Libraries Need Your Help!

To our Patrons, Friends, and the Communities we serve:

We are once again asking for your support during Ohio’s Biennium Budget Process.  At the time of writing this, a version of the budget is being sent to both the House and Senate which includes a number of provisions that will be harmful to libraries and other public entities.  While certain aspects, such as changes to library funding, are likely to be signed into law by the end of Monday, June 30, we believe there is one provision where Governor DeWine may be open to utilizing a line-item veto.  We are asking you to join us in calling for a veto of a budget provision which reads:

Sec. 3375.47. A public library created under Chapter 3375.

of the Revised Code shall place material related to sexual

orientation or gender identity or expression in a portion of the

public library that is not primarily open to the view of persons

under the age of eighteen.

We have multiple concerns with this language.

First, this language is vague to the point of meaninglessness.  Examples of books that could fall under this definition include Anne Frank’s “Diary of a Young Girl,” as well as multiple titles that are currently distributed to children all across Portage County through the Dolly Parton Imagination Library.  Attempting to segregate these materials would cause an immense amount of confusion.

Second, this requirement is a waste of taxpayer resources.  Many of our locations have open floor plans, where there is no “portion of the public library that is not primarily open to the view of persons under the age of eighteen.”  Attempting to redesign our locations to comply with this language would be an expensive proposition even if the General Assembly hadn’t just voted to reduce our budget.  Libraries in other states, when faced with similar legislation, were forced to make their libraries only open to those over the age of 18.

Third, this requirement is ultimately unnecessary.  Public Libraries already have policies and procedures that govern what we purchase and where we shelve it.  These policies include avenues for feedback from our patrons if they think we did something wrong.  We have boards of trustees appointed by local elected officials to ensure that we can represent our communities more accurately than a one-size-fits-all model from Columbus.  At the end of the day, we trust our patrons to decide what materials are appropriate for themselves and their families. 

For these reasons, we are asking you to join us in respectfully calling for Governor DeWine to veto this language. Our letter, sent June 10, is posted on this page.

Governor Mike DeWine:  Address: 77 S. High Street – 30th Floor 

Main Line: (614) 466-3555 Columbus, Ohio 43215 

Governor’s Hotline: (614) 644-4357

https://governor.ohio.gov/contact

To be clear, because of the concerns noted above, PCDL has no intention of complying with this language if it is signed into law as part of the Biennium Budget.  Our ultimate responsibility is to our patrons and our communities. We have no interest in having our services treated as some sort of political football.  Our stance on this matter is guided by our commitment to fiscal responsibility and protecting the rights of our patrons to choose what materials are best for themselves and their families.