By: Paxton, et al. S.B. No. 13

(In the Senate - Filed March 9, 2023; March 9, 2023, read first time and referred to Committee on Education; April 11, 2023, reported adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 9, Nays 2; April 11, 2023, sent to printer.) Click here to see the committee vote

COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 13 By: Springer

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to a school district's library materials and catalog, the creation of local school library advisory councils, and parental rights regarding public school library catalogs and access by the parent's child to library materials.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 26.004(b), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) A parent is entitled to access to all written records of a school district concerning the parent's child, including:

(1) attendance records;

(2) test scores;

(3) grades;

(4) disciplinary records;

(5) counseling records;

(6) psychological records;

(7) applications for admission;

(8) health and immunization information;

(9) teacher and school counselor evaluations;

(10) reports of behavioral patterns; [and]

(11) records relating to assistance provided for learning difficulties, including information collected regarding any intervention strategies used with the child; and

(12) records relating to school library materials the child obtains from a school library.

SECTION 2. Chapter 26, Education Code, is amended by adding Section 26.017 to read as follows:

Sec. 26.017. NOTICE REGARDING SCHOOL LIBRARY MATERIALS. (a) Before each school year, a school district shall provide written notice to a parent of each child enrolled in the district regarding the option to receive notice each time the child obtains a school library material from a school library in the district.

(b) For each parent who elects to receive notice under Subsection (a), the school district shall notify the parent by e-mail each time the parent's child obtains a school library material from a school library in the district. The notice must include, as applicable, the title, author, genre, and return date of the school library material.

SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 33, Education Code, is amended by adding Section 33.020 to read as follows:

Sec. 33.020. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:

(1) "Harmful material" has the meaning assigned by Section 43.24, Penal Code.

(2) "Indecent content" means content that portrays sexual or excretory organs or activities in a way that is patently offensive.

(3) "Library material" means any book, record, file, or other instrument or document in a school district's library catalog. The term does not include instructional material, as defined by Section 31.002, or materials procured for the TexShare consortium under Subchapter M, Chapter 441, Government Code.

(4) "Profane content" means content that includes grossly offensive language that is considered a public nuisance.

SECTION 4. Section 33.021, Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 33.021. LIBRARY STANDARDS. (a) The Texas State Library and Archives Commission[, in consultation with the State Board of Education,] shall submit proposed [adopt] standards for school library services to the State Board of Education for approval or disapproval.

(b) The standards approved under Subsection (a) must include a collection development policy that:

(1) prohibits the acquisition or retention of:

(A) harmful material; and

(B) material containing indecent content or profane content;

(2) demonstrates a commitment to compliance with the Children's Internet Protection Act (Pub. L. No. 106-554), including through the use of technology protection measures, as defined by that Act; and

(3) prohibits the removal of library materials solely because of the ideas expressed in the library materials.

(c) A school district shall adhere to [consider] the standards approved under Subsection (a) in developing, implementing, or expanding library services.

(d) A school district may adopt local policies and procedures in addition to the standards approved under Subsection (a) that do not conflict with the standards approved under Subsection (a) or other requirements of this code.

SECTION 5. Subchapter B, Chapter 33, Education Code, is amended by adding Sections 33.026, 33.027, and 33.028 to read as follows:

Sec. 33.026. LOCAL SCHOOL LIBRARY ADVISORY COUNCIL. (a) The board of trustees of each school district shall establish a local school library advisory council to assist the district in ensuring that local community values are reflected in each school library catalog in the district.

(b) Except as provided by Section 33.027(c), a school district must consider the recommendations of the local school library advisory council before:

(1) adding library materials to a school library catalog;

(2) removing library materials from a school library catalog following a challenge under Section 33.028; or

(3) making changes to policies or guidelines related to a school library catalog.

(c) The local school library advisory council's duties include recommending:

(1) policies and procedures for the procurement of library materials consistent with local community values;

(2) library materials appropriate for each grade level;

(3) if feasible, joint use agreements or strategies for collaboration between the school district and local public libraries and community organizations;

(4) the removal of any library materials that the council determines to be:

(A) harmful material or material containing indecent content or profane content; or

(B) inconsistent with local community values;

(5) the policies and procedures for processing challenges received under Section 33.028; and

(6) the action to be taken by the district in response to a challenge received under Section 33.028.

(d) Any recommendation made by the local school library advisory council must adhere to the library standards approved under Section 33.021.

(e) The local school library advisory council must consist of at least five members, with each member appointed by the board of trustees, and with each trustee appointing an equal number of members. A majority of the voting members of the council must be persons who are parents of students enrolled in the district and who are not employed by the district. One of those members shall serve as chair of the council. The board of trustees may also appoint one or more persons to serve as nonvoting members of the council from any of the following groups:

(1) classroom teachers employed by the district;

(2) librarians employed by the district;

(3) school counselors certified under Subchapter B, Chapter 21, employed by the district;

(4) school administrators employed by the district;

(5) district students;

(6) the business community; and

(7) the clergy.

(f) The local school library advisory council shall meet at least two times each year. For each meeting, the council shall:

(1) at least 72 hours before the meeting:

(A) post notice of the date, hour, place, and subject of the meeting on a bulletin board in the central administrative office of each campus in the school district; and

(B) ensure that the notice required under Paragraph (A) is posted on the district's Internet website, if the district has an Internet website;

(2) prepare and maintain minutes of the meeting that state the subject and content of each deliberation and each vote, order, decision, or other action taken by the council during the meeting;

(3) make an audio or video recording of the meeting; and

(4) not later than the 10th day after the meeting, submit the minutes and audio or video recording of the meeting to the district.

(g) As soon as practicable after receipt of the minutes and audio or video recording under Subsection (f)(4), the school district shall post the minutes and audio or video recording on the district's Internet website, if the district has an Internet website.

Sec. 33.027. PROCUREMENT OF LIBRARY MATERIALS. (a) The board of trustees of a school district shall adopt a policy for the procurement of library materials. The policy must require the board to:

(1) approve all library materials to be procured by a school library in the district, with the advice and recommendations of the district's local school library advisory council established under Section 33.026;

(2) make the list of library materials proposed to be procured accessible for review by the public for at least 30 days before final approval;

(3) approve or reject the list of library materials proposed to be procured in an open meeting; and

(4) ensure compliance with the library standards approved under Section 33.021.

(b) Each member of the board of trustees of a school district is entitled to:

(1) review each list of library materials proposed to be procured for a school library in the district; and

(2) propose changes to each list described by Subdivision (1) before the board votes to approve or reject the list.

(c) This section does not apply to library materials to be procured by a school library that:

(1) replace a damaged copy of a library material that is currently in the school library catalog;

(2) are additional copies of a library material that is currently in the school library catalog; or

(3) have been approved by the board of trustees of the school district from a previous list of library materials proposed to be procured for the same grade levels.

Sec. 33.028. CHALLENGE OR APPEAL REGARDING LIBRARY MATERIALS; LOCAL SCHOOL LIBRARY ADVISORY COUNCIL RECOMMENDATIONS. (a) A parent of or person standing in parental relation to a student enrolled in a school district, a person employed by the district, or a person residing in the district may submit:

(1) to the district a written challenge to any library material in the catalog of a school library in the district using the form adopted under Subsection (c); or

(2) to the district's board of trustees an appeal of an action taken by the district in response to a written challenge received under Subdivision (1).

(b) Not later than the fifth day after the date on which a school district receives a written challenge under Subsection (a)(1), the district shall provide a copy of the challenge to the district's local school library advisory council established under Section 33.026. The council shall make a recommendation for action by the district not later than the 90th day after the date on which the council receives the copy.

(b-1) If the procedures recommended by the local school library advisory council and adopted by the board of trustees permit the appointment of library material review committees that consist of persons who are not members of the council to review materials challenged under Subsection (a)(1), the council may base the council's recommendation for action to be taken by the district under Subsection (b) on the recommendation of a library material review committee if the committee consists of at least five persons appointed by the board of trustees, a majority of whom are parents of students enrolled in the school district and are not employed by the district.

(c) The agency shall adopt and post on the agency's Internet website a form to be used in making a written challenge under Subsection (a)(1). Each school district shall post the form on the district's Internet website, if the district has an Internet website. The form shall require the person submitting the form to identify how the challenged library material violates the library standards approved under Section 33.021.

(d) In taking action on a written challenge submitted under Subsection (a)(1) or an appeal under Subsection (a)(2), the board of trustees of a school district shall consider:

(1) the advice of the district's local school library advisory council; and

(2) whether the library material challenged under Subsection (a)(1) or appealed under Subsection (a)(2) is suitable for the subject and grade level for which the library material is intended, including by considering:

(A) whether the material adheres to the library standards approved under Section 33.021; and

(B) reviews, if any, of the material conducted by academic experts specializing in the subject covered by the library material or in the education of students in the subject and grade level for which the library material is intended.

SECTION 6. It is the intent of the legislature that every provision, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or word in this Act, and every application of the provisions in this Act to every person, group of persons, or circumstances, is severable from each other. If any application of any provision in this Act to any person, group of persons, or circumstances is found by a court to be invalid for any reason, the remaining applications of that provision to all other persons and circumstances shall be severed and may not be affected.

SECTION 7. Before the first day of the 2023-2024 school year, the board of trustees of each school district shall:

(1) establish and appoint members of the local school library advisory council as required by Section 33.026, Education Code, as added by this Act; and

(2) adopt a policy for the procurement of library materials as required by Section 33.027, Education Code, as added by this Act.

SECTION 8. This Act applies beginning with the 2023-2024 school year.

SECTION 9. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2023.

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