Abstract:
This research project investigates the extent of user charges in a sample of New Zealand Public
libraries. Three main issues relating to user fees are discussed: the services which bear charges
and the levels of those charges, how the decision to charge is arrived at, and the attitude of
library managers to user charges. The extent to which user charges are used as a source of
revenue in libraries is related to the provision of services as laid out in the Local Government
Act of 2004, and the concept of private and public good. Revenue generated by user fees is often
monitored and enforced by local government agencies. The level of charging is often arrived at
through a consultative process between council departments and the libraries, with the revenue
demands of the council in mind. The inter-relationship of these two factors is brought out in this
study. Finally, the opinions of the library managers relating to various factors in user charges
show that there is a general acceptance of user fees, but that some are concerned with the level
of fees charged by their libraries.
