Representative David Byrd District 71 Capitol Hill Update

Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022 / Public Chapter 744 — To increase transparency and oversight of instructional materials and literature used in public schools, a new law requires public schools to post online a list of the materials in their libraries. It also requires a standardized review framework to ensure school library collections are periodically evaluated for age-appropriateness. If a school should find a material is not age-appropriate based on student, parental or employee feedback, then the school would have to remove it. The decision is ultimately up to the school in conjunction with the school board. The goal of the new law is to have parents, teachers, students and administrations within different communities all work together to make sure Tennessee children are able to receive a great education. Became effective March 2022.

Ensuring age-appropriate materials in school libraries/ Public Chapter 1137 - Similarly, legislation was approved this year that requires the State Textbook and Instructional Materials Quality Commission to issue guidance for LEAs and charter schools to use when reviewing materials in a library to ensure that the materials are appropriate for the age and maturity levels of the students who will access them. It also ensures that the materials are suitable and consistent with the educational mission of the school and establishes an appeal process for a determination made by the board. The measure expands the Commission by adding two librarians appointed by the Speaker of the Senate and the Speaker of the House. Working together with Governor Lee’s Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022, this legislation will ensure students learn with materials appropriate to their age and grade level. Became effective June/July 2022.

Blocking obscene materials on school computers/ Public Chapter 1002 – A new law was passed to ensure vendors that contract with schools comply with state law to prohibit pornography and obscene materials from school computers. It requires vendors to take steps to block any inappropriate content on school computers. If a provider fails to comply with the new law, then a LEA may withhold further payments to the provider and ultimately consider non-compliance a breach of contract. The law also requires each local board of education to establish a mechanism for parents to report a failure of the technology selected by the LEA to prevent access to harmful materials, and submit an annual report to the State Board of Education on the successes or failures of the technology. Became effective July 2022.

Expanding human trafficking training in schools/ Public Chapter 1021 - A new law will require all school employees to be trained to detect and prevent human trafficking of children. Previously, only teachers were required to take the training. Under this new law, all personnel that aren’t contractors, including bus drivers, janitors or cafeteria workers, will be required to undergo the same human trafficking training as teachers every three years. Sometimes a bus driver or a janitor might be able to observe signs of abuse in students before a teacher. This new law ensures other staff will have the training to know how to identify abuse and report it. The training course would be online and last roughly 45 minutes to an hour. Became effective July 2022.

As always, I am truly humbled and honored to be your voice on Capitol Hill. If there is ever any issue I can assist with, please reach out to my office by calling 615-741-2190 or emailing me at [email protected]