School boards would set policies for public school libraries

Districts would have to bar discrimination against library resources based on listed traits, and harassment of a resource’s author or intended audience. This applies to public school libraries and their programs and services, including charter schools.

Districts would have to adopt one process and set of standards for requests to remove, limit, or stop using a library resource. These rules cover requests about resources in public school libraries, including charter schools. Only a student enrolled at the school or that student’s parent may request a review. Reviewers must consider the resource as a whole and apply the adopted standards to the whole resource. The resource must remain in the library until a final decision. The written decision must be public and explain the standards used and how they were applied. Routine collection maintenance and removal of materials from the collection are excluded. A resource could not be considered for removal, restriction, or discontinuation more than once in a two-year period, at minimum.

Each local school board would have to write library policies and send them to the state department for approval. This applies to local school boards, including charter school governing bodies. Policies must cover how resources are acquired, kept, displayed, and used, as well as collection maintenance and removal. The department may approve only policies that comply with whichever provides greater free-speech protection: the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution or the New Mexico Constitution. The policies would be due by September 1, 2026.

A library staff member could not be fired, demoted, disciplined, or retaliated against for refusing to act before a final decision, or for certain good-faith decisions. This covers school librarians, employees assigned library duties, and employees or volunteers who help carry out library functions. The protection for refusing to act applies before a final decision made under the required process. The good-faith protection applies to decisions the staff member believes comply with this section and the district’s policies.