By Ruth Brown, Idaho Reports 

On a party-line vote, the House State Affairs Committee moved forward a bill that would open public and school libraries up to litigation for failing to relocate what the state deems “obscene content.” 

On the committee’s sign-up sheet Monday, more than 400 people signed up in opposition to HB 384, and about 72 signed up in support of the bill. The committee took two minutes of testimony from each attendee but did not make it through the whole list before members had to end the meeting, after nearly two hours of testimony.  

Rep. John Gannon, D-Boise, made a motion to hold the vote for one day, to allow those who couldn’t testify to submit written testimony, but the motion failed on a party-line vote.  

Rep. Jaron Crane, R-Nampa, sponsored the bill, stressing that it addressed the concerns Gov. Brad Little had with a similar bill he vetoed last year. This year’s bill, deemed the Children and Library Protection Act, does not ban books. It would allow libraries 30 days to relocate any material found in a children’s section of the library that’s deemed obscene.   

If the material is not relocated, a civil cause of action may be filed against the school or public library, but the new bill caps that reward at $250 for statutory damages. Last year’s bill had a reward of $2,500.  

Crane’s bill does not address the cost of attorney’s fees that a library may accrue in a lawsuit, and it does not address actual damages that a library may be forced to pay if sued. 

Under the bill, content could be deemed harmful to minors when “judged by the average person, applying contemporary community standards.”  

The new bill still includes nudity, sexual conduct including masturbation and homosexuality, sexual excitement, and sado-masochistic abuse as factors that could be “patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community with respect to what is suitable material for minors.”   

Isabella Burgess, an associate librarian at a Meridian library expressed concern about the fact that the library does employ high school students ages 16 and 17. She argued there would be members of the staff legally barred from handling some books, should the bill pass. 

“The homophobia in this bill is blatant,” Burgess said. “This bill’s definition of sexual conduct is incorrect and does not align with sexual definitions in widely accepted dictionaries. Homosexuality does not equate to obscenity. It is your choice to sexualize children’s books. It is absolutely essential that we have books that are representative of every member of our community, that are accessible to every age range.” 

Robert Wright, director of the Idaho Falls Public Library, spoke in opposition to the bill. He said he had concerns about the practical part of removing a book and relocating it to another part of the library or forbidding children to go onto the third floor of his library.  

“We cannot afford to have a separate area for just adults,” Wright said. “We have a ramp that goes upstairs, we have an elevator that’s not in sight of any staff members. Our solution, if this were to pass in its current form, is we would have to bar anyone from the top floor or the elevator. So, we’d have to lock the elevator and station a staff member, pay someone to stand at the ramp.” 

Rep. Julianne Young, R-Blackfoot, asked Wright, and several other testifiers, if he believed graphic sexual content was harmful to minors. 

Wright said, “you ask a yes or no question and it’s not a yes or no question,” explaining that sometimes in cases of children who’ve been abused, the content can be useful for explaining what happened to them.  

“I know the answer you’re looking for,” Wright told Young. “And yes, it can be (harmful), but sometimes it’s useful. It’s important we allow parents to make those choices.” 

Rachelle Ottosen testified in support of the bill as a trustee for the Community Library Network, which is based in Kootenai County.  

“My library board has been trying to change our materials policy to protect children since June of last year,” Ottosen said. “It’s mind-boggling that adults demand children have access to sexually explicit materials. But they said we can’t be stricter than state law.” 

Shane Reichert, general counsel for the Idaho Education Association, testified in opposition and explained the language was broad and that frivolous lawsuits could be anticipated.  

Brian Almon, a member of the Eagle Public Library Board of Trustees, testified in support of the bill speaking on behalf of himself, not the board. 

“I believe this is a good, solid bill that is addressing a growing problem in our state,” Almon said. “Ideas and images that were once confined to seedy adults-only books stores are now being published and promoted directly to children. Several of the materials that have been found in children’s sections or teens sections fall clearly under the materials that are harmful to children section in Idaho code.” 

Almon said his library board was meeting later this month, and he would like to see guidance from the Legislature on the subject.  

The bill must still go before the House of Representatives before it moves forward to the Senate. 

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