Enacts the "open shelves act"

Showing the cosponsors who are on Agora, A to Z. The official record may list more.

• Democratic42
• Republican1

This bill has cosponsors from more than one party.

Shown in neutral colors by design; Agora is non-partisan.

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Rachel May says this is needed

Democratic self-government depends on a free exchange of ideas and information, and our libraries must continue to ensure that ideas and information are available for people to embrace or reject in line with their values and those they learn from their families and communities. This bill helps to protect the rights of citizens to read, grow, and learn by ensuring that library boards will continue to provide the broadest range of access to a broad spectrum of materials and program- ming in their communities. This legislation ensures that public libraries will continue to provide access to ideas, old and new, and respect the ability of library patrons to make decisions about what content they wish to borrow. The current movement around the country to ban books from libraries and classrooms focuses on books that help young people understand our socie- ty, our history, and themselves from a range of perspectives, including perspectives very similar to their own. Research shows that children are more excited, and therefore more likely, to read books that feature characters with whom they can identify. New York state is known for its diversity, a core part of this state's identity that we cherish and cultivate. To continue honoring our proud legacy of inclusion, it is critical that we ensure citizens have access to a broad range of materials them to let them pursue a love of learning and reading, which help them understand our world and their place in it and help them develop affinity and empathy for people with differing identities and experiences. By ensuring that every New Yorker has library access to many perspectives on contemporary and historical issues, and new ways to imagine the future, we help those who choose to exercise the option to broaden their perceptions and make informed deci- sions on whether they embrace, reject, expand, or alter those perspec- tives.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.