State legislation could gravely impact Decorah Public Library

By Zach Jensen,

Iowa Senate File 347 and House File 558 target what its Republican sponsors consider obscene descriptions in public library materials. If the bills become law, staff at the Decorah Public Library believe they would be forced to remove countless books from the library’s shelves, including works by contemporary authors such as John Grisham, James Patterson, Christine Feehan, Danielle Steel and many more. (Photo by Zach Jensen)

The Decorah Public Library could face major downsizing if two Republican-sponsored state bills become laws. 

Senate File 347 and its companion bill, Iowa House File 558, prohibit public libraries from distributing obscene and pornographic materials to minors, and libraries in violation of the bills could face hefty fines and daily penalties. 

“This legislation impinges upon First Amendment rights as well as the rights of parents and caregivers to make choices for their own children,” said Decorah Public Library Director Kristin Torresdal. “It also impinges upon the ability of tax-paying adults to access the materials they want if we must purge our entire adult collection due to lack of resources to read/listen to/watch every item in our collection to ensure they contain no content that might conflict with the new legislation.”

Torresdal said Iowa law already prohibits libraries from distributing obscene or pornographic materials to minors. However, under the new legislation, if a parent or guardian believes a public library has breached the law, the library could face a fine of up to $15,000 per violation and a $500 penalty for every day the violation isn’t resolved. To be sure the DPL is in compliance with SF 347 and HF 558, Torresdal said staff would need to read every page of every book and periodical currently on its shelves, which she said simply isn’t possible.

“No library in the state has the means to do this,” she said. “We have nearly 29,000 print books, 103,000 e-books, 51,000 audio-books and over 2,500 DVDs in our collection. We add hundreds of new materials every month across all formats. There is absolutely no way staff could possibly review every page of every book, or every minute of each audio or video material to ensure there are no descriptions of sex acts.”

Staff said, if the bills become law, the Decorah Public Library could become strictly a children’s library.

Full article available in the February 27 Decorah Leader. 

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