schools; libraries; explicit materials; classification

Plain English Breakdown

The bill does not specify when it will take effect.

Schools and Libraries; Explicit Materials

This bill prohibits public school employees or contractors from referring students to sexually explicit materials without serious educational value and parental consent, and bans public library workers from showing such materials to minors under any circumstances.

What This Bill Does

• Prohibits public school employees or contractors from referring students to sexually explicit material unless the material has serious educational value and written parental consent is obtained.
• Requires public libraries not to show unemancipated minors any sexually explicit materials in any manner.
• Classifies violations as a class 5 felony if committed with criminal negligence.
• Needs new hires at schools and libraries to sign a form acknowledging they understand the law about showing sexually explicit material.

Who It Names or Affects

• Public school employees and contractors
• Public library workers

Terms To Know

Sexually Explicit Materials

Includes textual, visual or audio materials that depict sexual conduct, sexual excitement, or ultimate sexual acts.

Unemancipated Minor

A person under the age of 18 who is not legally independent from their parents or guardians.

Limits and Unknowns

• Does not specify when the law will take effect.
• The bill does not provide details on how schools and libraries will enforce these rules.
• It's unclear what happens if a school or library worker accidentally shows sexually explicit material to a minor without intent.

Official Summary Text

SB1435 - 572R - Senate Fact Sheet

Assigned to
GOV����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� AS
PASSED BY COMMITTEE

ARIZONA STATE SENATE

Fifty-Seventh
Legislature, Second Regular Session

AMENDED

FACT SHEET FOR
S.B. 1435

schools;
libraries; explicit materials; classification

Purpose

Prohibits a public library employee or
independent contractor from referring an unemancipated minor to any sexually
explicit materials in any manner. Classifies a violation of the prohibition on
any public school or public library employee or contractor referring a student
or unemancipated minor to any sexually explicit materials in any manner as a
class 5 felony.

Background

A city or town may
annually levy a property tax as prescribed to establish and maintain free
public libraries and reading rooms. A county board of supervisors may establish
a special taxing district or use county general fund monies to establish and
maintain a county free library district or system. The Arizona State Library is
established within the Secretary of State's Office to acquire and provide
access to materials relating to outlined topics, including law, political
science, sociology and Arizona history (A.R.S. ��
9-411
;
11-901
; and
41-151.01
).

A public school in Arizona
may not refer students to or use any sexually explicit materials in any manner,
except if: 1) the material possesses serious educational value for minors or
serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value; 2) the public school
requires written parental consent, on a per-material basis, before referring a
student to or using the material; and 3) the public school provides students
who did not receive parental consent with an alternative assignment that does
not contain sexually explicit material.

Sexually explicit
materials
include
textual, visual or audio materials or materials accessed via any other medium
that depict sexual conduct, sexual excitement or ultimate sexual acts.
Sexual
conduct
means acts of masturbation, sexual intercourse or physical contact
with a person's clothed or unclothed genitals, pubic area, buttocks or, if the
person is a female, breasts.
Sexual excitement
means the condition of
male or female genitals when in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal.
Ultimate
sexual acts
means sexual intercourse, vaginal or anal, fellatio,
cunnilingus, bestiality or sodomy. A sexual act is simulated when it depicts
explicit sexual activity that gives the appearance of consummation of ultimate
sexual acts (
A.R.S. � 15-120.03
).

There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the
state General Fund associated with this legislation.

Provisions

1.

Prohibits a public library employee or
independent contractor from referring an unemancipated minor to, or
facilitating access to, sexually explicit materials in any manner.

2.

Classifies, as a class 5 felony, a
violation of the prohibition on:

a)

any public school employee or
independent contractor who, with criminal negligence, refers a student to, or
uses, sexually explicit materials in any manner, except as specified; and

b)

any public library employee or
independent contractor who, with criminal negligence, refers an unemancipated
minor to, or facilities access to, sexually explicit materials in any manner.

3.

Requires a public school and public library to require each employee or
independent contractor, including an individual who is hired on or after the
effective date, to sign a form acknowledging that the individual has read the
law.

4.

Applies the definitions of
sexually explicit materials
,
sexual
conduct
,
sexual excitement
and
ultimate sexual acts
to the
prohibition on a public library employee or contractor referring an
unemancipated minor to, or facilitating access to, sexually explicit materials.

5.

Defines
public library
as any library that is open to members of
the public and that is supported, in whole or in part, by public monies
distributed by the state or any political subdivision of the state, including a
free public library of a city or town, a county free library and the Arizona
State Library.

6.

Makes technical and conforming changes.

7.

Becomes effective on the general effective date.

Amendments Adopted by
Committee

1.

Requires a public school and public library employee or independent
contractor to sign an acknowledgment of the law.

2.

Reinserts, in the definition of
ultimate sexual acts
, the
specification that a sexual act is simulated when the act depicts explicit
sexual activity that gives the appearance of consummation of ultimate sexual
acts

Senate Action

GOV����� 2/11/26�������� DPA������ 4-3-0

Prepared by Senate Research

February 11, 2026

AN/ci

Current Bill Text

SB1435 - 572R - S Ver

Senate Engrossed

schools;
libraries; explicit materials; classification

(now: schools;
libraries; explicit materials; training)

State of Arizona

Senate

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

SENATE BILL 1435

AN
ACT

amending section 15-120.03, Arizona
Revised Statutes; amending title 34, chapter 5, Arizona Revised Statutes, by
adding article 2; relating to sexually explicit material.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it
enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 15-120.03, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
15-120.03.

Sexually explicit materials; prohibition; exemptions; violation;
classification; acknowledgement; definition

A. Except as prescribed in section 15-711, a
public school in this state may not refer students to or use any sexually
explicit material in any manner.

B. Materials may be exempted from the provisions of
subsection A
of this section
if all of the following
requirements are met:

1. The exempted material possesses serious
educational value for minors or possesses serious literary, artistic, political
or scientific value.

2. The public school requires written parental
consent before the public school refers a student to or uses the exempted
material. The public school shall require parental consent on a per-material
basis.

3. The public school provides students for whom
parental consent is not secured under paragraph 2 of this subsection with an
alternative assignment that does not contain sexually explicit material.

C. An employee or independent
contractor of a public school who acting with criminal negligence violates this
section is guilty of a class 5 felony.

D. Each public school in this state
shall require any individual who is hired as an employee or independent
contractor of the public school on or after the effective date of this
amendment to this section to sign a form acknowledging that the individual has
read this section on the date that the individual is hired.

C.

e.
For
the purposes of this section, "sexually explicit materials" includes
textual, visual or audio materials or materials accessed via any other medium
that depict any of the following:

1. Sexual conduct. For the purposes of
this paragraph, "sexual conduct" means acts of masturbation, sexual
intercourse or physical contact with a person's clothed or unclothed genitals,
pubic area, buttocks or, if such person is a female, breast.

2. Sexual excitement.� For the purposes of this
paragraph, "sexual excitement" means the condition of human male or
female genitals when in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal.

3. Ultimate sexual acts. For the purposes
of this paragraph, "ultimate sexual acts" means sexual intercourse,
vaginal or anal, fellatio, cunnilingus, bestiality or sodomy. A
sexual act is simulated when it depicts explicit sexual activity that gives the
appearance of consummation of ultimate sexual acts.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 2.
Heading changes

A.
The chapter heading of title 34, chapter 5, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is changed from
"computer access"
to
"public access to computers
and libraries".

B. The article heading of
title 34, chapter 5, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, is changed from
"
access by minors
"
to "
computer access by minors
".

Sec. 3. Title 34, chapter 5, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended by adding article 2, to read:

ARTICLE
2. LIBRARY ACCESS BY MINORS

START_STATUTE
34-521.

Library access; sexually explicit materials; prohibition;
violation; classification; acknowledgement; definitions

A. An employee or independent
contractor of a public library in this state may not refer an unemancipated
minor to any sexually explicit material in any manner.

B. An employee or independent
contractor of a public library in this state may not facilitate an
unemancipated minor's access to any sexually explicit material in any manner.

C. An employee or independent
contractor of a public library who acting with criminal negligence violates
this section is guilty of a class 5 felony.

d. Each public library in this state
shall require any individual who is hired on or after the effective date of
this section to sign a form acknowledging that the individual has read this
section on the date that the individual is hired.

E. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Public library":

(
a
) Means any
library that is open to members of the public and that is supported, in whole
or in part, by monies distributed by this state or any political subdivision of
this state.

(
b
) Includes
all of the following:

(
i
) A free
public library of a city or town as prescribed by title 9, chapter 4, article
2.

(
ii
) A county
free library as prescribed by title 11, chapter 7, article 1.

(
iii
) The state
library as prescribed by title 41, chapter 1, article 2.1.

2. "Sexually explicit
materials" includes textual, visual or audio materials or materials
accessed via any other medium that depict any of the following:

(
a
) Sexual
conduct. For the purposes of this subdivision, "sexual
conduct" means acts of masturbation, sexual intercourse or physical
contact with a person's clothed or unclothed genitals, pubic area, buttocks or,
if the person is a female, breast.

(
b
) Sexual
excitement. For the purposes of this subdivision, "sexual
excitement" means the condition of human male or female genitals when in a
state of sexual stimulation or arousal.

(
c
) Ultimate
sexual acts.� For the purposes of this subdivision, "ultimate sexual
acts" means sexual intercourse, vaginal or anal, fellatio, cunnilingus,
bestiality or sodomy.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 4.
Implementation

A. Each public school in
this state shall require each individual who is employed as an employee or
independent contractor of the public school on the effective date of this act
to sign a form acknowledging that the individual has read section 15-120.03,
Arizona Revised Statutes, as amended by this act.

B. Each public library in
this state shall require each individual who is employed by the public library
on the effective date of this act to sign a form acknowledging that the
individual has read section 34-521, Arizona Revised Statutes, as added by
this act.