New administrative code changes approved yesterday (May 16) by the Alabama Public Library Service requires public libraries in the state to remove sexually explicit materials from their children’s sections in order to receive state funding.
A group of parents and concerned citizens were surprised to learn the variety of books available to children and youth in some of the state’s libraries and launched an effort to request changes. Gov. Kay Ivey also got involved in the effort and after months of public meetings and discussions from all sides of the issue, amendments were approved to tighten policies related to access by unsupervised children.
In fiscal year 2025, public libraries will receive $6,600,000 in funding from the state’s education trust fund budget, which was approved during the final hours of the recent legislative session. The funding assumes compliance with the new policy that goes into effect July 17.
For more on the APLS policy changes, check out the coverages from Montgomery’s WSFA 12, Alabama Daily News and 1819 News.
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