Victory in Colorado: Senate Votes Down Minors' Access Bill

On Friday, March 26, the Colorado Senate voted by a count of 21 to 14 to strike down House Bill 1078, a "minors' access" bill that would have made it illegal to allow a minor access to, and would have banned the display of, materials considered "harmful to minors." The bill had members of the Mountains & Plains Booksellers Association (MPBA) up in arms because, they said, it was vague, would have been impossible to uphold, and could have placed severe restrictions on the availability of constitutionally protected materials.

With the Senate vote in hand, the bill is officially dead.

"Of course, we are just thrilled to bits," said MPBA Executive Director Lisa Knudsen about the vote. "This fight against 1078 was a collaboration between ABA, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE), the Media Coalition, the ACLU of Colorado, Tattered Cover, and MPBA. And we all grouped together and hired a [lobbyist, Pat Steadman]. It is so encouraging to me that this was defeated, and by a considerable margin.... I really believe that it is a victory for the First Amendment, for free speech, and removes a huge potential burden from booksellers and librarians in the state of Colorado."

ABFFE President Chris Finan noted that "Colorado booksellers have shown repeatedly that they know how to fight back when someone threatens free speech," and, he pointed out, "this is just the latest in a long line of important First Amendment victories."

The Senate bill would have prohibited the display of materials considered "harmful to minors," which would take away the right of adults to browse freely in bookstores for books and magazines that are protected by the First Amendment. The booksellers argued that this would have a chilling effect on the display of constitutionally protected materials.

Just two months ago, Colorado's House of Representatives had voted overwhelmingly in favor of H.B. 1078, but its version of the bill had gutted the measure that banned the display of materials considered harmful to minors. After 1078 reached the Senate, the Colorado Senate State Affairs Committee restored the display ban.

Booksellers in Arkansas and Michigan are currently fighting minors' access laws in court in cases in which ABFFE and Media Coalition members are participating. --David Grogan