using a collection agency that specializes in overdue library books. The agency won’t contact delinquent borrowers by telephone--all contact will be through the mail.

“It’s not like we’re going to send goons over to you,” he said. The agency would be used only in serious cases, he said, such as when the borrower has many books checked out or has been continually delinquent.

Some libraries, such as the Thousand Oaks Library, are taking scofflaws to small-claims court over their unpaid book fines. But the county libraries are unlikely to take that approach, Langville said. However, with the collection agency now involved, a borrower’s credit rating might be harmed by unpaid fines, he said.

Langville said he expects the collection service will pay for itself. An additional $10 fee will be assessed whenever an overdue book is referred to the agency. That amount is added to the bill of the delinquent borrower.