Latest news with #Act372
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Arkansas, Crawford County, others ordered to pay over $400,000 in library lawsuit
Video: Federal judicial ruling overturns parts of Arkansas library obscenity law FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – An Arkansas lawsuit in response to a 2023 state law has led to a federal court assigning more than $400,000 in fees against defendants, including Arkansas. The Wednesday judgement is against Arkansas, Crawford County and county Judge Chris Keith, 11 prosecuting attorneys and others to pay $435,275 in attorney fees for the lawsuit. At issue was Act 372 of 2023, which amended Arkansas law for endangering the welfare of a minor to include sexual material and remove protection for library employees. Bill looking to regulate obscene books in libraries moves through Arkansas legislature The Fayetteville Public Library brought the lawsuit with 17 other plaintiffs, including the Arkansas Library Association and Freedom to Read Foundation, challenging provisions of the act, claiming violations of the First Amendment. In December 2024, District Judge Timoth L. Brooks of the U.S. Western District of Arkansas found two sections of the act, which made the most significant changes to state law, unconstitutional due to their 'vagueness.' His ruling is currently under appeal. Judge blocks Arkansas law allowing librarians to be criminally charged over 'harmful' materials Attorney General Tim Griffin's office spokesperson Jeff LeMaster said the office is 'currently reviewing the [court] order.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Crawford County Library will foot the bill for lawsuit over segregation of LGBTQ+ children's books
The "social section" in Crawford County Library's Van Buren branch (Screenshot from court documents) A West Arkansas public library system will pay its home county's legal fees in a case the county lost last year over the location of certain LGBTQ+ materials in all five library branches. The Crawford County Quorum Court voted unanimously Monday night at a special meeting to accept the library's governing board's offer to pay nearly $113,000, which U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks declared the defendants in the suit must pay. Three mothers whose children are library patrons sued the Crawford County Library System in May 2023 over its segregation of children's books with LGBTQ+ themes into 'social sections.' This was a 'compromise' in light of public outcry over the books being on the shelves at all, said Deidre Grzymala, the former library director who resigned in February 2023. Plaintiffs Rebecka Virden, Nina Prater and Samantha Rowlett alleged in their suit that the 'social sections' were based on 'an extreme and malevolent view of the Bible' and violated the First Amendment. The lawsuit's five defendants are the county, the county judge, the quorum court, the library board and the library's current director, Charlene McDonnough, who took over the role in January 2024. U.S. District Judge P.K. Holmes ruled in the plaintiffs' favor in September and ordered the library to return the segregated books to their original sections. The case was reassigned to Brooks in October. The projected legal cost was around $118,000, but the cost was reduced by $5,000 after Brooks did not grant any motions from the plaintiffs or defendants after the ruling. Crawford County and County Judge Chris Keith were also defendants in a separate lawsuit against the state over Act 372 of 2023, which would have given local elected officials the final say over whether to relocate challenged library materials some consider 'obscene.' The 18 plaintiffs, including Crawford County Library patrons, cited county officials' statements that Act 372 was a reason to maintain the 'social sections.' Brooks enjoined the challenged portions of Act 372, citing First Amendment violations, in December. The legal fees facing Crawford County defendants in both lawsuits now exceed $575,000, library board chairman Keith Pigg said. Federal judge declares sections of Arkansas' library obscenity law unconstitutional Before Brooks' April 16 order for the defendants to foot the bill for the Crawford County-specific lawsuit, the quorum court and the library board had already squabbled for months over whether the county or the library was responsible for the payment. Members of the library board appointed by the current quorum court supported paying the bill with library operating funds. On Wednesday, the board voted 3-1 to authorize the payment with library funds as a gesture of 'good will' toward the quorum court, which took the board up on the offer Monday. Pigg did not vote on the motion, and he urged the quorum court on Monday not to approve it. Pigg is the only current board member remaining from before Crawford County citizens began complaining to the quorum court about LGBTQ+ books in the library in late 2022. Jeffrey and Tammi Hamby of Van Buren co-wrote a December 2022 letter to Crawford County pastors, saying LGBTQ+ content within children's reach is 'grooming a generation of children to feel this is normal and an accepted way of life.' Pigg reminded the quorum court Monday that, while a majority of the library board approved the $113,000 payment, the board did not approve the use of roughly $40,000 in library funds to pay Grzymala's severance package after she resigned. Both state law and the state Constitution prohibit local elected officials from using library funds without the library board's consent. Pigg said the library system's services would suffer if it were forced to pay the legal fees. In an interview Tuesday, McDonnough agreed, saying the library's budget is 'already set for 2025,' but that the system would likely have to reduce its hours at some branches and purchase fewer books in early 2026. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX At an April 18 library board meeting, member Tammi Hamby blamed the lawsuit on Grzymala and accused her of dishonesty. Grzymala's attorney, Christopher Hooks, responded with an April 23 letter to the county seeking $100,000 in damages over the remarks. Hooks said Hamby violated the county's 'separation agreement' with Grzymala upon her resignation, which stated that Grzymala and the county would refrain from 'criticizing, denigrating or disparaging each other.' The quorum court appointed Hamby and two others to the library board in early 2023 to succeed three members who resigned en masse. All three board members now in those positions voted in favor of the library paying the legal fees stemmng from the lawsuit. McDonnough told the Advocate in December that Crawford County residents had not been publicly decrying library content since Holmes' September ruling against the county. On Monday, some residents revived those complaints before the quorum court. Mike Rich blamed the lawsuit on 'the LGBT group and their liberal allies' who 'sued to force exposure' of objectionable content to minors. Challenges to public library funding throughout Arkansas meet frustration, some resistance 'The library is now a compromised, dangerous institution,' Rich said. Other citizens disputed this claim and urged the quorum court to reject the library board's payment offer, saying the parties that lost the case should have to pay for it. Rich said he hopes Crawford County will see a future ballot measure to defund the library. Several counties throughout the state have seen attempts to reduce the tax millage that funds their libraries, to varying degrees of success. Some of those counties have experienced public clashes over children's access to LGBTQ+ books, including in Craighead County, which narrowly lost half its library tax funding in 2022. An effort to restore the millage failed last year. McDonnough said she has faith in Crawford County libraries to stay afloat despite the turmoil. 'Our libraries are strong and resilient, and this is just a bump in the road that we will conquer,' McDonnough said. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill to abolish Arkansas State Library and its board advances despite librarians' opposition
Five Arkansans spoke against Senate Bill 536 before the Senate Committee on State Agencies and Governmental Affairs on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. From left: Misty Hawkins, regional director of the Arkansas River Valley Regional Library System; Allie Gosselink, director of the Calhoun County Library; Debbie Hall, grants manager for the Arkansas State Library; John McGraw,executive director of the Faulkner-Van Buren Regional Library; and Clare Graham, Mid-Arkansas Regional Library System director. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate) After more than two hours of debate, an Arkansas Senate committee advanced a proposal on Tuesday to abolish the Arkansas State Library and its board, which disburses state funding to local public libraries. Senate Bill 536 would transfer the agency's and board's powers, authorities, funds, contracts and employees to the Arkansas Department of Education. The State Library is already under the department's umbrella but operates independently. The bill would delete all mentions of the State Library from existing state statute and make 'prohibit[ing] access to age-inappropriate materials to a person who is sixteen (16) years old or younger' a condition for public libraries to receive state funds from the education department. 'My entire library, all 30,000 books, would fit inside this room,' Calhoun County Library Director Allie Gosselink said, speaking against SB 536 before the Senate Committee on State Agencies and Governmental Affairs in the Arkansas Capitol's Old Supreme Court room. 'I need a definition for 'access,' or I can't let anyone that's under 16… inside my door,' Gosselink continued. SB 536 defines 'age-inappropriate material' as 'books, media, or any other material accessible at a public library containing images or explicit and detailed descriptions' of sexual acts, sexual contact and human genitalia. The location and availability of books based on 'appropriateness' for minors was the thrust of Act 372 of 2023. The law would have given local elected officials the final say over whether to relocate challenged library materials some consider 'obscene' and made librarians legally liable for disseminating such materials. A federal judge temporarily and later permanently blocked portions of Act 372; Attorney General Tim Griffin appealed the ruling in January. New bill would dissolve Arkansas State Library and its board, set new library funding criteria Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Jonesboro, sponsored Act 372 and is the primary sponsor of SB 536. Protecting minors from 'age-inappropriate material' in libraries and detaching from the American Library Association were the two requests Sullivan said he gave the State Library Board last month as conditions of its survival. The board voted against two proposals with those stated goals from Republican ex-senator Jason Rapert, who has called for the board's abolition. Sullivan subsequently doubled down on his existing promise to dissolve the board. He introduced a bill in February to abolish both the State Library Board and the Arkansas Educational Television Commission, which oversees Arkansas PBS, but he said he reached an agreement with the latter in March that led him to decide not to dissolve the commission. On Tuesday, Sullivan told the State Agencies committee that his requests to the State Library Board should not have been difficult to fulfill and that SB 536 would ensure the state's 'oversight' of entities that receive public funds. 'When people say 'Book Ban Dan' is taking away their library or killing their library, they chose that path,' Sullivan said. SB 536 would require libraries to submit annual reports to the Department of Education that include 'an assurance of compliance with the applicable laws of the state, rules promulgated by the department, and the policies of the public library.' For example, Sullivan said, libraries should not espouse diversity, equity and inclusion policies or allow transgender people to use bathrooms that do not match their gender assigned at birth. Sullivan has sponsored or supported laws to these ends this year and in 2023. Four library directors, including Gosselink, and Arkansas State Library grants manager Debbie Hall spoke against SB 536. No members of the public spoke for the bill. If the education department determines a library no longer qualifies for state funding, the library would be allowed to appeal the decision as long as it can prove 'the determination was made in error' or 'the determination was correct but remedial actions have been taken by the public library to bring the public library into compliance,' according to SB 536. The appeal process would not be sufficient if the law goes into effect July 1 in accordance with its emergency clause, said Misty Hawkins, regional director of the Arkansas River Valley Regional Library System, which has seven branches in Franklin, Johnson, Logan and Yell counties. The library system would have to rewrite its interlocal agreements between the four counties to account for the new code and repealed code in SB 536, which is not possible to complete in only three months, Hawkins said. 'As a director, I am now doing more [to] ensure my libraries are in compliance in order to get the same amount of funding,' which is $188,000 from the state, Hawkins said. She also said SB 536 does not specify how librarians must determine whether a book is appropriate for a 16-year-old but not for a 15-year-old. All five people who spoke against the bill said libraries already organize books on shelves in an age-appropriate manner in accordance with existing standards, and State Library Board members have made similar statements. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX After rejecting the two proposals put forth by Sullivan and Rapert last month, the State Library Board passed a motion to create 'non-binding policies to protect children' while honoring First Amendment freedoms and libraries' material selection policies. Sullivan said this was not enough to deter him from dissolving the board, partly because the majority of members still opposed removing references to the American Library Association from board documents. On Tuesday, Sullivan repeated his criticism of a former ALA president for publicly calling herself a Marxist and the ALA's Library Bill of Rights for stating that access to libraries should not be restricted based on a person's age. The ALA presidency is 'a ceremonial job' that does not directly influence the policies of the nonprofit trade association that advocates for libraries and helps them secure grant funding, said John McGraw, executive director of the Faulkner-Van Buren Regional Library. Sen. Alan Clark, R-Lonsdale, said the ALA's Library Bill of Rights rubs him the wrong way because it asserts 'you can't protect a 3-year-old' from inappropriate content. Gosselink called Clark's statement 'semantics.' 'Not a single person sitting behind me will tell you that you do not need to protect a 3-year-old from certain things that are in our libraries,' she said. 'That is the parents' job. We can't make a whole library acceptable for a 3-year-old.' Local libraries are already governed by their local boards that know their communities best. This bill takes that away, replacing it with centralized oversight that doesn't understand the unique needs of each town and city. – Clare Graham, Mid-Arkansas Regional Library System director McGraw said, not for the first time, that his library system doesn't have a mechanism to lock away books that might be appropriate for adults but inappropriate for small children. A bill advanced later on Tuesday that would require Arkansas public school libraries serving K-5 students to segregate 'non-age-appropriate sexual content' in 'a locked compartment within a designated area.' House Bill 1646 passed the House with 75 votes for it and 14 against it, mostly along party lines, and will next go to the Senate Education Committee. SB 536 includes a limited exception to the proposed restrictions on 'age-inappropriate materials.' Sex education materials would be accessible to minors between 12 and 15 years old, and those under 12 would not be able to access such materials if their parents or guardians have forbidden their access in writing. Six of the eight Senate State Agencies committee members, including Sullivan, voted to pass SB 536. Sen. Bryan King, R-Green Forest, voted against it. The committee's sole Democrat, Sen. Clarke Tucker of Little Rock, was absent during the vote. SB 536 would also require libraries to maintain a specific minimum hours of operation depending on the populations of the areas they serve. For example, a library in a community of less than 10,000 people would have to be open 1,480 hours per year in order to receive state funding, and a library that serves 10,000 to 19,000 people would have to be open 1,730 hours per year. The library directors who spoke against the bill said this would disproportionately threaten rural libraries' funding. McGraw called the provision an 'unfunded mandate' and said it would apply unevenly to the branches he supervises in Conway and in rural areas. CONTACT US Gosselink said the payroll and utility costs to meet the hours requirement at the Calhoun County Library's main branch in Hampton would cost more than the state funding she currently receives, which is $7,100 per year. 'It's my entire discretionary budget for programming, for books, for computers, for anything I might do that's above and beyond opening the doors and turning on the lights,' she said. Sullivan said county governments and taxpayers would be required to put in extra effort to make up for any library funding that might be lost, but he also said he doubted that libraries are at risk of losing funding in the first place. McGraw challenged this statement and mentioned that the entire staff of the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services was put on administrative leave for 90 days Monday. Earlier in March, President Donald Trump issued an executive order to gut the federal agency that provides grant funding to libraries nationwide. The Arkansas State Library distributes IMLS funds to Arkansas libraries. These funds support summer reading programs, interlibrary loan programs, resources for blind and print-disabled library patrons and state document depositories, Arkansas Library Association president and Garland County Library director Adam Webb told the Advocate. McGraw called SB 536 'an unnecessary introduction of chaos' into the already uncertain landscape of library funding, and he said the bill does not include any metrics for measuring improvements within libraries that meet all of the bill's state funding requirements. The fourth library director to speak against the bill was Clare Graham, who oversees the five-county Mid-Arkansas Regional Library System. 'This bill imposes a one-size-fits-all approach that stifles creativity and flexibility,' Graham said. 'Local libraries are already governed by their local boards that know their communities best. This bill takes that away, replacing it with centralized oversight that doesn't understand the unique needs of each town and city.' The full Senate will consider SB 536 Wednesday. The bill's emergency clause requires two-thirds of the chamber's support, or 24 votes. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
