Several residents used the public-comment period at the Aug. 26 Hillsborough County School Board meeting to criticize the district's summer book-review process and to urge the board to return books removed from school library shelves.

Speakers described a summer inventory and removal that one commenter said involved “50 books” pulled for reevaluation at a district cost she estimated at more than $500,000. Multiple speakers called for reinstating titles they said were cleared under the board’s processes and criticized what they called state overreach and informal directives communicated via social media and news outlets.

Some public commenters described specific titles and passages they consider sexually explicit and said district review processes had not effectively identified or removed those items. Others criticized the role of state-level officials and legislative action; one speaker praised the judicial overturn of HB 1069 and urged the board to follow the Miller test (the legal standard for obscenity in court challenges) and return challenged books to shelves.

Speakers varied in their positions. One parent called removal orders “censorship,” another urged that district librarians should not review their own selections when an item is challenged, and several speakers warned that district decisions done in response to social-media pressure damage trust with educators and families. The board did not take a policy vote during the meeting; several trustees said they would continue to consider how to respond to state actions and to ensure district compliance with state orders while protecting students’ access to materials.

Superintendent Van Ayers and other staff did not announce a board-level reversal or an immediate administrative change at the meeting. Board members acknowledged the intensity of public interest, the legal constraints coming from state agencies and courts, and the tension between local policies and state directives. Several callers asked the board to follow existing district challenge procedures, and at least one asked the board to “unban them all” and return titles ruled by state courts to have been improperly removed.

The public-comment session included speakers who also raised related concerns about teacher social-media behavior, review transparency, and whether board review decisions were being conducted through formal channels or via directives from state officials.

No formal action on the book list was recorded on the Aug. 26 consent or business agenda; several public speakers asked the board to explain how the district would implement the state guidance and whether the district would restore particular titles.