• Take a moment to renew your ABA membership!
• Nominate a bookseller (or yourself!) for ABA’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council.
• Take our quick 2025 holiday sales survey.
• Start 2026 off strong with our Q1 checklist.

Yesterday, ABA CEO Allison Hill wrote a letter to ABA members, sharing a summary of our efforts in 2025 regarding education, advocacy, freedom of expression, marketing, technology, networking and community, equity and representation, and more.

“We were honored to support your stores in 2025 and we hope you found value in ABA’s work and resources,” said Hill. “ABA is committed to supporting you like we did last year and in new ways that not only help you prepare for your store’s future, but also help shape our collective future. We hope you’ll give us that opportunity again by renewing your membership.”

You can read the full CEO letter on BookWeb!

If you have not already renewed your membership, log on to BookWeb to renew now! Our quick renewal process takes only a few minutes. 

All ABA memberships run from February 1 through January 31. (Membership benefits can be reviewed on BookWeb.)

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your ABA Member Relations Manager or [email protected].

• Tuesday, January 13 at 3:00 pm ET: New Member Series: Intro to ABA Benefits
• Tuesday, January 20 at 3:00 pm ET: ABA Staff Office Hours
• Friday, January 23 at 3:00 pm ET: Wi2026 Virtual Institute Orientation
  
• Tuesday, January 27 at 3:00 pm ET: ShopTalk: ABA Children's Group
• Thursday, January 29 at 5:00 pm ET: Board Office Hours
  

ABA wishes to thank outgoing Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council (DEIC) members Christine Bollow, Kim Brock, Audrey Huang, David Landry, Chonteau McElvin, Rafe Posey, and Hillary Smith, for their many contributions to ABA’s work and to the industry, including the creation of IGNITE, the Winter Institute pre-conference for Black, Indigenous, Asian American and Pacific Islander, Latina/o/x, Chicana/o/x, Hispanic, and BIPOC booksellers and bookstore owners, and Institute fast passes to support Institute accessibility. The group’s last task will be helping to select seven new members for the council. 

Priscilla Martínez, a more recent addition to the council, will continue to serve. Additionally, one council member (yet to be determined) will serve as an emeritus council member to assist new members and help ensure the DEIC is representative of the ABA membership.

Booksellers and bookstore owners may nominate themselves or a fellow bookseller or bookstore owner to serve on the DEIC.

The DEIC is a critical sounding board and advisory council for ABA’s antiracism, equity, access and representation work, providing feedback, reviewing ABA programs and initiatives, identifying and responding to threats and opportunities, and bringing concerns of booksellers and bookstore owners to ABA. 

The deadline for nominations is 11:59 pm ET on Thursday, February 19, 2026. 

Visit BookWeb to learn more and submit your nominations.

Free Expression Legislation

New year, same garbage: here’s the latest in book ban legislation news.

New Hampshire

Today could see a floor vote in the New Hampshire House of Representatives on SB 33, a book ban bill similar or identical to the one Gov. Ayotte vetoed last year. It would allow school principals to ban books and allow appeal only for those who challenge books. 

Meanwhile, we anticipate an amendment to SB 648, an age-verification bill for websites that could impact booksellers. This amendment would remove standing for private citizens to sue websites, leaving enforcement to the state. You can still write to the Senate Judiciary Committee, which will discuss the bill tomorrow, via the committee aide.

New York

Despite last session’s passage of New York’s “Freedom to Read Act,” which would have added protections against book bans in New York, Gov. Hochul vetoed the legislation. Without legislation strengthening free expression policies in New York schools, districts remain vulnerable to censorship. You can let the Governor know what you think of her decision via her office’s website. 

Penny Phase-Out

In 2025, due to increasing costs of penny production, the US Treasury announced the end of the production and distribution of new pennies for general circulation as a cost-reduction measure. While existing pennies remain legal tender and will continue to circulate, reports are that shortages are expected to begin by early 2026 as the supplies decrease. 

To help booksellers with the penny phase-out, ABA has created a one-page checklist on what booksellers should do to prepare.

For a more robust understanding of how this affects you, you can visit BookWeb.