HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — The Huntsville-Madison County Public Library system will be implementing a new system for youth library cards next year. It's tied to new rules libraries must follow to get state funding.
The new tiered system comes after state lawmakers passed a law in 2024 after groups pressured lawmakers and libraries to remove from youth sections they deemed sexual.
When we spoke to HMCPL Interim Executive Director Connie Chow about the change and how state funding influenced the change.
"In order for us to receive our annual state aid for the current fiscal aid, we had to make changes to um how we select and place materials in our youth adult and juvenile sections," said Chow. "As well as change how we do our circulation policies and card setups."
The changes will affect every library card holder under the age of 18.
There will be three levels to how much access a child's library card will have:
Level 1 Young Reader: Individual may check out from only the physical juvenile collection. No digital downloads access is available. This is the default level of access unless specified otherwise by a parent or guardian on the waiver.
Level 2 Young Reader: Individual may check out from the physical juvenile and young adult collections. No digital downloads access is available.
Level 3 Young Reader: Individual may checkout from the physical juvenile, young adult, and adult collections. Digital downloads access is available.
In addition, all cards will have to be attached to a parent or a guardians library card, with that person being able to view what the child has checked out from the library.
If your child currently has a library card, and a parent or guardian have not signed a wavier by the time the change is made, their card will be automatically locked to Level 1.
The change is currently set to take place on March 3rd, 2025.