Our thoughts are with Minneapolis booksellers in this chilling time. Please let us know if government actions impact your free expression or business operations. You can also contact Binc for financial assistance or mental health support. Credit Card Competition Act Big news! The Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA) was reintroduced in the US House of Representatives and Senate. The CCCA act has been a huge priority for ABA's advocacy team. This legislation is the culmination of years of work and numerous bookseller visits to DC and to local elected officials. US card processing fees are among the highest in the world. The CCCA would require large banks to enable at least two unaffiliated payment networks on credit cards, which would curb the dominance of Visa and Mastercard, lower your credit card processing fees, and ultimately benefit your bookstore's bottom line! Please reach out to your federal lawmakers in support of the bill. Even if you've reached out about the CCCA in the past, we encourage you to do so again. Your participation is crucial to advancing this legislation. Quarterly Updates Quarterly updates for Advocacy and ABFE have been published on BookWeb covering our activity in Q1 of FY 2026. Utah Utah continues to push book censorship to new heights in the first two weeks of 2026. Three more books were banned from school districts statewide, bringing the count to 22. ACLU of Utah and authors have sued to challenge the law’s constitutionality, announcing the suit even as the new bans took effect. Meanwhile, HB 197 has been introduced in the state legislature, threatening to let AI determine which books should be banned. If you’re mad, you’re not alone. Turn out to the State Capitol on Friday, February 13, from 3:30 to 5:30 pm to join Let Utah Read’s Read In to protest existing and proposed book ban statutes. The last two Read Ins were fantastic events, and this year is sure to be even better. You can RSVP to attend. We will amplify the coalition’s announcements as they come out. Wyoming Wyoming’s legislature has seen the introduction of HB 10, a book ban bill that will create confusion and censorship in school and public libraries. Similar laws in Idaho and Texas have caused public libraries to bar minors without a sworn affidavit from parents, shuttered school libraries for fear of liability, and slowed school book purchases to a halt, impacting indies who provide library materials or run book fairs. We are looking for booksellers who are concerned about this bill and may want to participate in a response. Email [email protected] for information. Oklahoma We are tracking several book censorship bills in Oklahoma, most notably SB 1495, which could lead to wholesale bans of books containing nudity (regardless of context) in schools across the state. These and other bills could create chaos in Oklahoma schools and threaten revenue for any bookstore that supplies library materials or book fairs to school systems. We are looking for booksellers who might be interested in gathering with other advocates in the state to support the right to read. Email [email protected] if you want to receive more information. |
