Thursday, 1/18/24:
IFF has rated S1221 -2.
During this morning’s House session, Rep. Brent Crane asked without objection that H384, the other library bill, be returned to State Affairs. He said that bill sponsor Rep. Jaron Crane had reached a deal with Sen. Geoff Schroeder on a compromise library bill. Stay tuned.
Sunday, 1/14/24:
On Friday morning, Sen. Geoff Schroeder introduced RS 30917, intended to address the controversy over inappropriate materials in school libraries. It would instruct school boards to have a policy related to the curation of materials for minors, and to have a committee to address complaints about materials that are made available to them.
I think some skepticism is warranted, considering how Sen. Schroeder fought against H314 last year. It’s possible that this bill, which seems to leave the ultimate determination of what is inappropriate up to local boards, is a way to claim progress on a controversial issue without actually taking a stand.
That said, I don’t think the meat of the bill is necessarily wrong. I think that both school and library boards should have transparent curation policies and I think an having an independent committee review potentially inappropriate materials is a good idea. I can see this potentially complementing Rep. Crane’s H384, but not a full replacement.
The RS was accepted and printed as Senate Bill 1221. I look forward to seeing further debate.
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