At its most recent board meeting, the Alabama Public Library Service voted to remove state funding from Fairhope Public Library for not removing books from the children’s section that some parents said were inappropriate.
Staff and board members for Fairhope Public Library expressed surprise at the decision, according to reporting by Alabama Reflector, and said they didn’t expect a decision to be made without being first warned that they were non-compliant.
“I was shocked, distressed, couldn’t quite believe they would do something like that without a warning, or anything from them that said we were not in compliance,” said Randal Wright, the Fairhope Public Library board secretary.
In 2024, changes were made to the administrative code by the Alabama Public Library Service, which placed new restrictions on materials deemed sexually explicit in libraries.
The decision to cut Fairhope’s funding was made following a public hearing in which parents, including local representatives from Moms for Liberty, read specific passages from books that they had previously challenged and requested to be moved. The library board had reviewed the material and said that they did not violate established policy regarding children material and left them.
The decision to cut funding was largely supported, with only one APLS board member, Ronald A. Snider, voting against it.
“To tell them that we are going to make the choice for how they do things, is far beyond the scope of this agency,” Snider said.
Wright argued that the books which the parents who said that the library was not in compliance referenced were not a violation of current administrative code. According to Wright, the books in question were not sexually explicit, defining sexually explicit as “something that is sexually explicit is written to arouse you and to titillate.”
“These books do not do that,” Wright told the Alabama Reflector. “These books have a brief mention about something, but the whole book is not about that.”
John Wahl, who serves as both the chair for the APLS board and the Alabama Republican Party, described the revoking of Fairhope’s funds as a temporary situation that could change as soon as Fairhope was found to be in compliance.
Previously, Wahl had said that the Fairhope Library was in compliance with current rules. This reassurance came in February when Wahl responded to a letter signed by at least 100 parents in Fairhope expressing support for the library and the decisions made by the board.
During the same meeting in which the APLS cut Fairhope’s funding, they also voted to terminate APLS Executive Director Nancy Pack.
Pack submitted a letter of resignation to the board, with an effective end date of September. Amy Minton, a member of the board, made a motion to terminate Pack immediately.
“This is not personal,” Minton said according to reporting from Alabama Reflector. “I want to thank Dr. Pack for her service to the APLS organization. I appreciate that she recognizes the need for her resignation. However, I believe that APLS needs new leadership and direction.”
Snider was the only board member to vote against Pack’s termination.
Clean Up Alabama, a group which advocates for greater restrictions on library material, released a press release thanking the APLS for their decisions regarding Pack and Fairhope.
“By removing state funds from Fairhope Public Library for failing to enforce their own policies, the board has sent a clear message that approving policies on paper is not enough—libraries must actively implement them,” said the release. “…Finally, after years of resistance to protecting children in Alabama libraries, Nancy Pack has been immediately terminated as APLS director.”
Read Freely Alabama, an activist group that opposes the recent changes to Alabama Library Policies and describes themselves as opposed to “any censorship of our public libraries” started a fundraising campaign to support Fairhope and raise the funds cut by the APLS.
Following the decisions by the APLS at their last meeting, Read Freely accused the board of catering to the desires of Clean Up Alabama and Moms for Liberty.
As of Monday, March 24, the campaign had raised $31,407 of its $40,000 funding goal.
Alabama top stories in brief
Office for Civil Rights investigates UAB for alleged violations
- The Department of Education Office for Civil Rights modified a press release sent out on March 14, which originally said that the University of Alabama was facing investigation for “alleged impermissible race-based scholarships and race-based segregation,” but edited the release on March 17 to name the University of Alabama at Birmingham instead of UA.
- UAB has no scholarships currently listed that explicitly state any racial components.
- The investigation comes after the department published a letter informing all institutes of higher education that scholarships and programs that specifically focused on race would not be allowed.
House committee approves bill declaring Juneteenth a state holiday
- Juneteenth has been declared a state holiday by Gov. Kay Ivey each year since 2021, but has not had any official legislation to guarantee it, despite efforts by Alabama Democrats over the years.
- After a new amendment passed, the bill would allow state employees to take the day off, which was a change from its original iteration and past versions, which required state employees to pick between Juneteenth and Jefferson Davis’ birthday.
Alabama Department of Public Health investigating potential measles exposures
- An unvaccinated child, who recently tested positive for measles, traveled through Alabama earlier this month. Officials say the child’s exposure to others is thought to be low.
- Measles is a viral infection that spreads through respiratory droplets. This incident coincides with the current outbreak of measles in Texas, where there are approximately 300 confirmed cases.
- Though a measles case has not been reported in Alabama since 2002, the Alabama Department of Public Health is concerned for the potential of an outbreak, since vaccination rates have fallen below the 95% target in Alabama school-age children since 2022.
- The ADPH urges citizens to stay up to date on their measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, as one case of measles can infect up to 95% of exposed unvaccinated individuals.
New bill places Gov. Kay Ivey over Board of Veterans Affairs
- Gov. Kay Ivey signed SB67 into law on March 18, which significantly changed the structure and power of the Alabama State Board of Veterans Affairs.
- The bill comes after months of conflict in 2024 between Ivey and former ABVA Commissioner Kent Davis.
- Under the new law, the governor will appoint the commissioner and have the power to remove them from their position.
- Additionally, the board will no longer have the ability to enact policies or rules, but will serve in an advisory capacity to the governor.
House approves tax cuts and plan to end tax cut for overtime work
- Approximately $192 million in tax cuts were approved by the Alabama House of Representatives on March 18.
- HB386 would reduce the state grocery tax from 3% to 2%.
- HB387 would give local governments the option to cut grocery taxes.
- HB388 would increase the exemption for retirement income for Alabamians 65 and older from $6,000 to $12,000.
- HB389 would increase income tax thresholds, deductions and child credits for those that make less than $120,000.
- The taxes being affected go to the Education Trust Fund, which caused some legislators to express concern over how they would impact the fund.
- Legislators have indicated that they intend to let the 2023 tax exemption on overtime pay expire, and described it as an obstacle to the new cuts.
- The House also approved HB152, which cuts state sales taxes for baby supplies, maternity clothing, menstrual hygiene products and adult diapers, and is estimated to have an impact of around $13 million in addition to the $192 million from the other tax cuts.
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