News & Updates

{Originally published by Frank Strong on his Substack: Anger & Clarity} On Wednesday, Texas State Senator Angela Paxton filed SB13, a bill that was listed as one of Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick’s legislative priorities for this session with the purpose of “guarding against inappropriate books in public schools.”

The full text of the bill is available here. Every Republican member of the Senate is listed as co-author.

{Guest post by Leila Green Little} According to documents obtained from a public records request, the State of Texas has spent $179,897.54 on its defense so far in BookPeople, Inc., et al., v. Martha Wong, et al. This price tag results from over 1,600 hours of labor for the Office of the Attorney General’s office.

And this is just the beginning—this cost will surely increase as the case goes to trial. Should the trend continue and the State of Texas eventually lose in the terminal stage of this lawsuit (as they most likely will), it will be responsible for paying the plaintiffs’ legal fees. 

After several years of Montgomery County Memorial Public Library and librarians being subjected to slander, doxing and harassment by politicians and activists calling for the restriction and removal of diverse and inclusive books- especially age relevant children's and young adult books that center LGBTQ+ and BIPOC perspectives- the County Commissioners voted to appoint one of their own- the elected County Judge Mark Keough- as the director of the public library system. Judge Keough proceeded to immediately terminate the employment of Montgomery County's library director- Rhea Young. 

Yesterday, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick announced 25 of his top priorities for the current legislative session. At least four out of the 25 bills will directly impact the freedom to read in Texas. 

On January 28, 2025 Texas Freedom to Read Project, along with a broad coalition of local, state and national partners and allies issued a joint statement affirming our shared commitment to fight for the freedom to read in our state during the 89th legislative session, and beyond. 

On January 14, 2025, the Texas Legislature commenced its 89th regular legislative session to set policy goals and advance bills that will impact residents statewide.

Beyond bills that attempt to criminalize the profession of librarianship and take away funding from public schools, Texas representatives have filed bills that would attack booksellers and establish subjective criteria for approving or restricting instructional materials in public schools. 

On January 14, the Texas state legislature reconvened for its 89th legislative session. The pre-filed legislation reveals that members are prioritizing a variety of issues, especially vouchers that would reduce funding for public schools.