II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5064 

To ensure that children in schools have a right to read, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 29, 2022 

Mr. REED introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to 

the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To ensure that children in schools have a right to read, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Right to Read Act 

5 of 2022’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 Section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu8 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801) is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (19) through 

10 (28), paragraphs (29) through (43), paragraphs 


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1 (44) through (49), and paragraphs (50) through 

2 (52) as paragraphs (20) through (29), paragraphs 

3 (31) through (45), paragraphs (47) through (52), 

4 and paragraphs (54) through (56), respectively; 

5 (2) by inserting after paragraph (18) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(19) EFFECTIVE SCHOOL LIBRARY.—The term 

8 ‘effective school library’ means a library that— 

9 ‘‘(A) is staffed by at least one full-time 

10 State-certified school librarian who— 

11 ‘‘(i) is an instructional leader, infor12 mation specialist, and teacher; 

13 ‘‘(ii) supports the digital learning en14 vironment and the development of 

15 participatory learning, inquiry learning, 

16 digital literacy, and information literacy; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(iii) supports, supplements, and ele19 vates the literacy experience through guid20 ance in reading for learning and motiva21 tional reading initiatives in order to en22 hance student achievement and foster life23 long reading and learning; 


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1 ‘‘(B) is otherwise adequately staffed to be 

2 open to students before, during, and after the 

3 school day; 

4 ‘‘(C) has a sufficient collection of curated 

5 up-to-date digital and print materials and tech6 nology, including openly licensed educational re7 sources; 

8 ‘‘(D) provides appropriate facilities for 

9 maintaining and providing equitable access to 

10 materials, technology, connectivity, and library 

11 and literacy instruction; 

12 ‘‘(E) provides regular professional develop13 ment for teachers, school librarians, and other 

14 educators; 

15 ‘‘(F) provides opportunities for collabora16 tion between classroom teachers and school li17 brarians; and 

18 ‘‘(G) implements nationally recognized 

19 standards of practice.’’; 

20 (3) by inserting after paragraph (29), as redes21 ignated by paragraph (1), the following: 

22 ‘‘(30) INFORMATION LITERACY.—The term ‘in23 formation literacy’ means the set of skills needed to 

24 find, retrieve, understand, evaluate, analyze, and ef25 fectively use information (which encompasses spoken 


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1 and broadcast words and videos, printed materials, 

2 and digital content, data, and images).’’; 

3 (4) by inserting after paragraph (45), as redes4 ignated by paragraph (1), the following: 

5 ‘‘(46) RIGHT TO READ.—The term ‘right to 

6 read’ means all students have access to— 

7 ‘‘(A) linguistically and developmentally ap8 propriate, evidence-based reading instruction; 

9 ‘‘(B) effective school libraries; 

10 ‘‘(C) family literacy support; 

11 ‘‘(D) culturally diverse and inclusive mate12 rials; 

13 ‘‘(E) reading materials in the home; and 

14 ‘‘(F) the freedom to choose reading mate15 rials.’’; and 

16 (5) by inserting after paragraph (52), as redes17 ignated by paragraph (1), the following: 

18 ‘‘(53) TEACHER.—The term ‘teacher’ includes a 

19 school librarian.’’. 

20 SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE I. 

21 (a) STATE PLANS.—Section 1111 of that Act (20 

22 U.S.C. 6311) is amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (a)(4)(A)(ii)(I)(aa), by insert24 ing ‘‘(including school librarians)’’ after ‘‘teachers’’; 

25 and 


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1 (2) in subsection (g)— 

2 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

3 (i) by redesignating subparagraphs 

4 (F) and (G) as subparagraphs (H) and (I), 

5 respectively; and 

6 (ii) by inserting after subparagraph 

7 (E) the following: 

8 ‘‘(F) how the State will work to ensure 

9 that low-income children, minority children, 

10 children with disabilities, and English learners 

11 are not disproportionally enrolled in schools 

12 that lack an effective school library, and the 

13 measures the State educational agency will use 

14 to evaluate and publicly report the progress of 

15 the State educational agency with respect to en16 suring such access to an effective school library; 

17 ‘‘(G) how the State educational agency will 

18 provide assistance to local educational agencies 

19 and individual schools in supporting digital lit20 eracy and information literacy skills develop21 ment for their students;’’; and 

22 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

23 (i) in subparagraph (J), by inserting 

24 ‘‘(including school librarians)’’ after 

25 ‘‘teachers’’; 


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1 (ii) in subparagraph (M), by striking 

2 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

3 (iii) in subparagraph (N), by striking 

4 the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; 

5 and’’; and 

6 (iv) by adding at the end the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(O) the State educational agency has a 

9 policy protecting the right to read and will no10 tify local educational agencies, Indian tribes 

11 and tribal organizations, schools, teachers, 

12 school librarians, principals, other school lead13 ers, specialized support personnel, parents, and 

14 the public of such right.’’. 

15 (b) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY PLANS.—Section 

16 1112 of that Act (20 U.S.C. 6312) is amended— 

17 (1) in subsection (a)(1)(A), by inserting ‘‘(in18 cluding school librarians)’’ after ‘‘teachers’’; and 

19 (2) in subsection (b)— 

20 (A) in paragraph (12)(B), by striking 

21 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

22 (B) by striking paragraph (13); and 

23 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(13) how the local educational agency will— 


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1 ‘‘(A) support and improve effective school 

2 libraries by supporting the work of State-cer3 tified school librarians to ensure that students 

4 have equitable access to such libraries; and 

5 ‘‘(B) assist schools in developing effective 

6 school libraries to provide students an oppor7 tunity to develop digital literacy and informa8 tion literacy skills and improve academic 

9 achievement; 

10 ‘‘(14) the policies the local educational agency 

11 has in place to protect the right to read; and 

12 ‘‘(15) any other information on how the local 

13 educational agency proposes to use funds to meet 

14 the purposes of this part, and that the local edu15 cational agency determines appropriate to provide, 

16 which may include a description of how the local 

17 educational agency will assist schools in identifying 

18 and serving gifted and talented students.’’. 

19 SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE II. 

20 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 2003 of that Act 

22 (20 U.S.C. 6603) is amended— 

23 (A) in subsection (b), by inserting ‘‘except 

24 for subpart 2,’’ after ‘‘part B,’’; and 

25 (B) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(c) LITERACY EDUCATION FOR ALL, RESULTS FOR

2 THE NATION.—There are authorized to be appropriated— 

3 ‘‘(1) for grants authorized under section 2222, 

4 $500,000,000 for fiscal year 2024 and each of the 

5 succeeding 4 fiscal years; and 

6 ‘‘(2) for grants authorized under section 2226, 

7 $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2024 and each of the 

8 succeeding 4 fiscal years.’’. 

9 (2) RESERVATIONS.—Section 2201 of that Act 

10 (20 U.S.C. 6621) is amended— 

11 (A) by striking paragraph (2); and 

12 (B) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and 

13 (4) as paragraphs (2) and (3), respectively. 

14 (3) COMPREHENSIVE LITERACY STATE DEVEL15 OPMENT GRANTS.—Section 2222 of that Act (20 

16 U.S.C. 6642) is amended— 

17 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘From 

18 the amounts reserved by the Secretary under 

19 section 2201(2) and not reserved under sub20 section (b),’’ and inserting ‘‘From amounts ap21 propriated to carry out this section’’; and 

22 (B) in subsection (b)— 

23 (i) in the matter preceding paragraph 

24 (1), by striking ‘‘reserved to carry out this 


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1 subpart’’ and inserting ‘‘appropriated to 

2 carry out this section’’; and 

3 (ii) in paragraphs (2) and (3), by 

4 striking ‘‘subpart’’ and inserting ‘‘section’’ 

5 each place the term appears. 

6 (4) INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO LITERACY.— 

7 Section 2226(a) of that Act (20 U.S.C. 6646(a)) is 

8 amended by striking ‘‘From amounts reserved under 

9 section 2201(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘From amounts ap10 propriated to carry out this section’’. 

11 (5) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.— 

12 (A) Section 2231(a) of that Act (20 U.S.C. 

13 6661(a)) is amended, in the matter preceding 

14 paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘section 2201(3)’’ 

15 and inserting ‘‘section 2201(2)’’. 

16 (B) Section 2241 of that Act (20 U.S.C. 

17 6671) is amended, in the matter preceding 

18 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘section 2201(4)’’ 

19 and inserting ‘‘section 2201(3)’’. 

20 (b) FORMULA GRANTS TO STATES.—Section 2101 of 

21 that Act (20 U.S.C. 6611) is amended— 

22 (1) in subsection (c)(4)(B)— 

23 (A) by redesignating clauses (xiv) through 

24 (xxi) as clauses (xvi) through (xxiii), respec25 tively; 


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1 (B) by striking clause (xiii) and inserting 

2 the following: 

3 ‘‘(xiii) Supporting and improving ef4 fective school libraries that involve collabo5 ration with State-certified school librar6 ians.’’; and 

7 (C) by inserting after clause (xiii) the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(xiv) Developing, improving, and im10 plementing mechanisms to assist local edu11 cational agencies and schools in effectively 

12 recruiting, hiring, and retaining State-cer13 tified school librarians. 

14 ‘‘(xv) Providing training to school li15 brarians, teachers, and school leaders on 

16 how to leverage effective school libraries 

17 for academic achievement, digital literacy, 

18 information literacy, and student and fam19 ily engagement.’’; and 

20 (2) in subsection (d)(3)(A), by inserting ‘‘(in21 cluding school librarians)’’ after ‘‘teachers’’. 

22 (c) LEARN PURPOSES AND DEFINITIONS.—Section 

23 2221(b) of that Act (20 U.S.C. 6641(b)) is amended— 

24 (1) in paragraph (1)— 


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1 (A) in subparagraph (K), by striking 

2 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

3 (B) in subparagraph (L), by striking the 

4 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(M) provides opportunities for children to 

7 develop digital literacy and information literacy 

8 skills.’’; and 

9 (2) in paragraph (2)(C), by inserting ‘‘public li10 braries, or pediatric literacy programs’’ after ‘‘which 

11 may include early childhood education programs’’. 

12 (d) COMPREHENSIVE LITERACY STATE DEVELOP13 MENT GRANTS.—Section 2222 of that Act (20 U.S.C. 

14 6642), as amended by subsection (a)(3), is further amend15 ed— 

16 (1) in subsection (d)— 

17 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and the 

18 State agency responsible for administering child 

19 care programs’’ and inserting ‘‘the State agency 

20 responsible for administering child care pro21 grams in the State, and the State library ad22 ministrative agency’’; and 

23 (B) in paragraph (2)(A), by inserting ‘‘, 

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1 tive school libraries,’’ after ‘‘teachers of lit2 eracy’’; and 

3 (2) in subsection (f)(2)— 

4 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) 

5 through (E) as subparagraphs (C) through (F), 

6 respectively; and 

7 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (A) 

8 the following: 

9 ‘‘(B) Providing technical assistance to eli10 gible entities in the development of effective 

11 school libraries, which may include establishing 

12 a statewide office to coordinate technical assist13 ance for such libraries.’’. 

14 (e) SUBGRANTS TO ELIGIBLE ENTITIES IN SUPPORT

15 OF BIRTH THROUGH KINDERGARTEN ENTRY LIT16 ERACY.—Section 2223(a)(1) of that Act (20 U.S.C. 

17 6643(a)(1)) is amended by inserting ‘‘the State library ad18 ministrative agency,’’ before ‘‘and, if applicable,’’. 

19 (f) INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO LITERACY.—Sec20 tion 2226(a) of that Act (20 U.S.C. 6646(a)), as amended 

21 by subsection (a)(4), is further amended— 

22 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as 

23 paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively; and 

24 (2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(2) increasing the number of State-certified 

2 school librarians supporting students in high need 

3 schools;’’. 

4 (g) LOCAL USES OF FUNDS.—Section 2103(b)(3) of 

5 that Act (20 U.S.C. 6613(b)(3)) is amended by striking 

6 subparagraph (K) and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(K) programs and activities to support 

8 and improve effective school libraries that in9 volve collaboration with State-certified school li10 brarians, such as efforts to promote and sup11 port digital literacy, information literacy, ex12 tended student inquiry, and capstone projects;’’. 

13 SEC. 5. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE IV. 

14 (a) STATE USE OF FUNDS.—Section 

15 4104(b)(3)(A)(i) of that Act (20 U.S.C. 7114(b)(3)(A)(i)) 

16 is amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating subclauses (VI) and (VII) 

18 as subclauses (VII) and (VIII), respectively; and 

19 (2) by inserting after subclause (V) the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(VI) digital literacy and infor22 mation literacy activities and pro23 grams, including those provided 

24 through effective school libraries;’’. 


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1 (b) ACTIVITIES TO SUPPORT WELL-ROUNDED EDU2 CATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES.—Section 4107(a)(3) of that 

3 Act (20 U.S.C. 7117(a)(3)) is amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (I) and (J) 

5 as subparagraphs (J) and (K), respectively; and 

6 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (H) the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(I) programs and activities the promote 

9 the development of digital literacy and informa10 tion literacy skills, including those provided 

11 through an effective school library;’’. 

12 SEC. 6. DATA COLLECTION AND REPORTING ON SCHOOL LI13 BRARIES. 

14 (a) DATA COLLECTION.—The Secretary of Education 

15 shall direct the National Center for Education Statistics 

16 to annually collect data on elementary school and sec17 ondary school libraries. 

18 (b) ELEMENTS.—The data collected annually under 

19 subsection (a) shall include— 

20 (1) the number and percentage of elementary 

21 schools and secondary schools in each State that 

22 have dedicated school library facilities located on the 

23 grounds of the school and the square footage of each 

24 such library facility; 


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1 (2) the number and percentage of schools 

2 counted under paragraph (1) that employ at least 

3 one full-time State-certified school librarian; 

4 (3) the number and types of physical collections 

5 or assets the school library has; 

6 (4) the number and types of virtual collections 

7 or databases the school library has access to; 

8 (5) the number and types of student use devices 

9 connected to high-speed internet; 

10 (6) the amount of time certified school librar11 ians spend planning with teachers and instructing 

12 students; 

13 (7) the amount of time certified school librar14 ians spend planning for and providing professional 

15 development for teachers; 

16 (8) the number of additional library staff; and 

17 (9) other pertinent information that the Sec18 retary of Education determines is important in order 

19 to support effective school libraries. 

20 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than one year 

21 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

22 Education shall submit to Congress a report that includes 

23 the data collected under this section. 

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1 ings given those terms in section 8101 of the Elementary 

2 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

3 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

4 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

5 such sums as may be necessary for each fiscal year. 

6 SEC. 7. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY FOR TEACHERS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8556 of that Act (20 

8 U.S.C. 7946) is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating subsections (b) through (e) 

10 as subsections (c) through (f), respectively; 

11 (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(b) LIABILITY PROTECTIONS RELATED TO THE

14 RIGHT TO READ.—No teacher or school librarian shall be 

15 liable for harm caused by an act or omission of the teacher 

16 or school librarian if the actions of the teacher or school 

17 librarian were carried out in conformity with the right to 

18 read.’’; 

19 (3) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 

20 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘subsection (b)’’ and in21 serting ‘‘subsection (c)’’; 

22 (4) in subsection (c)(3), as redesignated by 

23 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘A State law that’’ and 

24 inserting ‘‘Except with respect to subsection (b), a 

25 State law that’’; and 


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1 (5) in subsection (f), as redesignated by para2 graph (1)— 

3 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘Nothing 

4 in this section’’ and inserting ‘‘Except with re5 spect to subsection (b), nothing in this section’’; 

6 and 

7 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘Nothing 

8 in this subpart’’ and inserting ‘‘Except with re9 spect to subsection (b), nothing in this sub10 part’’. 

11 (b) PREEMPTION AND ELECTION OF STATE NON12 APPLICABILITY.—Section 8555(b) of that Act (20 U.S.C. 

13 7945(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘This subpart shall not 

14 apply’’ and inserting ‘‘Except for section 8556(b), this 

15 subpart shall not apply’’. 

16 SEC. 8. PROTECTING FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS IN 

17 SCHOOL LIBRARIES. 

18 Subpart 2 of part F of title VIII of that Act (20 

19 U.S.C. 7901 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

20 the following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 8549D. PROTECTING FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS IN 

22 SCHOOL LIBRARIES. 

23 ‘‘The Secretary shall require an assurance from each 

24 State and local educational agency receiving funds under 


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1 this Act confirming that the State or local educational 

2 agency— 

3 ‘‘(1) understands the importance of First 

4 Amendment protections in school libraries as centers 

5 for voluntary inquiry and the dissemination of infor6 mation and ideas; and 

7 ‘‘(2) is aware of the responsibility to respect 

8 those protections in accordance with Board of Edu9 cation, Island Trees Union Free School District No. 

10 26 v. Pico by Pico, 457 U.S. 853 (1982).’’. 

Æ 


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