Another state has launched laws this session looking for to shield the suitable to learn for residents. Maryland now joins Oregon, Virginia, Washington, New Jersey, Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, and Massachusetts, in trying to outline the parameters round e-book banning.
House Bill 0785 (filed concurrently as SB 0738) is Maryland’s “Freedom to Read Act.” It was launched January 31 by Dana Jones, with sponsors Adrienne A. Jones, Vanessa E. Atterbeary, Eric Ebersole, and Jheanelle Ok. Wilkins.
The invoice features a sequence of complete protections for college and public library staff, in addition to the supplies acquired and housed in these establishments. It units state requirements for funding, comparable to the invoice handed in Illinois final 12 months, requiring libraries adapt and comply with procedures developed by the state library. Books and different library objects can’t be eliminated or prohibited from collections due to “partisan or doctrinal disapproval.”
Also included within the invoice is safety of supplies in library collections, such that intentional destruction or marring of library supplies is misdemeanor offense with a wonderful of up to $1,000, 10 months in jail, or each.
Both public and college libraries can be topic to the laws.
From HB 0785:
IT IS THE GOAL OF THE STATE THAT EACH LIBRARY IS OPERATED IN A MANNER THAT RECOGNIZES THE FOLLOWING STANDARDS:
(1) LIBRARY MATERIALS, SERVICES, AND RESOURCES EXIST AND SHOULD BE PROVIDED FOR THE INTEREST, INFORMATION, AND ENLIGHTENMENT OF ALL PERSONS THE LIBRARY SERVES;
(2) A LIBRARY SHOULD NOT EXCLUDE MATERIAL FROM ITS CATALOGUE BECAUSE OF THE ORIGIN, BACKGROUND, OR VIEWS OF A PERSON WHO CREATED THE MATERIAL; AND
(3) A LIBRARY SHOULD NOT PROHIBIT OR REMOVE MATERIAL FROM ITS CATALOGUE BECAUSE OF PARTISAN OR DOCTRINAL DISAPPROVAL.(B) IT IS THE INTENT OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY THAT ANY LIBRARY, SCHOOL LIBRARY, RESOURCE CENTER, OR OTHER LIBRARY ARRANGEMENT DEVELOPED BY THE STATE LIBRARY AGENCY THAT RECEIVES FUNDING FROM THE STATE SHALL ADOPT AND FOLLOW A WRITTEN POLICY CONSISTENT WITH THE STATE STANDARDS FOR LIBRARIES ENUMERATED IN SUBSECTION (A) OF THIS SECTION.
Delegate Dana Jones labored on the laws for over 9 months.
“The Freedom to Read Act will protect your choice and safeguard Maryland’s libraries from becoming the next frontier of censorship,” Jones mentioned in a video asserting the laws. “No matter what library you are in, no matter who you are, one thing is always the same in every library: you are accepted, valued, and you are never alone.”
If handed, the invoice would go into impact July 1, 2024.
The American Library Association recorded 10 makes an attempt to limit entry to books in Maryland between January and August 2023 alone, with 66 e-book titles challenged. This positioned the state among the many high for censorship makes an attempt on this timeframe. PEN America recorded 0 e-book bans in class districts through the 2022-2023 faculty 12 months–these numbers don’t replicate what has been taking place within the state within the 2023-2024 faculty 12 months. Among the college districts who skilled bans and/or are at present underneath challenges embrace Montgomery County Schools, Carroll County Schools, Frederick County Schools, Worchester County Schools, Baltimore County Schools, Wicomico County Schools, and Howard County Schools.
HB 0785 was referred to the Ways and Means Committee and there’s a home listening to set for Wednesday, February 21, 2024, at 1 p.m. If you’re a Maryland resident, take ten minutes to write your legislators as quickly as potential in help of the invoice.
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