Residents challenge Columbia County library board appointments and book placements

Multiple residents told the Columbia County Board of Commissioners on Oct. 21, 2025, that library governance changes, board appointments and recent shelving decisions have undermined the public library’s independence and disproportionately affected titles with LGBTQ content and materials addressing puberty and anatomy.

Priscilla Bence said she searched the county library catalog and found a rise in listed titles that she believes should not be available to children; she told commissioners a young-adult/LGBTQ search returned 329 results on Oct. 16, 2025, up from 123 at an earlier check, and that a juvenile/LGBTQ search rose from 13 to 381 in her counts. Bence said she found roughly 40–50 titles that had been moved from young-adult sections to adult sections.

“I think the state law could help some,” Bence said, and recommended commissioners consider supporting Senate Bill 74 and preserving a single-county system with local oversight and age-appropriate guidelines.

Karen Parham said she had sought clarification from Georgia State Librarian Julie Walker and that the community services director must not have supervisory authority over library staff: that role belongs to the library director and the new regional board. Parham said John Lewton(a county employee mentioned by speakers) reporting lines and a commissioner serving on the library board blur lines of authority and “weaken public confidence in the board's autonomy.”

“When library board seats are filled by people advancing ideology rather than serving the full community, the library stops being a space for everyone and becomes an instrument of control,” Parham said.

Marcus Todd thanked the county for separating from the national/state library systems and cited Title 16, Chapter 12, Article 3 of Georgia law in arguing for protection of children from what he called sexually explicit materials. He noted that the statutory scheme contains a library exception that, in his view, had been a concern prior to the county’s change.

Mike Welsh spoke in support of the county’s action to move to a single-county library system, saying other counties have followed Columbia County’s lead.

Speakers asked the commissioners to ensure a transparent reconsideration process for challenged books, to preserve professional library judgment, and to clarify roles and reporting lines so the library board operates independently of political interests. No formal change to library policies or board membership was adopted during the meeting.

Context and next steps: speakers requested clearer public notice of challenges, expanded appeal rights in reconsideration procedures, and protection for professional librarians' role in collection development. Commissioners verbally acknowledged the concerns and said staff would verify legal and procedural questions raised by residents.