A view of the Florida House chamber as members debate during the first floor session of the 2026 session on Jan. 15. (Photo by Jay Waagmeester/Florida Phoenix)
The Florida House passed for a second year in a row a bill to define how school library materials may be “harmful to minors.”
The bill, HB 1119, would build on a 2023 law that led to the removal of library books from schools based on objections from the public. The Senate, however, has not moved its version.
The 2023 law allows community members to object to school library materials considered “pornographic” or that “describes sexual conduct.”
Rep. Doug Bankson, the bill sponsor and a Republican from Apopka, said existing statutes have been “improperly bypassed,” prompting the need for the bill.
The bill passed 84-28.
“Bottom line, this is simple. We’re talking about ratings. We rate movies, TV shows, and songs. There’s nothing wrong with rating books. We would never show an X rated movie in a middle school classroom. This is common sense,” Rep. Kim Kendall, a Republican from St. Augustine, said.
The bill and its identical Senate companion would add to state law a definition of what is to be considered “harmful to minors.”
The definition the lawmakers propose: “any reproduction, imitation, characterization, description, exhibition, presentation, or representation, of whatever kind or form, depicting nudity, sexual conduct, or sexual excitement when it: predominantly appeals to prurient, shameful, or morbid interest; and is patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community as a whole with respect to what is suitable material or conduct for minors.”
“We have been here before, and I have no idea why we’re back because members of our community have asked us to focus on the affordability crisis not to restrict more literature,” Rep. Anna Eskamani, a Democrat from Orlando, said.
Democrats filed a number of amendments that the GOP majority rejected and debated extensively against the bill on the floor.
“I know this bill is being presented as a refinement of existing law, but the reality is it expands a system that has already led to widespread book removals. We’ve seen litigation and we’ve seen real financial costs for taxpayers and school districts,” Rep. Rita Harris, a Democrat from Orlando, said on the floor.
The Senate bill, SB 1692, is sponsored by Sen. Stan McClain, a Republican from Ocala. McClain sponsored the legislation last session, too, but it died after First Amendment concerns emerged during its first committee hearing. This session, the Senate version has three committee assignments but has yet to be heard.
The House passed the measure off the floor last year.
The 2023 law has led to Florida making nationwide headlines for the number of books removed. In 2024, lawmakers addressed overuse of the law, limiting non-parent members of the public from objecting to more than one library material per month.
The 2023 law was deemed “overbroad and unconstitutional” last summer by a federal judge. That suit was filed by book authors and parents objecting to restrictions.
The state filed a brief this week in the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit asking for that court to uphold the ruling from last year. The appeal is scheduled for oral arguments in April in Atlanta.
That law allowed for books to stay on shelves that were considered to have literary, artistic, political, or scientific value. Bankson and McClain’s proposal would prevent school boards from keeping books based on those values if they contain “harmful” content.
The measure would provide a carve-out for required health education course material. It would allow the state to withhold funding from districts that do not comply.
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