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Related Links Oklahoma Bill receives further amendments. Vote expected today. posted by Karl on 01:31 PM March 15th, 2006 from the too-depressed-to-be-witty dept. The Oklahoma House is set to vote on a finalized version of HB2158. The full text of the bill includes new changes: 1.B.2 "Sexually explicit subject matter" means content that describes or depicts sexual conduct... in specific and graphic detail so that a prurient interest in sex is promoted. Sexually explicit subject matter shall not mean content that merely mentions or references sexual conduct.... The law also includes a new section creating a State Library Material Content Advisory Board, which, "...shall annually develop a recommended list of child and young adult materials that contain homosexual or sexually explicit subject matter..." to be segregated within the library. This board will include two Representatives, two Senators, four parents, and four teachers, chosen by the legislative leadership.earlier LISNews coverage Trackbacks:
Related Stories Oklahoma Legislature set to restrict kids' access to materials House and Senate that would require libraries to move certain books deemed inappropriate for children to a separate, adults-only area of the library. They are virtually identical, the only difference being the "emergency" provision tacked on to the House version.The main text of the bill reads as follows: Oklahoma librarians (like myself) are understandably chagrined by this. Most libraries won't have the facilities to sequester books in a secure area, and no library can spare the staff to police the bookshelves. OK House set to Further Restrict Kids' Access to Materials earlier LISNews story , the Oklahoma State Legislature is working on a bill to segregate library materials in all state libraries. As widely reported, the relevant text is as follows: A version of the House bill, called a "Committee Substitute" has passed the state House Appropriations and Budget Committee. This bill is even broader than the previous version, expanding the blocked funding sources beyond ODL to include municipalities and individual library boards. It also includes requirements for annual reporting. There's no good way to link to the text of the Committee Substitute, so I've included the full text below the cut.Section 1024.1 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes . That reads, in part: a. acts of sexual intercourse including any intercourse which is normal or perverted, actual or simulated, Take just a moment and imagine the monumental task of deciding which materials in even a small library collection match that definition. Then imagine that you have to build a physical structure in your small rural library to bar access to these items for your young patrons. Whatever your views on homosexuality or children's rights to read, this bill creates a logistical nightmare and a terrible monetary burden on every library in the state of Oklahoma. Oklahoma Book Segregation Update: Newspaper, Library Commission speak out story I posted earlier today , the Tulsa City-County Library has added a page of links about the legislation to its website. It includes links to the current text of the bill and the relevant statutes, but also has TCCL's official position statement . The library commission's chairman has this to say: Oklahoma libraries also gained an ally in one of the state's major newspapers. The Daily Oklahoman published an editorial on Friday condemning the legislation. Bill forces OK libraries to move sexually explicit, gay materials Following a new law in Oklahoma that would withhold state funding from local libraries that don't restrict children's access to reading material with sexually explicit or gay themes.News That the House members voted 60-to-33 last night for the bill after more than two hours of questions and debate in which opponents said the measure was a form of censorship and usurped the control of local library boards. Oklahoma House Votes 60-33 to Segregate Books Daily Oklahoman . For a sense of what the debate looks like, this is a quote from the sponsor of the bill: And here's another opinion: The bill goes on to the Senate now. Oklahoma Bill receives further amendments. Vote expected today. | Log in/Create an Account | Top | 1 comments | Search Discussion Threshold: -1: 1 comments 0: 1 comments 1: 1 comments 2: 1 comments 3: 0 comments 4: 0 comments 5: 0 comments Flat Nested No Comments Threaded The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way. XML 
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