My Sun Coast: “Manatee County Schools Spokesperson Michael Barber confirms that communication has been sent to principals of schools to vet books teachers have in their classroom. In December, House Bill 1467 stated that School Library and Instructional Materials requires school district to adopt procedures for determining and reviewing content for library media centers. This has been extended to books in the classroom. Educators who reached out to ABC7 say that their books are being inspected Friday and books that don’t meet the guidelines will be removed. All books in teacher classrooms must be vetted to determine they have been approved. The Department of Education must publish and update a list of materials that were removed or discontinued by district school boards as a result of an objection and disseminate the list to school districts for consideration in their instructional materials selection…You can read the guidance in its entirety below: Per the new statutory changes to House Bill 1467 – Section 1006.40 (3) (d), F.S. All material in school and classroom libraries or included on a reading list must be:

1. Free of Pornography and material prohibited under S. 847.012, F.S.
2. Suited to student needs and their ability to comprehend the material presented.
3. Appropriate for the grade level and age group for which the materials are used and made available.

Each elementary school must publish on its website, in a searchable format prescribed by the department, a list of all materials maintained in the school library media center or required as part of a school or grade-level reading list. Penalty for Violating Section 847.012, F.S. Any person violating any provision of this section commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in S. 775.082, S. 775.083, or s. 775.084.”