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Digital‑materials bill fails after divided floor debate over advertising and access
Summary
House Bill 11‑58, aimed at restricting certain advertising and protections in curated digital education materials, failed on third reading after debate about definitions, vendor input and whether the measure would limit student access to academic resources.
House Bill 11‑58 — a measure that would restrict certain types of advertising in curated digital education materials and require protections for students using vendor‑provided research collections — failed on third reading after extended debate.
Sponsor Representative Bradley described stakeholder involvement during drafting, saying vendors (including academic database providers) participated in negotiations and that the bill narrows its focus to “prohibited advertising” rather than a broader, subjective standard. Bradley told the chamber the proposal is intended to "keep the focus on learning, not self [advertising]" and to remove distracting pop‑up advertisements from student research tools.
Opponents argued the bill’s definitions could be subjective or could inadvertently restrict access to peer‑reviewed academic resources. Representative Phillips urged a no vote, saying “defining inappropriate is something that we do not agree on,” and warned that differing community standards could complicate classroom instruction.
The vote on third reading recorded 31 yes, 33 no and 1 excused; the bill did not pass.
Supporters said the bill targeted commercial advertising that generates revenue and distracts students; opponents said the language remained problematic for librarians and educators because of ambiguous definitions and potential impacts on academic citations. The sponsor and vendors said the bill included a curing period and limited remedies, but floor votes left the measure short of passage.
