HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-07-23; Library Board of Trustees; 02; Updated Library Collection Development PolicyMeeting Date: July 23, 2025
To: Library Board of Trustees
From: Jacqui Petri, Senior Librarian
Staff Contact: Jacqui Petri, Senior Librarian
jacqueline.petri@carlsbadca.gov, 442-339-2036
Subject: Updated Library Collection Development Policy
District: All
Recommended Action
Receive a report from staff and vote on updates to the library’s Collection Development Policy.
Executive Summary
The library has updated its Collection Development Policy. This report includes the impetus for
the updates, an overview of the changes and the revised policy (Exhibit 1).
Explanation & Analysis
The Collection Development Policy update is prompted by recent California legislation, AB
1825, also known as the California Freedom to Read Act.
Updates to the Collection Development Policy:
•Added the four statements required by California AB 1825 on page 2, Collection
Objectives section
•Made the Collection Objectives section more concise
•Simplified or removed redundant verbiage throughout
•Removed three sections of background information
•Added one selection criterion for electronic resources
•Added guidance related to content created by or with artificial intelligence
•Simplified the Donations section by removing specific descriptions of physical materials
•Added the text of AB 1825 as an Appendix
Fiscal Analysis
No financial impact.
LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
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Next Steps
Upon approval from the Library Board of Trustees, the updated policy will be posted to the
Carlsbad City Library webpage, shared with staff, and submitted to the California State Library
as required by AB 1825.
Environmental Evaluation
The proposed action is not a “project” as defined by CEQA Section 21065 and CEQA Guidelines
Section 15378(b)(5) and does not require environment review under CEQA Guidelines Section
15060(c)(3) and 15061(b)(3), because the proposed action to vote on the library’s Collection
Development Policy is an organizational or administrative government activity that does not
involve any commitment to any specific project which may result in a potentially significant
physical impact on the environment. Any subsequent action or direction stemming from the
proposed action may require preparation of an environmental document in accordance with
CEQA or CEQA Guidelines.
Exhibits
1. Collection Development Policy (updated version)
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COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY
Purpose: Intellectual freedom
Organizational and administrative ease
Upholding citizens’ rights
POLICY:
Table of Contents
Collection Development Policy ..................................................................................................................... 1
Scope of Collections ...................................................................................................................................... 2
Collection Objectives .................................................................................................................................... 2
Authority and Responsibility for Collection Development ........................................................................... 3
Materials Selection ....................................................................................................................................... 3
Criteria for Materials Selection ................................................................................................................. 3
Maintenance of the Collection ..................................................................................................................... 4
Request for Reconsideration of Library Material ......................................................................................... 4
Donations ...................................................................................................................................................... 4
Appendices .................................................................................................................................................... 6
Library Bill of Rights .................................................................................................................................. 6
Freedom to Read Statement ..................................................................................................................... 7
Freedom to View Statement ................................................................................................................... 11
California Freedom to Read Act (AB 1825) ............................................................................................. 12
Collection Development Policy
Carlsbad City Library’s mission is to provide community members of all ages with convenient
access to high quality resources and services to inform and enrich individual and community
life. This Collection Development Policy offers guidance to library staff in the selection and
retention of materials and serves to inform the public of the library’s selection and collection
maintenance process.
The guidelines are based on the library’s mission and the long-established principles of the
Library Bill of Rights, Freedom to Read Statement and Freedom to View Statement adopted by
the American Library Association, as well as the California Freedom to Read Act. The full text of
these statements is in the appendices to this document.
Exhibit 1
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Policy review and revision to reflect changes in the community and in collection development
needs are scheduled at least every five years.
Scope of Collections
Carlsbad City Library consists of three library locations serving people who live, work and play in
Carlsbad, California.
The library collections include materials of both contemporary significance and of long-term
value. Its focus is on resources of general interest to the public over esoteric or academic
resources. With specific exceptions, such as “young readers” editions and adaptations written
for adult literacy learners, the library does not purchase or add abridged editions of titles.
The genealogy collection is a special reference and research collection with materials on family
history. The Carlsbad history collection comprises materials that directly contribute to and
enhance users’ understanding of the City of Carlsbad’s history. These two substantial
collections are housed at Georgina Cole Library.
The literacy section of the Library Learning Center provides specialized materials and resources
to meet the needs of English-speaking adults and teens who want to improve their basic
reading and writing skills, as well as the tutors who work with them.
Collection Objectives
The collection meets the broad and diverse interests of the community and respects both the
library’s autonomy and specific community needs. The library strives to meet these needs
within the limitations of space, staffing and budget.
The public library serves as a center for voluntary inquiry and the dissemination of information
and ideas. Inclusion of materials in the library does not indicate endorsement of the contents or
the views expressed in those materials.
Library materials should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all
people, and should present diverse points of view in the collection as a whole. Exposure to the
variety of human experience can expand a person's capacity for understanding and acceptance.
To this end, the library commits to continually building a collection that reflects and amplifies
the mosaic of human identity and experience.
The public has the right to receive access to a range of social, political, aesthetic, moral, and
other ideas and experiences. To ensure access to material, the library avoids labeling or
shelving in a way that would influence a person's judgment of the material.
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Authority and Responsibility for Collection Development
The Library Board of Trustees has authority to approve policy that guides collection
development work. The responsibility for all materials and resources selected rests with the
Library & Cultural Arts director. Collection management is delegated by the director to staff
who are qualified for this duty by education, training, job classification and knowledge of the
community. These staff members have the authority to interpret and apply this policy in daily
operation.
Materials Selection
Staff make decisions that meet the collection objectives of the library based on the criteria in
this collection development policy, authoritative information resources and their professional
judgment.
The public may submit recommendations of items to purchase. The criteria for materials
selection apply to purchase requests.
Criteria for Materials Selection
The established criteria for all subjects, formats and audiences include:
• actual or anticipated community demand or need
• favorable reviews in professional media
• critical acclaim or regional/national awards
• literary, artistic, historical, scientific, or intellectual merit
• permanent or timely value
• accurate information
• social significance
• importance of the subject matter to the collection
• reputation and qualifications of the author, illustrator, publisher, or producer
• suitability of physical format
• professional quality of manufacture or production, such as editing, sound/video,
art/typography, printing/binding
• price
• availability in the marketplace from a reputable United States publisher or distributor
In addition, the following criteria apply specifically to electronic resources, which are preferred
to be device and platform neutral, use open and/or public file formats and support the
traditional legal principles of first sale and fair use:
• accessibility
• security of patron information
• license agreement requirements and vendor support
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The importance or weight of each of these factors will vary from one acquisition to another and
materials for adults, teens, and children may each be judged differently. An item need not meet
all these criteria to be acceptable.
The quality of works created by or with the help of artificial intelligence and the ethics of
creating works in this manner are evolving quickly. In their collection development work, staff
follow best practices in the library and publishing industries.
Maintenance of the Collection
The library follows guidelines for maintenance, in terms of appropriate evaluation and
retention procedures, commonly used by public libraries. Collection assessment is the ongoing
process of evaluating what is in the collection and how much it is used, as well as what patrons
need and request.
Thoughtful deselection is one result of the regularly scheduled assessment of the content and
physical condition of the collection.
Deselected materials are clearly marked to indicate withdrawal and are not given or sold
directly to the public or staff. Items in reasonable condition may be transferred to the Friends
of the Library for resale or redistribution.
Request for Reconsideration of Library Material
Forms are available at all three library facilities so that persons within Carlsbad’s service area
may suggest that an item held in the collection be reclassified or reconsidered for its continued
inclusion in the library collection. Library staff will review the material only upon receipt of a
completed and signed Request for Reconsideration form.
After a formal review is completed by staff, the review coordinator will notify the person who
initiated the review of the decision. Decisions may be appealed to the L&CA director.
The library will perform a maximum of three reviews at one time. An item that has been
reviewed through this procedure will not be eligible for review again for 36 months.
Donations
Material left at the library becomes the property of the library and cannot be returned. The
library decides whether the material should be added, and to which collection. The criteria for
materials selection apply to donations. The library supports authors and performers associated
with Library & Cultural Arts programming by considering their works that supplement the
program for inclusion in the collection. Upon request, the library will provide a tax receipt for
donations. Anything not added to the library's collection is made available to the Friends of the
Carlsbad Library and may be sold or redistributed by the Friends, discarded or recycled.
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The library selectively culls some of the donated material and makes it available to library
cardholders and non-cardholders. This practice provides convenient access to puzzles, games
and high demand mass market paperbacks, which are not cataloged due to their ephemeral
nature.
Gifts of special collections may be accepted and become the property of the library. Gifts of
magazine subscriptions may be accepted by the library subject to the same selection and
retention policies as regular subscriptions.
The library accepts tax deductible monetary donations for the purpose of collection
enhancement. The library welcomes general suggestions for purchases with memorial
donations and tries to find materials which are satisfactory to both the donor and the library.
Groups or individuals may work with the L&CA director to set up an endowment fund, recurring
gift, one-time gift or bequest in accordance with the Gift Acceptance and Recognition policy.
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Appendices
Library Bill of Rights
The American Library Association affirms that all libraries are forums for information and ideas,
and that the following basic policies should guide their services.
I. Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and
enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be
excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.
II. Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current
and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or
doctrinal disapproval.
III. Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide
information and enlightenment.
IV. Libraries should cooperate with all persons and groups concerned with resisting abridgment
of free expression and free access to ideas.
V. A person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age,
background, or views.
VI. Libraries which make exhibit spaces and meeting rooms available to the public they serve
should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or
affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use.
VII. All people, regardless of origin, age, background, or views, possess a right to privacy and
confidentiality in their library use. Libraries should advocate for, educate about, and protect
people’s privacy, safeguarding all library use data, including personally identifiable information.
Adopted June 19, 1939, by the ALA Council; amended October 14, 1944; June 18, 1948;
February 2, 1961; June 27, 1967; January 23, 1980; January 29, 2019.
Inclusion of “age” reaffirmed January 23, 1996.
Although the Articles of the Library Bill of Rights are unambiguous statements of basic
principles that should govern the service of all libraries, questions do arise concerning
application of these principles to specific library practices. See the documents designated by
the Intellectual Freedom Committee as Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights.
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Freedom to Read Statement
The freedom to read is essential to our democracy. It is continuously under attack. Private
groups and public authorities in various parts of the country are working to remove or limit
access to reading materials, to censor content in schools, to label "controversial" views, to
distribute lists of "objectionable" books or authors, and to purge libraries. These actions
apparently rise from a view that our national tradition of free expression is no longer valid; that
censorship and suppression are needed to counter threats to safety or national security, as well
as to avoid the subversion of politics and the corruption of morals. We, as individuals devoted
to reading and as librarians and publishers responsible for disseminating ideas, wish to assert
the public interest in the preservation of the freedom to read.
Most attempts at suppression rest on a denial of the fundamental premise of democracy: that
the ordinary individual, by exercising critical judgment, will select the good and reject the bad.
We trust Americans to recognize propaganda and misinformation, and to make their own
decisions about what they read and believe. We do not believe they are prepared to sacrifice
their heritage of a free press in order to be "protected" against what others think may be bad
for them. We believe they still favor free enterprise in ideas and expression.
These efforts at suppression are related to a larger pattern of pressures being brought against
education, the press, art and images, films, broadcast media, and the Internet. The problem is
not only one of actual censorship. The shadow of fear cast by these pressures leads, we
suspect, to an even larger voluntary curtailment of expression by those who seek to avoid
controversy or unwelcome scrutiny by government officials.
Such pressure toward conformity is perhaps natural to a time of accelerated change. And yet
suppression is never more dangerous than in such a time of social tension. Freedom has given
the United States the elasticity to endure strain. Freedom keeps open the path of novel and
creative solutions, and enables change to come by choice. Every silencing of a heresy, every
enforcement of an orthodoxy, diminishes the toughness and resilience of our society and leaves
it the less able to deal with controversy and difference.
Now as always in our history, reading is among our greatest freedoms. The freedom to read and
write is almost the only means for making generally available ideas or manners of expression
that can initially command only a small audience. The written word is the natural medium for
the new idea and the untried voice from which come the original contributions to social
growth. It is essential to the extended discussion that serious thought requires, and to the
accumulation of knowledge and ideas into organized collections.
We believe that free communication is essential to the preservation of a free society and a
creative culture. We believe that these pressures toward conformity present the danger of
limiting the range and variety of inquiry and expression on which our democracy and our
culture depend. We believe that every American community must jealously guard the freedom
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to publish and to circulate, in order to preserve its own freedom to read. We believe that
publishers and librarians have a profound responsibility to give validity to that freedom to read
by making it possible for the readers to choose freely from a variety of offerings.
The freedom to read is guaranteed by the Constitution. Those with faith in free people will
stand firm on these constitutional guarantees of essential rights and will exercise the
responsibilities that accompany these rights.
We therefore affirm these propositions:
1. It is in the public interest for publishers and librarians to make available the widest
diversity of views and expressions, including those that are unorthodox, unpopular, or
considered dangerous by the majority.
Creative thought is by definition new, and what is new is different. The bearer of every
new thought is a rebel until that idea is refined and tested. Totalitarian systems attempt
to maintain themselves in power by the ruthless suppression of any concept that
challenges the established orthodoxy. The power of a democratic system to adapt to
change is vastly strengthened by the freedom of its citizens to choose widely from
among conflicting opinions offered freely to them. To stifle every nonconformist idea at
birth would mark the end of the democratic process. Furthermore, only through the
constant activity of weighing and selecting can the democratic mind attain the strength
demanded by times like these. We need to know not only what we believe but why we
believe it.
2. Publishers, librarians, and booksellers do not need to endorse every idea or
presentation they make available. It would conflict with the public interest for them to
establish their own political, moral, or aesthetic views as a standard for determining
what should be published or circulated.
Publishers and librarians serve the educational process by helping to make available
knowledge and ideas required for the growth of the mind and the increase of learning.
They do not foster education by imposing as mentors the patterns of their own thought.
The people should have the freedom to read and consider a broader range of ideas than
those that may be held by any single librarian or publisher or government or church. It is
wrong that what one can read should be confined to what another thinks proper.
3. It is contrary to the public interest for publishers or librarians to bar access to writings
on the basis of the personal history or political affiliations of the author.
No art or literature can flourish if it is to be measured by the political views or private
lives of its creators. No society of free people can flourish that draws up lists of writers
to whom it will not listen, whatever they may have to say.
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4. There is no place in our society for efforts to coerce the taste of others, to confine adults
to the reading matter deemed suitable for adolescents, or to inhibit the efforts of
writers to achieve artistic expression.
To some, much of modern expression is shocking. But is not much of life itself shocking?
We cut off literature at the source if we prevent writers from dealing with the stuff of
life. Parents and teachers have a responsibility to prepare the young to meet the
diversity of experiences in life to which they will be exposed, as they have a
responsibility to help them learn to think critically for themselves. These are affirmative
responsibilities, not to be discharged simply by preventing them from reading works for
which they are not yet prepared. In these matters values differ, and values cannot be
legislated; nor can machinery be devised that will suit the demands of one group
without limiting the freedom of others.
5. It is not in the public interest to force a reader to accept the prejudgment of a label
characterizing any expression or its author as subversive or dangerous.
The ideal of labeling presupposes the existence of individuals or groups with wisdom to
determine by authority what is good or bad for others. It presupposes that individuals
must be directed in making up their minds about the ideas they examine. But Americans
do not need others to do their thinking for them.
6. It is the responsibility of publishers and librarians, as guardians of the people's freedom
to read, to contest encroachments upon that freedom by individuals or groups seeking
to impose their own standards or tastes upon the community at large; and by the
government whenever it seeks to reduce or deny public access to public information.
It is inevitable in the give and take of the democratic process that the political, the
moral, or the aesthetic concepts of an individual or group will occasionally collide with
those of another individual or group. In a free society individuals are free to determine
for themselves what they wish to read, and each group is free to determine what it will
recommend to its freely associated members. But no group has the right to take the law
into its own hands, and to impose its own concept of politics or morality upon other
members of a democratic society. Freedom is no freedom if it is accorded only to the
accepted and the inoffensive. Further, democratic societies are more safe, free, and
creative when the free flow of public information is not restricted by governmental
prerogative or self-censorship.
7. It is the responsibility of publishers and librarians to give full meaning to the freedom to
read by providing books that enrich the quality and diversity of thought and expression.
By the exercise of this affirmative responsibility, they can demonstrate that the answer
to a "bad" book is a good one, the answer to a "bad" idea is a good one.
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The freedom to read is of little consequence when the reader cannot obtain matter fit
for that reader's purpose. What is needed is not only the absence of restraint, but the
positive provision of opportunity for the people to read the best that has been thought
and said. Books are the major channel by which the intellectual inheritance is handed
down, and the principal means of its testing and growth. The defense of the freedom to
read requires of all publishers and librarians the utmost of their faculties, and deserves
of all Americans the fullest of their support.
We state these propositions neither lightly nor as easy generalizations. We here stake out a
lofty claim for the value of the written word. We do so because we believe that it is possessed
of enormous variety and usefulness, worthy of cherishing and keeping free. We realize that the
application of these propositions may mean the dissemination of ideas and manners of
expression that are repugnant to many persons. We do not state these propositions in the
comfortable belief that what people read is unimportant. We believe rather that what people
read is deeply important; that ideas can be dangerous; but that the suppression of ideas is fatal
to a democratic society. Freedom itself is a dangerous way of life, but it is ours.
This statement was originally issued in May of 1953 by the Westchester Conference of the
American Library Association and the American Book Publishers Council, which in 1970
consolidated with the American Educational Publishers Institute to become the Association of
American Publishers.
Adopted June 25, 1953, by the ALA Council and the AAP Freedom to Read Committee;
amended January 28, 1972; January 16, 1991; July 12, 2000; June 30, 2004.
A Joint Statement by:
American Library Association
Association of American Publishers
Subsequently endorsed by:
American Booksellers for Free Expression
The Association of American University Presses
The Children's Book Council
Freedom to Read Foundation
National Association of College Stores
National Coalition Against Censorship
National Council of Teachers of English
The Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression
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Freedom to View Statement
The FREEDOM TO VIEW, along with the freedom to speak, to hear, and to read, is protected by
the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. In a free society, there is no
place for censorship of any medium of expression. Therefore these principles are affirmed:
1. To provide the broadest access to film, video, and other audiovisual materials because
they are a means for the communication of ideas. Liberty of circulation is essential to
insure the constitutional guarantee of freedom of expression.
2. To protect the confidentiality of all individuals and institutions using film, video, and
other audiovisual materials.
3. To provide film, video, and other audiovisual materials which represent a diversity of
views and expression. Selection of a work does not constitute or imply agreement with
or approval of the content.
4. To provide a diversity of viewpoints without the constraint of labeling or prejudging film,
video, or other audiovisual materials on the basis of the moral, religious, or political
beliefs of the producer or filmmaker or on the basis of controversial content.
5. To contest vigorously, by all lawful means, every encroachment upon the public's
freedom to view.
This statement was originally drafted by the Freedom to View Committee of the American Film
and Video Association (formerly the Educational Film Library Association) and was adopted by
the AFVA Board of Directors in February 1979. This statement was updated and approved by
the AFVA Board of Directors in 1989.
Endorsed January 10, 1990, by the ALA Council
Policy approved by the Library Board of Trustees on June 28, 2023
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California Freedom to Read Act (AB 1825)
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1. Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 19800) is added to Part 11 of Division 1 of
Title 1 of the Education Code, to read:
CHAPTER 10. California Freedom to Read Act
19800. This chapter shall be known, and may be cited, as the California Freedom to Read Act.
19801. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) Libraries are essential for information, education, and enlightenment of all people of the
community the library serves.
(b) Libraries provide access to books that offer teachable moments for readers of all ages and
expand our understanding of people with different backgrounds, ideas, and beliefs.
(c) A person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged solely because of personal
characteristics, age, background, or views.
(d) Removing and banning books from public libraries are dangerous acts of government
censorship and erode our country’s commitment to freedom of expression and the right to
receive information.
(e) Librarians are professionals trained to not impose their own thoughts and opinions on which
ideas are right, but to make knowledge and ideas available so that people have the freedom to
choose what to read.
(f) Librarians and library staff receive extensive professional training to develop and curate
collections to meet the broad and diverse interests of their communities, which include, but are
not limited to, literary value and developmental appropriateness of material.
19802. (a) (1) Every public library jurisdiction that directly receives any state funding, including,
but not limited to, state funding pursuant to this part, shall establish, adopt, and maintain a
written and publicly accessible collection development policy for its public libraries by January
1, 2026, and shall submit that collection development policy to the State Librarian. The State
Librarian or their designee may provide technical assistance to public libraries in developing
their collection development policy. The collection development policy, at a minimum, shall do
all of the following:
(A) Establish a process for community members to share their concerns regarding library
materials and to request that library materials be reconsidered for inclusion in the
library’s collection.
(B) Guide the selection and deselection of library materials.
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(C) Acknowledge that the public library’s collection meets the broad and diverse
interests of the community and respect both the library’s autonomy and their specific
community needs.
(D) Establish that the public library serves as a center for voluntary inquiry and the
dissemination of information and ideas.
(E) Acknowledge that library materials should be provided for the interest, information,
and enlightenment of all people, and should present diverse points of view in the
collection as a whole.
(F) Acknowledge the right of the public to receive access to a range of social, political,
aesthetic, moral, and other ideas and experiences.
(2) A librarian, library media specialist, other employee, or contractor at a public library
shall not be subject to termination, demotion, discipline, or retaliation for either of the
following:
(A) Refusing to remove a library material before it has been reviewed in accordance with
the public library’s process for the reconsideration of library materials established
pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1).
(B) Making displays, acquisitions, or programming decisions that the employee or
contractor believes, in good faith, are in accordance with the requirements of this
section.
(b) (1) The governing board or body of a public library, or any body or commission designated
to review the procurement, retention, or circulation of, or access to, library materials, shall not
proscribe or prohibit the circulation or procurement of, or access to, any library materials in a
public library because of the topic addressed by the materials or because of the views, ideas, or
opinions contained in those materials.
(2) (A) Library materials in public libraries shall not be excluded, and access to library
materials shall not be limited, solely on the bases of any of the following:
(i) The race, nationality, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, disability,
political affiliation, or any other characteristic listed in subdivision (a) of Section
12940 of the Government Code, or the socioeconomic status of a subject of the
library materials, an author of the library materials, the source of the library
materials, or the perceived or intended audience for the library materials.
(ii) The library materials contain inclusive and diverse perspectives.
(iii) The library materials may include sexual content, unless that content
qualifies as obscene under United States Supreme Court precedent.
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(B) This paragraph does not apply to library materials excluded, or for which access is
limited, pursuant to a library maintenance and deaccession policy.
(3) The governing board or body of a public library, or any body or commission designated
to review the procurement, retention, or circulation of, or access to, library materials, shall
not create policies or procedures that limit or restrict access to library materials offered by
the public library unless the policies or procedures are adopted to preserve the safety or
security of the library materials, are time, place, and manner restrictions not based on the
content of materials, or are programs that provide for the effective management of the
library and its resources to preserve access for all library users.
(c) A person’s right to use a public library and its resources shall not be denied or abridged
solely because of personal characteristics, age, background, or views.
(d) All people, regardless of personal characteristics, age, background, or views, possess a right
to privacy and confidentiality in the materials they borrow from libraries.
(e) This section applies to a public library, as defined in Section 18015, including any public
library operated on a contractual basis, or by a city, including a general law or charter city,
county, special district, or joint powers authority, except that it does not apply to any school
library, as defined in Section 18710, or any library operated by the governing board of a school
district, a county board of education, or the governing body of a charter school.
(f) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
(1) “Library materials” includes, but is not limited to, books, periodicals and serials, audio
materials, audiovisual materials, instructional materials, maps, databases, government
documents, records, photographs, and all other similar materials, whether in tangible or
electronic form. “Library materials” does not include hardware, tools, instruments,
computers, appliances, or other items that are not for the primary purpose of conveying
ideas or information.
(2) “Public library jurisdiction” means a county, city and county, city, or any district that is
authorized by law to provide public library services and that operates a public library
described in subdivision (e).
SEC. 2. The Legislature finds and declares that ensuring public libraries are free of censorship is
a matter of statewide concern and is not a municipal affair as that term is used in Section 5 of
Article XI of the California Constitution. Therefore, Section 1 of this act adding Chapter 10
(commencing with Section 19800) to Part 11 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code
applies to all cities, including charter cities.
SEC. 3. If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated
by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
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pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government
Code.
Assembly Bill No. 1825
CHAPTER 941
An act to add Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 19800) to Part 11 of Division 1 of Title 1 of
the Education Code, relating to libraries.
[ Approved by Governor September 29, 2024. Filed with Secretary of State September 29,
2024. ]
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COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY
UPDATES
Jacqui Petri, Senior Librarian
Library & Cultural Arts Department
July 23, 2025
2
TODAY’S PRESENTATION
•New California legislation: AB 1825
•California State Library requirements
•Updates to the policy
•Recommend approval
ITEM 2: COLLECTION DEV. POLICY
3
REQUIRED UPDATES TO THE POLICY
1.Collection meets broad interests of the community
2.Library is a center for voluntary inquiry
3.Materials are provided for all people
4.Public has right to access
ITEM 2: COLLECTION DEV. POLICY
4
OTHER UPDATES TO THE POLICY
1.Simplified verbiage throughout
2.Removed background information which is not policy
3.Added a selection criterion for electronic resources
4.Added guidance related to artificial intelligence
ITEM 2: COLLECTION DEV. POLICY
5
AB 1825 REQUIREMENTS
INCORPORATE
CHANGES
SECURE
BOARD
APPROVAL
MAKE
PUBLICLY
AVAILABLE
FILE WITH
STATE
LIBRARY
ITEM 2: COLLECTION DEV. POLICY
6
RECOMMENDED ACTION
Vote to approve the updated Collection Development Policy
dated July 2025.
ITEM 2: COLLECTION DEV. POLICY