HB374 brought necessary code that defines pornography into the Utah Education code. Many Utah schools are awaiting guidance from the USBE to apply it. Washington County School District already wrote a policy applying it.
How-to Challenge (Utah)
How to challenge a book (how-to video below):
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Use the "Book List" spreadsheet in the button above to search your school or find and click on your school in the map below. In the map option there are two lists, so click on your school in both lists as the system couldn't contain all of the books in one list. Notice which books are in your school.
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Use the media challenge form, below, to copy and paste the URL with the explicit excerpts from the book into the challenge form. There should be one challenge form per book.
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Email the completed form to your principal.
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Documentation is vital. Please bcc, or send in a separate email, all media challenge requests to utahmediachallenges@gmail.com
Media Challenge Forms: Davis School District Alpine School District
How to Submit a Media Challenge
Utah Code
On May 4, 2022, pursuant to Utah Code 53G-10-103(1)(g) Sensitive Materials in Schools (enacted by House Bill 374 the 2022 Legislature) the following materials are deemed to have “no serious value to minors” in the school setting, and are thereby prohibited, under Utah Code 76-10-1227(2)(c) (adopted by reference in UCA 76-10-1235):
Effective 7/1/2021
76-10-1206. Dealing in material harmful to a minor -- Penalties -- Exemptions for Internet service providers and hosting companies.
(1)A person is guilty of dealing in material harmful to minors when, knowing or believing that an individual is a minor, or having negligently failed to determine the proper age of a minor, the person intentionally:
(a)distributes or offers to distribute, or exhibits or offers to exhibit, to a minor or an individual whom the person believes to be a minor, any material harmful to minors;
(b)produces, performs, or directs any performance, before a minor or an individual whom the person believes to be a minor, that is harmful to minors; or
(c)participates in any performance, before a minor or an individual whom the person believes to be a minor, that is harmful to minors.
Effective 7/1/2021
76-10-1201.
(5)(a)"Harmful to minors" means that quality of any description or representation, in whatsoever form, of nudity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement, or sadomasochistic abuse when it:
(i)taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest in sex of minors;
(ii)is patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community as a whole with respect to what is suitable material for minors; and
(iii)taken as a whole, does not have serious value for minors.
76-10-1203. Pornographic material or performance -- Expert testimony not required.
(1)Any material or performance is pornographic if:
(a)The average person, applying contemporary community standards, finds that, taken as a whole, it appeals to prurient interest in sex;
(b)It is patently offensive in the description or depiction of nudity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement, sadomasochistic abuse, or excretion; and
(c)Taken as a whole it does not have serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.