The University of Wisconsin Police Department released statistics indicating a City Council ordinance passed seven months ago aimed at stemming textbook thefts was effective in the second half of 2007.

According to the report, 22 textbook thefts occurred on the UW campus between July 1 and Dec. 31 of 2006. In that same period in 2007, 3 textbook thefts occurred, an 86 percent decrease.

Assistant District Attorney Mike Verveer said in his experience as a prosecutor, he has tried a number of individuals for stealing textbooks everywhere from libraries to lockers at Grainger Hall.

?Many of the defendants were drug addicts and textbooks were an easy source of money to satisfy their habits because they could literally take the textbooks down State Street and walk out with cash in their hands,? Verveer said.

But since the textbook ordinance passed, ?the number of cases that we?ve had referred to our office involving textbook thefts has dropped off to nothing,? he added.

UWPD first recommended a textbook ordinance to the City Council and Ald. Eli Judge, District 8, inherited the ordinance from his predecessor Austin King when he took his seat on the City Council in April 2007.

Working with bookstore owners, students and city officials, Judge crafted an ordinance that Pat McGowan, president of the University Book Store, said, ?truly cuts down on book theft.?

?I think [the textbook ordinance] provides a very strong, visible deterrent to stealing a textbook,? Judge said. ?This ordinance says if you?re going to do it, we?re going to see you.?

When the ordinance passed, the University Book Store was already in compliance with the ordinance, which requires students to show their identification when selling books back so police can track names if someone reports their books as stolen.

?From our standpoint, taking IDs is something we?ve always done,? McGowan said. ?I?m glad everyone is [checking IDs] now.?

If a Madison textbook store, like the Underground Textbook Exchange, the University Book Store or Beat the Bookstore does not comply with the ordinance, they could lose their license, Judge said.

According to Judge, the early textbook ordinance days were met with a slew of complaints from people who said forcing students to show their ID would just be an added burden.

For McGowan, the benefits outweigh the costs.