The Senate Education Committee recommended Senate Bill 552 on a 4-3 vote after hearing supporters and opponents debate whether the bill strikes the right balance between parental input and librarians’ professional judgment.

Supporters said the measure creates transparent local procedures and legal protections for school librarians. Desiree Condit, store manager of Books on the Bosque, said, “I stand in strong support of SB 552.” John Dirich of the American Federation of Teachers in New Mexico told the committee, “We also really like that this does not fully, remove a an opportunity for members of the school community to have questions about what materials are presented in school libraries, but it does ensure that those folks making those, potential challenges are actual members of that school community.”

Sponsor remarks and proponents framed the bill as a procedural safeguard. Senator Cedillo Lopez said the bill “protects librarians from termination, demotion, of disciplining for refusing to remove a book before the…book has been reviewed in accordance of the established rules.” Later the sponsor told the committee, “The material that we're trying to protect is the material that is protected by freedom of speech under the New Mexico constitution and the United States constitution.”

Opponents argued the bill is too broad or opaque. Damara Andrade, who identified herself as opposing SB 552, said the legislation “does not strike the right balance between protecting the innocence and the psychology of our children” and called for tighter review timelines and clearer treatment of material already in collections.

The bill requires each local school board and charter governing body to establish written policies for acquisition, retention, display and reconsideration of library resources that comply with the bill’s standards; it also includes a provision that a library staff member “shall not be subject to termination, demotion, discipline, or retaliation” for refusing to remove a resource before a formal review is completed.

Committee members questioned how the bill would apply to existing materials and how local policies would incorporate parental input. A librarian witness described common practice: “We read reviews, School Library Journal, what grades is this reviewed for? …we try really hard not to make decisions as ourselves as individuals but for the community.”

The committee recorded a do-pass recommendation on SB 552 by a 4-3 tally and advanced the measure to the next step in the Senate process.