Signed by Governor Jared Polis

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to concur with House amendments and pass a bill that requires school districts and charter school operators to write policies governing how they'll handle challenges to books in their libraries in Colorado.

Highlights:

• Requires that educational providers write policies for the acquisition, retention, display, and use of library resources, including print literature, and requires said policies be publicly accessible no later than September 1, 2025 (Sec. 2).

• Specifies that such policies must meet the following criteria (Sec. 2):

• Comply with the First Amendment of the United States Constitution;

• Protect against harassment and discrimination concerning author, content, and audience; and

• Protect against obscene material as interpreted by Miller v. California.

• Prohibits public school libraries from removing material from their collections unless such material has been reviewed by an established and publicly accessible policy for the reconsideration of library resources (Sec. 2).

• Specifies that routine maintenance need not be reviewed in this way (Sec. 2). 

• Specifies that such requests for reconsideration must be made by parents of enrolled students and shall not be submitted for the same resource more than once within a period of two years (Sec. 2).

• Requires educational providers to make public the verdict of any such requests for consideration before taking any resulting action (Sec. 2).

• Defines filed requests as open records under the Colorado Open Records Act (Sec. 2).

• Exempts staff members of public school libraries from termination, demotion, or discipline based on actions taken as a result of requests for reconsideration (Sec. 2).

Full Bill Text

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to amend and pass a bill that requires school districts and charter school operators to write policies governing how they'll handle challenges to books in their libraries in Colorado.

Highlights:

• Requires that educational providers write policies for the acquisition, retention, display, and use of library resources, including print literature, and requires said policies be publicly accessible no later than September 1, 2025 (Sec. 2).

• Specifies that such policies must meet the following criteria (Sec. 2):

• Comply with the First Amendment of the United States Constitution;

• Protect against harassment and discrimination concerning author, content, and audience; and

• Protect against obscene material as interpreted by Miller v. California.

• Prohibits public school libraries from removing material from their collections unless such material has been reviewed by an established and publicly accessible policy for the reconsideration of library resources (Sec. 2).

• Specifies that routine maintenance need not be reviewed in this way (Sec. 2). 

• Specifies that such requests for reconsideration must be made by parents of enrolled students and shall not be submitted for the same resource more than once within a period of two years (Sec. 2).

• Requires educational providers to make public the verdict of any such requests for consideration before taking any resulting action (Sec. 2).

• Defines filed requests as open records under the Colorado Open Records Act (Sec. 2).

• Exempts staff members of public school libraries from termination, demotion, or discipline based on actions taken as a result of requests for reconsideration (Sec. 2).

Full Bill Text