Huntington Beach voters delivered a major setback to the City Council on Tuesday by approving two measures that curb the council’s influence over the city’s libraries.
Measure A eliminates the city’s parent/guardian children's book review board, which had been tasked with screening and removing children's books deemed sexually inappropriate. Critics argued the board was a tool for censorship. They pointed to the removal of benign books about reproduction and the popular potty training book, “Once Upon a Potty.”
With Measure A’s passage, oversight of children's materials now returns to the Director of Community and Library Services.
Voters also passed Measure B on Tuesday, which prevents the privatization of city libraries without public approval.
As of Thursday morning, the preliminary results were as follows:
Measure A
Yes 58.19% (32,961)
No 41.81% (23,681)
Measure B
Yes 60.27% (34,108)
No 39.73% (22,485)
Residents hope Tuesday’s vote will finally put the contentious debate over libraries in the rearview. In the weeks leading up to the election, Councilman Chad Williams' political action committee posted signs around the city and near elementary schools that read, “Protect Our Kids from Porn.” The messaging caused outrage among some parents, who said their children began asking uncomfortable questions about the word “porn.”
The election also sparked a fight between Huntington Beach’s all-conservative City Council and the Ocean View School Board, which publicly endorsed the ballot measures. The council accused OVSD of using public dollars for campaign purposes and threatened the board with potential legal action.