Kupper Bill Blocks Public Funding of Library Assoc Dues

PHOENIX — On Tuesday, the House Education Committee advanced House Bill HB2008, legislation that would prohibit public school funds from being used to pay membership dues to professional library associations, following a contentious debate over taxpayer spending and the role of outside organizations in public education.

Sponsored by Rep. Nickolas Kupper (R-25), HB2008 does not blanket-ban or prohibit librarians or school districts from joining professional library associations. Instead, the bill requires that any membership dues be paid through non-public sources or funds.

Framing the bill as a fiscal and constitutional issue, supporters argue that national and state-level library associations increasingly influence school library content through curated book lists, recommended programming, and policy frameworks that extend beyond traditional professional development. Proponents have noted that many of these resources — including recommended reading, author spotlights, literacy statistics, reading club materials, toolkits, and newsletters — are already publicly available.

Opponents of the bill expressed concerns about the deprivation of resources and continuing education opportunities, and described the legislation as a precursor to book bans. Some speakers warned that the bill could isolate librarians from national best practices and emerging trends in the field.

Lawmakers and members of the public have often raised concerns about the nature of content promoted through these association-curated lists, noting that recommended materials often include politically or socially charged themes directed at minors. While acknowledging that librarians should retain discretion over how they attain additional material and resources, supporters argued that public funding should not be used to support organizations that actively promote ideological frameworks through professional guidance.

Kupper rejected claims that the bill targets librarians themselves, characterizing those arguments as misplaced.

“HB2008 simply prevents public schools from providing public monies to clearly sectarian library associations in line with our constitutional requirements,” Kupper said. “Any assertion that this is an attack on the few librarians who exist in our public school system is an uneducated red herring.”

The bill advanced out of the House Education Committee with a vote of 7–5–0 and moves forward for further review.