TXLEGE FAIL: Judge Yeets READER Act

Court says labeling smut violates the freedom the Founders guaranteed.

What do you call it when politicians pass a law that never goes into effect but still brag about it to voters?

Texas Scorecard:

U.S. District Judge Alan D. Albrightdeclared certain provisions of Texas’ READER Act unconstitutional and blocked the state from enforcing it.

House Bill 900—also known as the Restricting Explicit and Adult-Designated Educational Resources Act (READER)—was passed in 2023 and required vendors to rate books sold to Texas schools based on sexual content. The purpose was to ensure schools removed books labeled “sexually explicit” by vendors.

The law was to take effect on September 1, 2023, but the rating provisions were temporarily blocked by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas (Austin Division) before it could be enforced.

Yes, another Jared Patterson special.

The law appears to have been too vague and subjective for the courts, requiring books to be labeled “sexually explicit” which can mean anything to anyone.

The issue could have been avoided by narrowing the law to target only material deemed “obscene,” based on a clear constitutional standard.