AL
Alabama House Bill HB560

Alabama 2025 Regular Session

Alabama House Bill HB560 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
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33 HB560
44 TBDM399-1
55 By Representative Givens
66 RFD: Education Policy
77 First Read: 10-Apr-25
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1212 5 TBDM399-1 04/10/2025 GP (L)lg 2025-1403
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1414 First Read: 10-Apr-25
1515 SYNOPSIS:
1616 This bill would require each local board of
1717 education to adopt a policy: (i) prohibiting the
1818 possession, acquisition, or purchase of library
1919 materials that are harmful to minors; (ii) requiring
2020 the local board to approve any library material before
2121 it may be placed in a school library catalog in the
2222 district; and (iii) allowing parents to access school
2323 library catalogs and the library records of their
2424 child.
2525 This bill would require each local board of
2626 education to establish a local school library advisory
2727 council and consider its recommendations relating to
2828 the acquisition of library materials and school library
2929 policies.
3030 This bill would establish a mechanism for
3131 parents, employees of the local board of education, or
3232 residents of the school district to challenge the
3333 appropriateness of library materials, and would require
3434 the challenged material to be permanently removed if
3535 the board approves the challenge.
3636 This bill would allow parents to submit a list
3737 of library materials that their child may not check out
3838 from the school library.
3939 This bill would also authorize the State Board
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6969 This bill would also authorize the State Board
7070 of Education to adopt rules.
7171 A BILL
7272 TO BE ENTITLED
7373 AN ACT
7474 Relating to public school libraries; to provide
7575 definitions; to require local boards of education to adopt
7676 policies prohibiting the acquisition of library materials that
7777 are harmful to minors; to require local boards of education to
7878 approve library materials before they may be placed in school
7979 library catalogs; to require local boards of education to
8080 establish a local advisory council and consider the
8181 recommendations of the advisory council; to provide a
8282 mechanism to submit a written challenge for school library
8383 materials; to provide for the rights of parents relating to
8484 their child's access to library materials; and to authorize
8585 the State Board of Education to adopt rules.
8686 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
8787 Section 1. For the purposes of this act, the following
8888 terms have the following meanings:
8989 (1) HARMFUL TO MINORS. The same meaning as provided in
9090 Section 13A-12-200.1, Code of Alabama 1975.
9191 (2) LIBRARY MATERIAL. Any book, record, file, or other
9292 instrument or document in a public school library catalog. The
9393 term does not include classroom instructional material.
9494 (3) LOCAL BOARD OF EDUCATION or LOCAL BOARD. The
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124124 (3) LOCAL BOARD OF EDUCATION or LOCAL BOARD. The
125125 governing body of a public K-12 school or public charter
126126 school.
127127 (4) LOCAL SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL or ADVISORY COUNCIL.
128128 The local school advisory council created pursuant to Section
129129 2.
130130 (5) PARENT. The parent or legal guardian of a student
131131 enrolled at a public K-12 school.
132132 Section 2. (a) No later than October 1, 2026, each
133133 local board of education shall establish a local school
134134 library advisory council to assist the local board of
135135 education in ensuring that local community values are
136136 reflected in each school library catalog in the district. Each
137137 local school library advisory council shall have duties
138138 including, but not limited to, recommending all of the
139139 following to the local board of education:
140140 (1) Policies and procedures for the acquisition of
141141 library materials consistent with local community values.
142142 (2) Whether library materials proposed for acquisition
143143 are appropriate for each grade level of the school or campus
144144 for which the library materials are proposed to be acquired.
145145 (3) If feasible, joint use agreements or strategies for
146146 collaboration between the local board of education and local
147147 public libraries and community organizations.
148148 (4) The removal of any library materials that the
149149 council determines to be harmful to minors or inconsistent
150150 with local community values.
151151 (5) Policies and procedures for processing written
152152 challenges received under Section 4, and the action to be
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182182 challenges received under Section 4, and the action to be
183183 taken by the local board of education in response to a
184184 challenge.
185185 (b)(1) Each local school library advisory council must
186186 consist of at least five members, provided that each member of
187187 the local board of education shall appoint an equal number of
188188 members to the council. A majority of voting members of the
189189 advisory council must be parents of students enrolled in the
190190 district who are not employed by the local board of education.
191191 The local board shall designate one of the council members to
192192 serve as chair.
193193 (2) Each local board may also appoint one or more of
194194 the following individuals to serve as nonvoting members of the
195195 council:
196196 a. Classroom teachers employed by the local board of
197197 education.
198198 b. Librarians employed by the local board of education.
199199 c. School counselors.
200200 d. School administrators employed by the local board of
201201 education.
202202 e. Representatives from the business community.
203203 f. Members of the clergy.
204204 (c) Each local board shall consider the recommendations
205205 of the advisory council before:
206206 (1) Adding library materials to a school library
207207 catalog;
208208 (2) Removing library materials from a school library
209209 catalog following a written challenge; and
210210 (3) Making changes to policies or guidelines related to
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240240 (3) Making changes to policies or guidelines related to
241241 a school library catalog.
242242 (d)(1) Each advisory council shall meet at least twice
243243 each year and at other times as necessary to fulfill its
244244 duties. Each advisory council shall meet in advance of any
245245 meeting of the local board of education where library
246246 materials are up for a vote in order to determine the advisory
247247 council's recommendation on the materials. The meeting may
248248 occur during the period the list is available for public
249249 review under Section 3(a).
250250 (2) For each meeting, the advisory council shall:
251251 a. Comply with the notice requirements provided in the
252252 Open Meetings Act, Chapter 25A of Title 36, Code of Alabama
253253 1975;
254254 b. Make an audio and video recording;
255255 c. Prepare and maintain minutes that, at a minimum,
256256 state the subject and content of each deliberation and each
257257 vote, order, decision, or other action taken by the council;
258258 and
259259 d. No later than 10 days after the meeting, submit the
260260 minutes and audio or video records to the local board of
261261 education.
262262 (e) As soon as practicable, each local board of
263263 education shall post the minutes and audio or video recordings
264264 of each advisory council meeting on the website of the local
265265 board of education.
266266 Section 3. (a) No later than October 1, 2025, each
267267 local board of education shall adopt a policy for the
268268 acquisition of library materials. The policy shall only apply
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298298 acquisition of library materials. The policy shall only apply
299299 to library materials acquired on or after October 1, 2025, and
300300 must include, at a minimum, all of the following:
301301 (1) A collection development policy that prohibits the
302302 possession, acquisition, or purchase of library materials that
303303 are harmful to minors.
304304 (2) Except as provided by subsection (b), procedures
305305 for the procurement of library materials and the receipt of
306306 donated library materials, provided that the following
307307 procedures must be included:
308308 a. The local board of education must approve any
309309 library material that has been donated to or which is to be
310310 procured by a school library in the district before it may be
311311 placed in a school library catalog. In determining whether to
312312 approve or reject a library material, the local board shall
313313 consider the advice and recommendations of the local school
314314 library advisory council.
315315 b. If the local board rejects the acquisition of a
316316 library material, the material may not be placed in any school
317317 library catalog in the district.
318318 c. No donated library materials may be placed in a
319319 school library catalog unless the local board approved the
320320 addition of the library material for the grade levels for
321321 which the material is intended.
322322 (3) The maintenance and publication of a list of all
323323 library materials that have been donated to or which are
324324 proposed to be procured by a school library in the district.
325325 The list must be available for review by the public at least
326326 30 days before the local board of education votes on final
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356356 30 days before the local board of education votes on final
357357 approval of the materials on that list.
358358 (4) That votes whether to approve or reject library
359359 materials for inclusion in a school library must be made by
360360 members of the local board of education in a meeting that is
361361 open to the public. Library materials may be approved or
362362 rejected individually, or in groups reflecting the lists
363363 published under subdivision (3). If the local board votes on
364364 library materials as a group, each board member must be given
365365 the opportunity to review the list of materials that are up
366366 for a vote and propose changes to the list in advance of the
367367 vote.
368368 (b) This section does not apply to library materials
369369 that have been donated to or which are to be procured by a
370370 school library that:
371371 (1) Replace a damaged copy of a library material with
372372 the same International Standard Book Number that is currently
373373 in the school library catalog;
374374 (2) Are additional copies of a library material with
375375 the same International Standard Book Number that is currently
376376 in the school library catalog; or
377377 (3) Have the same International Standard Book Number
378378 and have previously been approved for the same grade levels by
379379 the local board of education.
380380 Section 4. (a)(1) A parent of a student enrolled in a
381381 public K-12 school, an individual employed by the local board
382382 of education, or an individual residing in the school district
383383 may submit a written challenge to the local board of education
384384 regarding any library material in the catalog of a school
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414414 regarding any library material in the catalog of a school
415415 library under the purview of the local board of education.
416416 (2) The State Board of Education shall adopt and
417417 publish a form for written challenges. The form shall require
418418 the individual submitting the form to identify how the
419419 challenged material violates the library standards of the
420420 local board of education or is harmful to minors.
421421 (b) No later than five business days after the local
422422 board of education receives a written challenge under this
423423 section, the local board shall provide a copy of the challenge
424424 to the local school library advisory council. The advisory
425425 council shall review the challenge and make a recommendation
426426 for action no later than 90 days after the date on which the
427427 advisory council receives the copy.
428428 (c) At the first meeting of the local board of
429429 education after it receives the advisory council's
430430 recommendation on a written challenge, the local board shall
431431 vote whether to accept or reject the challenge. In taking
432432 action on a written challenge, the local board shall consider
433433 all of the following:
434434 (1) The advice of the local school library advisory
435435 council.
436436 (2) Whether the challenged library material is suitable
437437 for the subject and grade level for which the library material
438438 is intended by considering factors including, but not limited
439439 to, the following:
440440 a. Whether the library material adheres to the local
441441 board of education's collection development policy.
442442 b. Whether the library material is harmful to minors.
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472472 b. Whether the library material is harmful to minors.
473473 c. Any reviews of the library material conducted by
474474 academic experts specializing in the subject covered by the
475475 library material or in the education of students in the
476476 subject and grade level for which the library material is
477477 intended.
478478 (d) A local board of education that receives a written
479479 challenge to a library material shall prohibit students
480480 enrolled in the district from accessing the library material
481481 until the district takes action in response to the challenge.
482482 (e)(1) If the local board of education approves the
483483 challenge, the library material shall be permanently removed
484484 from the school library catalog, and the local board shall:
485485 (i) notify each teacher assigned to the relevant grade level
486486 of the determination; and (ii) require that any copy of the
487487 library material be removed from the teacher's classroom
488488 library.
489489 (2) If the challenge is rejected, the local board is
490490 not required to take any further action in response to the
491491 challenge, and the library material shall be returned to the
492492 library catalog.
493493 Section 5. No later than October 1, 2025, each local
494494 board of education shall adopt policies reflecting the
495495 following:
496496 (1) Parents may access the catalog of available library
497497 materials at each public school under the purview of the local
498498 board of education.
499499 (2) Parents may access a record of each time the
500500 parent's child checks out library material or otherwise uses
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530530 parent's child checks out library material or otherwise uses
531531 library material outside of the school library.
532532 (3) If the local board of education uses a learning
533533 management system or online learning portal, the local board,
534534 through the system or portal, shall provide each parent of a
535535 student enrolled in the district a record of each time the
536536 student checks out or otherwise uses any library material
537537 outside of the school library. The record must include, as
538538 applicable, the title, author, genre, and return date of the
539539 library material.
540540 (4)a. Each parent may submit a list of library
541541 materials that his or her child may not check out or otherwise
542542 access for use outside of the school library. Each local board
543543 of education must allow for a parent to submit the list of
544544 library materials through an electronic form, a physical form,
545545 or the local board's or school's online library catalog
546546 system.
547547 b. If a student's parent has included a library
548548 material in a list submitted under subdivision (1), the
549549 student may not check out the library material or otherwise
550550 use the library material outside of the school library.
551551 Section 6. The State Board of Education may adopt rules
552552 to implement and administer this act.
553553 Section 7. This act shall become effective on October
554554 1, 2025.
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