SB434: Bill Hearings & Public Record

SB434‍ ‍- School Censorship

• Official Title: relative to regulation of public school materials.

• Bill Sponsors:(Prime) Lang (R), Ruth Ward (R), Carson (R), Pearl (R), Avard (R), Victoria Sullivan (R), Keith Murphy (R), Innis (R), Birdsell (R), Rochefort (R), Moffett (R), Drye (R), Noble (R), Freeman (R)

• Bill Hearings & Public Record (this record is a work-in-progress)

• Summary: This bill would allow a single person within a school district to challenge items and have them removed for the entire district. Despite mechanisms already being in place for parents to prohibit their child from accessing content and materials that they deem inappropriate, this would empower a single person to remove materials for all students - effectively censoring materials district-wide. It’s important that we trust educators to build inclusive and thoughtful classrooms where students can critically engage with a variety of age-appropriate materials, and not create easy mechanisms for censorship. The original bill text can be read by clicking the bill number. The committee hearings & public record of the bill can be watched and reviews at the “Bill Hearings & Public Record” linked above.

  • BILL UPDATE:

    • Committee hearing has been scheduled for 02/03/26 at 9:15 at the State Library, Map Room.

    • Committee moved it to Exec session, must release recommendations within 1 week.

    • OTPA (ought to pass with an amendment) vote 3-1

    • Scheduled for Full Body Senate Vote on 02/19/26 - Senate Approved 16Y-8N

    • Introduced to House on 02/19/26 and referred to House Education Policy and Administration HJ 5

    • Public hearing in House Education Policy and Administration‍ ‍(04/08/26 at 1 Granite Place, Room 232 at 11:30am)