WACO, Texas (KWTX) – Seven months after Texas Senate Bill 13 went into effect, some Central Texas school districts are still grappling with new requirements for how school library materials are selected, reviewed and assigned, and some say they are using artificial intelligence tools to help manage the workload.
SB 13 requires Texas school districts to take additional steps before books are purchased and placed on shelves, including a formal review process for library acquisitions. The legislation also calls for the creation or renewal of local library advisory boards, which would give parents a greater role in recommending and considering resources.
Students: Classroom libraries are feeling the impact
Lorena High School students Megan Vrana and Bethany Ryan said the most noticeable changes are not necessarily in the school’s main library, but in classroom libraries.
Vrana and Ryan said some teachers are removing books from classroom shelves rather than addressing new review and documentation requirements.
“Surprisingly, it’s not necessarily the big libraries that we’re having the most impact on,” Vrana says. “That’s the classroom library, because a lot of teachers don’t want to go through the hassle of going through all their books and taking them away. A lot of teachers just take a bunch of books off the shelves and hide them.”
They are members of FCCLA and are focusing their year-long project on SB-13. They have interviewed students, K-12 teachers, curriculum directors, administrators, school board members, university professors, and nonprofit organizations such as the Texas Library Association. Following the research, Vrana and Ryan are calling for amendments to the bill, saying there are “real lessons and stories coming off the shelf that have real value.”
Formal appeal process and strict timelines
The law establishes a formal process for objecting to books. Books that are formally challenged must be removed from circulation until the district completes a review process that can take up to 90 days.
Vrana and Ryan said the schedule and number of titles under consideration can place a significant burden on school boards and staff.
“This bill creates so much workload that I can honestly say that it is humanely impossible to do what the bill requires,” Ryan said.
Some districts use AI as an additional layer
With hundreds of titles to review, some school districts are turning to AI tools to help staff flag content as they review material.
Lorena ISD said in a statement that it primarily relies on school library staff to vet potential purchases, but is using AI tools as an additional layer to the process.
State Rep. Hilary Hickland, who testified in support of SB 13 as a parent, said technology allows school districts to move through reviews more quickly.
“I think AI is a really good solution and part of the solution to this process, especially when you talk about the number of books coming in that need to be reviewed,” Hickland said. “This is a great solution and I’m glad the district is taking note of this.”
Concerns about inconsistent standards
Students said the use of AI could lead to inconsistencies between school districts because standards and settings may differ.
For example, one school district may use AI to scan books for profanity, while another may focus on sexually explicit content.
“There are more gray areas,” Vrana said. “Just as our school was using AI, other districts may have different ways of checking books and deciding which books to remove or not.”
Hickland said the bill aims to keep decision-making local, allowing communities to have their voices heard through district processes, rather than relying on broad statewide regulations.
“At the end of the day, this is all part of having parents involved in the process and feeling good about what their students are going to see at school,” she says.
Ryan said the law has intensified debate in the community.
“In my opinion, this bill was designed to keep politics out of schools, but in reality, this bill is bringing politics into schools,” Ryan said.
How can the public evaluate
Vrana and Ryan said they would like to see student representation on the advisory board. Hickland said students can provide feedback during school board meetings where public comment is being solicited.
School districts must post proposed new library materials for 30 days. After that public period, a public meeting will be held for approval by the school board.
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