NY State Senate Bill 2025-S1100

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Libraries Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2025	referred to libraries

co-Sponsors

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Libraries
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §254, Ed L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S7677

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Ensures that staff in libraries are able to curate collections, services, and programming that reflect the interests of all people of the community that the library serves.

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S1100

SPONSOR: MAY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to requiring certain
libraries to adopt policies ensuring that library staff are able to
curate collections, services, and programming that reflect diverse
interests

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 adds a new paragraph to Section 254 of the education law,
which requires libraries receiving funds from the state to adopt poli-
cies that empower library staff to develop collections and programming
that serve the needs of all members of their community.

Section 2 sets the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Democratic self-government depends on a free exchange of ideas and

information, and our libraries must continue to ensure that ideas and
information are available for people to embrace or reject in line with
their values and those they learn from their families and communities.
This bill helps to protect the rights of citizens to read, grow, and
learn by ensuring that library boards will continue to provide the
broadest range of access to a broad spectrum of materials and program-
ming in their communities. This legislation ensures that public
libraries will continue to provide access to ideas, old and new, and
respect the ability of library patrons to make decisions about what
content they wish to borrow.

The current movement around the country to ban books from libraries and
classrooms focuses on books that help young people understand our socie-
ty, our history, and themselves from a range of perspectives, including
perspectives very similar to their own. Research shows that children are
more excited, and therefore more likely, to read books that feature
characters with whom they can identify.

New York state is known for its diversity, a core part of this state's
identity that we cherish and cultivate. To continue honoring our proud
legacy of inclusion, it is critical that we ensure citizens have access
to a broad range of materials them to let them pursue a love of learning
and reading, which help them understand our world and their place in it
and help them develop affinity and empathy for people with differing
identities and experiences. By ensuring that every New Yorker has
library access to many perspectives on contemporary and historical
issues, and new ways to imagine the future, we help those who choose to
exercise the option to broaden their perceptions and make informed deci-
sions on whether they embrace, reject, expand, or alter those perspec-
tives.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2023-2024: S7677 (May) / A7843 (Kelles)

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
30 days after becoming law.

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1100
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              January 8, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens. MAY, COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and
   when printed to be committed to the Committee on Libraries
 
 AN ACT to amend the education law,  in  relation  to  requiring  certain
   libraries  to  adopt  policies ensuring that library staff are able to
   curate collections, services, and  programming  that  reflect  diverse
   interests
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1.  Short title. This act shall be known and may be  cited  as
 the "open shelves act".
   §  2.  Section  254 of the education law, as amended by chapter 718 of
 the laws of 1981, is amended to read as follows:
   § 254. Standards of library service. 1. The regents shall  have  power
 to  fix  standards of library service for every free association, public
 and hospital library or, with  the  advice  of  the  appropriate  tribal
 government  and library board of trustees, Indian library which receives
 any portion of  the  moneys  appropriated  by  the  state  to  aid  such
 libraries,  or  which  is supported in whole or in part by tax levied by
 any municipality or district. In the case of a  hospital  library  or  a
 library  serving  a  hospital,  such  standards  shall be established in
 consultation with the commissioner of health. If any such library  shall
 fail  to  comply  with  the regents requirements, such library shall not
 receive any portion of the moneys appropriated by the  state  for  free,
 hospital  or Indian libraries nor shall any tax be levied by any munici-
 pality or district for the support in whole or in part of such library.
   2. SUCH STANDARDS SHALL REQUIRE EVERY FREE  ASSOCIATION,  PUBLIC,  AND
 HOSPITAL  LIBRARY  OR, WITH THE ADVICE OF THE APPROPRIATE TRIBAL GOVERN-
 MENT AND LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES, INDIAN LIBRARY, WHICH  RECEIVES  ANY
 PORTION  OF  THE MONEYS APPROPRIATED BY THE STATE TO AID SUCH LIBRARIES,
 TO ADOPT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES THAT ENSURE LIBRARY STAFF ARE  ABLE  TO
 CURATE  AND  DEVELOP COLLECTIONS, SERVICES, AND PROGRAMMING THAT REFLECT
 THE INTERESTS OF ALL PEOPLE OF THE COMMUNITY THAT THE LIBRARY SERVES.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD00089-02-5

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Senate Bill S1100

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Libraries Committee

co-Sponsors

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S1100

Share this bill

Sponsored By

Rachel May

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Libraries Committee

co-Sponsors

Leroy Comrie

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S1100 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments