| 1 | 1 | | 88R4183 DIO-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Dutton H.B. No. 917 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to access to certain public school library materials. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 33, Education Code, is |
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| 10 | 10 | | amended by adding Section 33.025 to read as follows: |
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| 11 | 11 | | Sec. 33.025. ACCESS TO CERTAIN LIBRARY MATERIALS. (a) In |
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| 12 | 12 | | this section, "library material" means any book, record, file, or |
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| 13 | 13 | | other instrument or document listed in a school district's or |
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| 14 | 14 | | open-enrollment charter school's library catalog. |
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| 15 | 15 | | (b) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may |
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| 16 | 16 | | not remove any library material from the district's or school's |
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| 17 | 17 | | library catalog. Instead of removing library materials, each |
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| 18 | 18 | | school district or open-enrollment charter school shall, in |
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| 19 | 19 | | consultation with district or school parents, teachers, and |
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| 20 | 20 | | administrators, adopt procedures to create a list of restricted |
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| 21 | 21 | | access library materials. |
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| 22 | 22 | | (c) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may |
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| 23 | 23 | | not allow a student to access library materials designated as |
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| 24 | 24 | | restricted access library materials under Subsection (b) in the |
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| 25 | 25 | | catalog of a school library at the district or school unless the |
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| 26 | 26 | | district or school first obtains written consent from the student's |
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| 27 | 27 | | parent or person standing in parental relation to the student |
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| 28 | 28 | | authorizing the student's access to that library material. |
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| 29 | 29 | | SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2023-2024 |
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| 30 | 30 | | school year. |
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| 31 | 31 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 32 | 32 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 33 | 33 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 34 | 34 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 35 | 35 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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