New York A 5416: Relates to certain tuition payments by school districts for general education and special students residing in such school districts

Bill Text

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A05416 Summary:

BILL NOA05416 

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SAME ASNo Same As

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SPONSORForrest

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COSPNSR

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MLTSPNSR

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Add §286, amd §§276, 283 & 273, Ed L

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Relates to enacting the "books save lives act"; requires public school libraries receiving state aid to maintain a collection of diverse books.

Go to top A05416 Actions:

BILL NOA05416 

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02/14/2025referred to libraries and education technology

01/07/2026referred to libraries and education technology

Go to topA05416 Committee&nbspVotes:

Go to topA05416 Floor&nbspVotes:

There are no Assembly votes for this bill in this legislative session.

Go to topA05416 Text:

 STATE OF NEW YORK
 ________________________________________________________________________

 5416

 2025-2026 Regular Sessions

 IN ASSEMBLY

 February 14, 2025
 ___________

 Introduced by M. of A. FORREST -- read once and referred to the Commit-
 tee on Libraries and Education Technology

 AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to requiring certain
 libraries to maintain a collection of diverse books

 The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
 bly, do enact as follows:

 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
 2 the "books save lives act".
 3 § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 286 to read
 4 as follows:
 5 § 286. Access to diverse books. 1. For the purposes of this section,
 6 the following terms shall have the following meanings:
 7 (a) "Underrepresented community" shall mean a group of individuals
 8 that share a common identity or characteristic, and discrimination based
 9 on such identity or characteristic is prohibited by the Civil Rights Act
 10 of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d), the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
 11 (42 U.S.C. 12101), the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701), or
 12 the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1651).
 13 (b) "Diverse book" shall mean a book containing characters that are
 14 part of an underrepresented community, including but not limited to
 15 individuals who:
 16 (i) are members of a racial or ethnic minority group;
 17 (ii) are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, or
 18 nonbinary;
 19 (iii) are members of a religious minority group; or
 20 (iv) have a disability.
 21 2. Each public library, or public library system, and each school
 22 library, or school library system, that receives state aid shall main-
 23 tain a collection of diverse books, including but not limited to books
 24 that:

 EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD07380-01-5

 A. 5416 2

 1 (a) are written or illustrated by an individual who is a member of an
 2 underrepresented community;
 3 (b) are about an underrepresented community;
 4 (c) provide information representing various points of view, especial-
 5 ly regarding controversial issues;
 6 (d) provide information representative of the country's many reli-
 7 gious, ethnic, and cultural groups and their contributions to our shared
 8 heritage;
 9 (e) include characters and settings that reflect the racial, ethnic,
 10 cultural, religious, and/or gender and sexual identities of the student
 11 body and the country as a whole; or
 12 (f) promote the understanding and appreciation of culture, class,
 13 language, race, ethnicity, or other differences that contribute to the
 14 diversity of life in the United States.
 15 3. (a) Any person seeking to permanently remove any material from a
 16 school library shall seek the formal approval of the board of education
 17 through a reconsideration process, as determined by such board of educa-
 18 tion. The permanent removal of material may only be authorized by such
 19 board of education following such reconsideration process.
 20 (b) Any determination by such board of education that such material
 21 shall be removed:
 22 (i) shall be based upon the educational suitability of such material
 23 in question; and
 24 (ii) shall not yield only to public demands or impede the obligation
 25 of school officials to promote pluralism and diversity.
 26 § 3. Section 276 of the education law is amended to read as follows:
 27 § 276. Existing rules continued in force. All existing provisions of
 28 law and rules established by the commis