Library advocates remain vigilant after HB1239 debate

Local library supporters plan to closely monitor any potential 2026 legislation that could again seek to criminalize librarians for materials accessed by minors.
Jessica Lewis and Moody County Resource Center Librarian Erica Rorvik traveled to Pierre last month to join others in opposing House Bill 1239.
The bill originally included criminal penalties for librarians. The Senate later amended it to remove those provisions and instead added an appeals process for challenging materials in school and public libraries.
Rorvik said that the entire conversation was rather scary, noting that no matter how material from these places fell into the hands of a minor, even library helpers could have been criminally punished.
A library is supposed to be multiple thoughts and ideas and the exchange of those ideas and that is the beauty and what people value about them, said Rorvik.
Everyone could potentially find something in a library offensive, she added, noting that if you start taking material out, everything would need to go, and that doesnt serve communities and patrons well.
The original bill was a poorly written, vague, and heavy-handed approach to concerns about content and placement of books and other library materials, Lewis added, as to why she felt compelled to get involved.
The excessive rhetoric was not just in the language of the bill. It was also in the tone of the floor debate. I was aghast when I heard Senator Howards assertion about stringing folks up by a tree. Lynching has an awful place in our nations history, and a reference to lynching on the floor of the South Dakota Senate was shameful. I appreciate that there are real concerns about age-appropriate materials being placed in the correct sections for patrons in public school and community libraries. I am pleased that our library has a process in place to hear concerns raised by registered patrons of our library.
Sioux Falls Representative Bethany Soye, the bills prime sponsor, stated that the final version rendered the proposal powerless to hold anyone accountable for minors accessing obscene content.
However, Lewis noted that even proponents of the original bill acknowledged during the debate that no state with such a law has ever prosecuted or incarcerated a librarian.
It leads anyone to ask, why use our precious legislative time to pass such a law? she said.
House Bill 1239 does require schools and libraries to publish their policies on obscene materials. Governor Larry Rhoden signed the revised legislation into law on March 20