JEFFERSON CITY — In what could be a record number for a proposed change in state rules, more than 16,000 comments have been submitted on a plan designed to block public funding for public libraries in Missouri if they offer books that might appeal to the sexual interests of minors.
A spokesman for Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, who proposed the controversial rule in November, said the heavy volume of comments signals the level of passion people feel about libraries.
“I think he thinks people are passionate about libraries, as he is,†spokesman JoDonn Chaney said Friday.
He added that the number may have set a record.
“That’s probably the No. 1 generator of comments,†Chaney said.
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Ashcroft, a potential candidate for governor in 2024, floated the rule in November, kicking off a monthlong public comment period that ended Thursday.
The proposed rule would require Missouri’s 160 local public libraries to adopt policies on the age-appropriateness of literature. And under the rule, anyone could challenge access to books.
Libraries that violate the rules would risk losing state funding, which is doled out by the Secretary of State’s Office through the state librarian. Budget documents put that amount at more than $3.5 million in the coming fiscal year.
Library groups, civil rights groups and individuals have called the proposal a threat to free speech and an attempt to ban books.
The American Civil Liberties Union, the Missouri Library Association and the Missouri Association of School Librarians are among those filing comments seeking to stop the rule from going into effect.
Over the next seven to eight weeks, the Secretary of State’s office will sort through the comments and determine if the proposed rule needs to be tweaked based on any suggestions from the public.
Following that, it will go to a panel of lawmakers, which could endorse the rule or send it to the full General Assembly for ratification.
The make-up of the panel, known as the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, is not currently set. Some of the existing members must be replaced because they are no longer serving in the Legislature.
The proposal has generated pushback from libraries and others who say it’s an attempt by a conservative politician who is seeking higher office to stoke a “culture war.â€
“Not only does the rule undermine the professional judgment of librarians and other trained education professionals, it also serves to chill speech and the First Amendment rights of Missourians,†the ACLU said. “We must protect Missourians’ First Amendment rights to access ideas and information.â€
The proposed change is similar to a new law passed by Missouri’s Republican-led Legislature that made it a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail for educators to give K-12 students books with photos, drawings or other visual depictions that are sexually explicit.
There are exceptions for anatomy, biology, art or other images that are educational, and the law does not ban written descriptions that might be considered sexually explicit.
Chaney said the proposed rule is generating controversy because it touches on hot-button issues, such as censorship and banning books.