New York Assembly Bill A07777

New York 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 4/10/25
• Refer: 4/10/25
• Report Pass: 6/12/25
• Refer: 6/12/25
• Report Pass: 6/13/25

Caption

Enacts the "freedom to read act"; requires the commissioner of education and school library systems to develop policies to ensure that school libraries and library staff are empowered to curate and develop collections that provide students with access to the widest array of developmentally appropriate materials available.

Summary

A07777 would enact the “freedom to read act” and amend the Education Law to direct the Commissioner of Education and school library systems to adopt policies supporting school libraries and library staff in curating collections. The bill emphasizes that certified library media specialists and other library staff should be empowered to develop collections that give students access to the widest array of developmentally appropriate materials available to school districts and participating schools. The bill also updates the stated functions of school library systems to include this collection-development role. In addition to existing duties such as union catalogs, interlibrary loan, delivery of materials, staff development, and resource sharing, school library systems would be required to ensure that libraries can build broad, age-appropriate collections. The measure takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Impact

The bill would amend sections 276 and 283 of the Education Law, adding explicit policy direction for public school libraries and school library systems. It would not create a new standalone program, but it would require state-level and system-level library policies to affirm professional discretion in selecting and developing materials for students. The practical effect would be to strengthen the role of school librarians and library media specialists in collection development and could affect local school district library policies, review practices, and challenges to library materials.

Sentiment

The available voting history suggests generally favorable support for the bill. It advanced out of the Assembly Ways and Means Committee by a wide margin and then received favorable action in the Assembly Rules Committee, indicating broad institutional support at the committee level. No committee transcript was provided, so there is no recorded debate language here, but the vote pattern points to a positive reception overall.

Contention

The main point of contention implied by the bill’s subject is the balance between broad student access to library materials and local control over what is considered developmentally appropriate. Supporters are likely to include librarians, educators, and advocates for intellectual freedom who want to protect professional collection development from censorship or political pressure. Potential opponents may be those concerned about parental rights, age-appropriateness, or the inclusion of controversial content in school libraries. Because no transcript is available, specific arguments from either side are not recorded in the provided materials.