Text of MO HB 2374 (2024)

SECOND REGULAR SESSION HOUSE BILL NO. 2374 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE CHRISTENSEN. 4412H.01I DANA RADEMAN MILLER, Chief Clerk AN ACT To repeal section 182.827, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof two new sections relating to materials in public schools that are obscene or harmful to minors, with penalty provisions. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows: Section A. Section 182.827, RSMo, is repealed and two new sections enacted in lieu 2 thereof, to be known as sections 162.116 and 182.827, to read as follows: 162.116. 1. As used in this section, the following terms mean: 2 (1) "Charter school", the same definition as in section 160.400; 3 (2) "Department", the Missouri department of elementary and secondary 4 education; 5 (3) "Explicit material", obscene material or material that is harmful to minors; 6 (4) "Governing board", the governing board of a charter school established 7 under sections 160.400 to 160.425; 8 (5) "Harmful to minors", the quality of a description or representation, in 9 whatever form, of nudity, sexual excitement, sexual conduct, excessive violence, or 10 sadomasochistic abuse that: 11 (a) The average person applying contemporary community standards would 12 find to predominantly appeal to the prurient, shameful, or morbid interests of minors; 13 (b) Is patently offensive to prevailing standards in the contemporary adult 14 community as a whole with respect to what is suitable for minors; and 15 (c) When taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific 16 value for minors; EXPLANATION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is intended to be omitted from the law. Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language. 17 (6) "Material", any of the following: 18 (a) A book, magazine, newspaper, or other printed or written material; 19 (b) A picture, drawing, photograph, film, video, computer-generated image, or 20 other pictorial representation; 21 (c) A statue, figure, device, theatrical production, or electrical reproduction; or 22 (d) Other similar articles, equipment, machines, or materials; 23 (7) "Obscene", spoken or written matter that, when taken as a whole: 24 (a) The average person would find to predominantly appeal to prurient interest; 25 (b) The average person applying contemporary community standards would 26 find to depict or describe sexual conduct in a patently offensive way; and 27 (c) Lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value; 28 (8) "Parent", a parent, guardian, or other person having control or custody of a 29 child; 30 (9) "Patently offensive", going substantially beyond customary limits of candor 31 in describing or representing such subject; 32 (10) "Public school", the same definition as in section 160.011. The term shall be 33 construed to include a charter school; 34 (11) "School board", the same definition as in section 160.011; 35 (12) "School district", the same definition as in section 160.011. 36 2. No school district or public school shall allow obscene material or material 37 that is harmful to minors to be available to a child: 38 (1) In a school library controlled by the school district or public school; or 39 (2) From materials kept or used by a teacher in the course of preparing for or 40 providing instruction to children enrolled in a public school. 41 3. (1) Each school board and governing board shall adopt a policy that allows a 42 parent of a child enrolled in a public school to report to the public school administration 43 if the parent becomes aware that obscene material or material that is harmful to minors 44 is made available to children as described in subsection 2 of this section. 45 (2) The policy required under subdivision (1) of this subsection shall require the 46 public school administration to remove the material reported by a parent as obscene or 47 harmful to minors for at least thirty calendar days to allow the school board or 48 governing board, as applicable, to review the material to determine whether the 49 material is obscene, harmful to minors, or appropriate for students. 50 (3) (a) The school board or governing board, as applicable, shall determine if 51 the material is obscene or harmful to minors before the next regularly scheduled 52 meeting of the school board or governing board, as applicable, after the thirty-day 53 removal period of the material as described in subdivision (2) of this subsection. HB 2374 2 54 (b) If the school board or governing board determines that the material is 55 obscene or harmful to minors, the board shall permanently remove the material from 56 the public school. 57 (c) If the school board or governing board determines that the material is 58 appropriate for students, the board shall return the material to each school library or 59 teacher from which the material was removed upon the board's determination that the 60 material is appropriate for students or at the end of the thirty-day removal period 61 described in subdivision (2) of this subsection, whichever is earlier. 62 (4) The policy adopted under this section shall not be construed to: 63 (a) Be the exclusive means to remove material from a school; or 64 (b) Preclude a school district or governing board from developing or 65 implementing additional policies, practices, or procedures for the removal of 66 materials from the school. 67 (5) If a public school fails to comply with a policy adopted under this section, the 68 department may withhold an amount of state funds, as determined by the department, 69 from the public school until the public school is in compliance with the policy. 70 (6) Each public school shall annually report to the department the material that 71 is permanently removed under paragraph (b) of subdivision (3) of this subsection. 182.827. 1. A public school that provides a public access computer shall apply the 2 provisions of section 162.116 that are applicable to materials made available to a child in 3 a school library to materials accessed by minors on such public access computer and do 4 one or both of the following: 5 (1) Equip the computer with software that will limit minors' ability to gain access to 6 material that is pornographic for minors or purchase internet connectivity from an internet 7 service provider that provides filter services to limit access to material that is pornographic 8 for minors; 9 (2) Develop and implement by January 1, 2003, a policy that is consistent with 10 community standards and establishes measures to restrict minors from gaining computer 11 access to material that is pornographic for minors. 12 2. The department of elementary and secondary education shall establish rules and 13 regulations for the enforcement of subsection 1 of this section. Any rule or portion of a rule, 14 as that term is defined in section 536.010, that is created under the authority delegated in this 15 section shall become effective only if it complies with and is subject to all of the provisions of 16 chapter 536 and, if applicable, section 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are 17 nonseverable and if any of the powers vested with the general assembly pursuant to chapter 18 536 to review, to delay the effective date or to disapprove and annul a rule are subsequently HB 2374 3 19 held unconstitutional, then the grant of rulemaking authority and any rule proposed or 20 adopted after August 28, 2002, shall be invalid and void. 21 3. A public library that provides a public access computer shall do one or both of the 22 following: 23 (1) Equip the computer with software that will limit minors' ability to gain access to 24 material that is pornographic for minors or purchase internet connectivity from an internet 25 service provider that provides filter services to limit access to material that is pornographic 26 for minors; 27 (2) Develop and implement by January 1, 2003, a policy that is consistent with 28 community standards and establishes measures to restrict minors from gaining computer 29 access to material that is pornographic for minors. 30 4. The secretary of state shall establish rules and regulations for the enforcement of 31 subsection 3 of this section. Any rule or portion of a rule, as that term is defined in section 32 536.010, that is created under the authority delegated in this section shall become effective 33 only if it complies with and is subject to all of the provisions of chapter 536 and, if applicable, 34 section 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are nonseverable and if any of the powers 35 vested with the general assembly pursuant to chapter 536 to review, to delay the effective date 36 or to disapprove and annul a rule are subsequently held unconstitutional, then the grant of 37 rulemaking authority and any rule proposed or adopted after August 28, 2002, shall be invalid 38 and void. 39 5. Any public school board member, officer or employee, including library personnel, 40 who willfully neglects or refuses to perform a duty imposed by this section shall be subject to 41 the penalties imposed pursuant to section 162.091. 42 6. A public school or public school board member, officer or employee, including 43 library personnel, public library or public library board member, officer, employee or trustee 44 that complies with subsection 1 or 3 of this section or an internet service provider providing 45 internet connectivity to such public school or library in order to comply with this section shall 46 not be criminally liable or liable for any damages that might arise from a minor gaining access 47 to material that is pornographic for minors through the use of a public access computer that is 48 owned or controlled by the public school or public library. ✔ HB 2374 4