The Santa Barbara City Council has approved an increase in the fee for hold requests of library materials.

The new fee will be $1 per item, an increase of 50 cents, beginning July 7. The charge will apply to items that are placed on hold either to be transferred from another library, or to be held for a patron when the item becomes available.

The increase was recommended as a result of a cut in State of California funding that for many years supported the delivery of materials between libraries in the Black Gold Cooperative Library System.

Click here to place a hold request online, or do so in person in any library branch. Books, DVDs and other items that may be checked out can be transferred from any branch in the Black Gold Cooperative Library System, which includes the Santa Barbara Public Library System, the Santa Maria, Lompoc, San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles and Santa Paula libraries, to any other branch for pickup. Titles in high demand may have a waiting list of patrons with holds for the next available copy.

Click here for complete information about the Santa Barbara Public Library System.

— Roger Hiles is the library services manager for the Santa Barbara Public Library System.