S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
2337--A
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
January 25, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. O'DONNELL -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Education -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to requiring library
media specialists for schools
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Section 275 of the education law is amended to read as
follows:
§ 275. [Librarians] LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALISTS of school libraries. 1.
In a school district maintaining an academic department or ELEMENTARY,
INTERMEDIATE, MIDDLE, JUNIOR HIGH, OR SENIOR high school the board of
education [may] SHALL employ, and fix the compensation of, a person to
act as school [librarian who may be engaged for all or a part of the
time in performance of the duties of the position as may be directed by
the said board] LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST WITHIN THREE YEARS OF THE
EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE CHAPTER OF TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-THREE THAT AMENDED
THIS SECTION. The person so employed, who may be the librarian of the
free library, shall be possessed of the qualifications prescribed by the
commissioner [of education]. In all other districts the trustees or
board of education [may] SHALL appoint a competent person to act as
[librarian] LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST. In case of a failure of a city or
union free school district maintaining an academic department or [high]
school to employ a [librarian] LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST as above
provided, the teacher of English in such school shall be the [librarian]
LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST. In case of a failure to appoint a [librarian]
LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST in any other district, the teacher, or if there
be more than one teacher the principal teacher, shall act as [librarian]
LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST. The trustees or board of education shall
report to the commissioner [of education] the name and address of the
person employed or appointed as [librarian] LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST.
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03386-02-3
A. 2337--A 2
2. EMPLOYMENT OF CERTIFIED SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALISTS SHALL BE
IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE FOLLOWING STANDARDS:
(A) IN EACH SCHOOL WITH AN ENROLLMENT OF NOT MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED
STUDENTS, A CERTIFIED SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST SHALL BE EMPLOYED
AS FIFTEEN-HUNDREDTHS OF A FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT STAFF MEMBER;
(B) IN EACH SCHOOL WITH AN ENROLLMENT OF MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED BUT NOT
MORE THAN THREE HUNDRED STUDENTS, A CERTIFIED SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA
SPECIALIST SHALL BE EMPLOYED AS THREE-TENTHS OF A FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT
STAFF MEMBER;
(C) IN EACH ELEMENTARY OR SECONDARY SCHOOL WITH AN ENROLLMENT OF MORE
THAN THREE HUNDRED BUT NOT MORE THAN FIVE HUNDRED STUDENTS, A CERTIFIED
SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST SHALL BE EMPLOYED AS ONE-HALF OF A FULL-
TIME EQUIVALENT STAFF MEMBER;
(D) IN EACH SCHOOL WITH AN ENROLLMENT OF MORE THAN FIVE HUNDRED
STUDENTS, A CERTIFIED SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST SHALL BE EMPLOYED
AS A FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT STAFF MEMBER;
(E) IN EACH SCHOOL WITH AN ENROLLMENT OF MORE THAN ONE THOUSAND
STUDENTS BUT NOT MORE THAN TWO THOUSAND STUDENTS, A CERTIFIED SCHOOL
LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST AND A SUPPORT STAFF PERSON SHALL BE EMPLOYED AS
FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT STAFF MEMBERS;
(F) (I) IN EACH SCHOOL WITH AN ENROLLMENT OF AT LEAST TWO THOUSAND
STUDENTS, TWO CERTIFIED SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALISTS AND TWO SUPPORT
STAFF PERSONS SHALL BE EMPLOYED AS FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT STAFF MEMBERS;
(II) AN ADDITIONAL FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT STAFF MEMBER SHALL BE EMPLOYED
AS A SUPPORT STAFF PERSON FOR EACH ADDITIONAL ONE THOUSAND STUDENTS
ENROLLED IN A SCHOOL.
3. THE COMMISSIONER MAY, UPON APPLICATION BY A SCHOOL DISTRICT, WAIVE
THE APPLICABILITY OF THE PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISIONS ONE AND TWO OF THIS
SECTION FOR UP TO TWO YEARS, IF SUCH APPLICATION DEMONSTRATES THE SCHOOL
IS WITHIN A DESIGNATED SHORTAGE AREA FOR CERTIFIED SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA
SPECIALISTS, AND SUCH APPLICATION DEMONSTRATES THAT SUCH SCHOOL HAS A
TWO-YEAR PLAN TO BE IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION;
HOWEVER, NO SUCH WAIVER SHALL BE GRANTED FOR MORE THAN TWO CONSECUTIVE
SCHOOL YEARS.
§ 2. Subdivision 2 of section 711 of the education law, as amended by
section 2 of part A-1 of chapter 58 of the laws of 2011, is amended to
read as follows:
2. School library materials, for the purposes of this article shall
mean both audio/visual materials and printed materials that may or may
not require magnification which meet all of the following criteria: (1)
materials which are catalogued and processed as part of the school
library or media center for use by elementary and/or secondary school
children and teachers; (2) materials which with reasonable care and use
may be expected to last more than one year; and (3) materials which
would not be eligible for aid pursuant to sections seven hundred one and
seven hundred fifty-one of this title. School library materials meeting
these criteria may include (i) hard cover and paperback books, period-
icals, that is, publications which appear at regular intervals of less
than one year on a continuing basis for an indefinite period, documents
other than books, pamphlets, musical scores, other printed and published
materials, and (ii) for school year nineteen hundred eighty-six--eight-
y-seven and thereafter, audio/visual materials including films, film
strips, micro-film, sound recordings, processed slides, transparencies,
kinescopes, video tapes, maps, charts, globes, pictorial works, includ-
ing pictures and picture sets, reproductions, photographs, graphic
works, [and] any other audio/visual materials of a similar nature made,
A. 2337--A 3
AND ANY AUDIO/VISUAL, ONLINE OR ELECTRONIC MATERIALS NEEDED FOR MEDIA
LITERACY PROGRAMS.
§ 3. This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding
the date on which it shall have become a law.