Implementing a Cost Recovery System for Printing Available to Purchase

The advent of Internet access, full‐text online databases, and graphic user interfaces has vastly increased the amount of hard‐copy information being supplied by today’s libraries. Individuals in both academic and non‐academic libraries are retrieving ever‐increasing amounts of online information. While the majority of libraries have been able to provide some form of electronic information, few libraries are prepared for the volume of printing that accompanies this new form of information access. Individuals without personal computers have little choice other than to print out what they find of interest online. Can a library’s decision to institute a fee for printing present a barrier to information? How does an institution implement a system to recover printing costs? In this article, the authors demonstrate one library’s attempt to provide solutions to these pressing issues.