Texas school and library book laws
Texas SB 13 is the leading 2025 school-library parental-control and collection-policy law. Vendor-mandated ratings under HB 900 are permanently enjoined.
Texas Senate Bill 13 (89th Legislature, 2025) is the model many other states are watching. It applies to school libraries — including classroom libraries, online catalogs, and library apps — not public libraries. Parents get catalog access and can list titles their child may not check out. Parents also get access to student library records. Local school library advisory councils are optional unless 10% of parents petition, in which case they become mandatory. Boards must adopt an acquisition policy with a 30-day public review. TEA provides a challenge form. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission must update collection standards by April 1, 2026. The law prohibits harmful, indecent, profane, pervasively vulgar, or educationally unsuitable material, using FCC-style indecent/profane definitions.
Texas HB 900 (the 2023 READER Act) tried a different model: vendors selling to public schools had to rate materials sexually explicit, sexually relevant, or no rating, and sexually explicit titles had to be pulled. Those vendor-rating sections were permanently enjoined on October 21, 2025 (Book People v. Wong, W.D. Tex.; the Fifth Circuit had already upheld a preliminary injunction). Collection-development standards from that era that were not enjoined can still matter. BookLooky does not sell LRS as “the rating Texas requires vendors to apply.”
HB 900’s vendor-rating and sexually-explicit-pull provisions are permanently enjoined. SB 13’s parental catalog, opt-out, advisory-council, and local-policy duties are the operational law for 2025–26.
Not legal advice. Confirm the enrolled text and any injunction before changing policy. LRS is informational and must not be the sole basis for removing books.
Bills and rules
| Measure | Year | Status | Applies to |
|---|---|---|---|
| SB 13 School library materials, advisory councils, parental catalog rights Parental catalog access and opt-out lists; student library records; school library advisory councils (mandatory if 10% of parents petition); board acquisition policy with 30-day public review; TEA challenge form; TSLAC standards update by April 1, 2026. Effective September 1, 2025. | 2025 | In force | School libraries |
| HB 900 READER Act Required vendors to rate school materials sexually explicit / sexually relevant / no rating. Vendor-rating sections permanently enjoined October 21, 2025. Do not treat as an in-force vendor mandate. | 2023 | Court-limited | School libraries |
| SB 412 Narrows Penal Code affirmative defenses for obscenity / harmful-to-children offenses, including the broad “bona fide educational purpose” defense for educators and librarians. | 2025 | In force | School libraries |
How BookLooky LRS addresses the concern
- Subject-matter scores (sexual content, language/vulgarity, violence) give advisory councils and boards a consistent way to describe what is in a title during the 30-day acquisition review.
- Parent opt-out lists work only if families can see content before they block a book — free LRS lookup is built for that.
- TEA challenge forms and local reconsideration files can attach official full-text LRS reports with excerpt citations.
- LRS is not a TEA or TSLAC rating, not a vendor mandate, and not a lawful substitute for the enjoined HB 900 vendor labels.
Story theme scores (including LGBTQ+ representation) measure presence in the plot. They are not warnings and are not a lawful stand-in for “harmful to minors.”
Questions about Texas
Does Texas SB 13 require BookLooky or any vendor rating?
No. SB 13 requires local policy, catalog access, parental opt-out, and advisory processes. The 2023 vendor-rating mandate in HB 900 is permanently enjoined. LRS is optional decision-support.
Does SB 13 apply to public libraries?
No. It is a school-library law (including classroom libraries, online catalogs, and library apps). Public libraries are outside its core duties.