By Erin McNeill

New legislative sessions launched in most states in January, and we are off to a big start this year. I’m following 14 bills in 11 states, most of them the product of direct efforts by state-level MLN advocates, some the results of years of policymaker education, and even some the resulted from lawmakers who care about the issue coming to us seeking help with specific legislative language. We were ready.
Many states have introduced our model bill that establishes an Advisory Council within the department of education to find solutions for ensuring comprehensive media literacy education K through 12.

Arizona
S1283 Similar to the MLN Advisory Council model bill
Introduced

Colorado
H1110 Creates Advisory Council
Passed by Education Committee

Hawaii
Senate resolution to create a media literacy task force to identify the problems of a lack of media literacy among youth, identify best practices for media literacy education, and to identify existing models of curriculum and existing legislation around the country aimed at resolving the issues. (Similar to Advisory Council bill)
Expected

Illinois
HJR 9
House resolution to create a media literacy task force (Similar to Advisory Council bill – See Hawaii)
Introduced
H1559
Provides that high schools may include a unit of instruction in media literacy and that the superintendent of education may make instructional materials available to guide development of the unit of instruction
Introduced

Massachusetts
(Docket numbers only)
1 – Creates Advisory Council
2 – Creates Media literacy requirement within new sex education requirement
Introduced

Minnesota
H 247 Creates a library media specialist grant program. Grantees must report on how the media specialist affected a number of measures including media literacy.
Introduced

New Jersey
A132
Requires schools to incorporate instruction in “information literacy” in grades k-12 – defining information literacy to include: Information literacy includes digital, visual, media, textual, and technological literacy.
S2933
Similar to A132
Introduced

New Mexico
H 400
Advisory Council bill that includes funding for a survey of school administrators, teachers, librarians and educational technologists to determine how media literacy education is integrated in public school curricula.
Hearing this week
S194
Professional development funding
passed by Education committee

New York
A106
Creates an Advisory Council
S1104
requires two hours per week instruction in subjects related to civics, civility and citizenship, requires that Media literacy be included among the lessons.
Introduced

Virginia
H1978
Advisory Council bill
Passed Science and Technology Committee on 15-7 bipartisan vote

Washington
S5594
Establishes a grant program to develop media literacy programs to be integrated in English, social studies or health. Also provides for two media literacy conferences to disseminate the work of the grantees. This will be Washington’s third media literacy bill.
Introduced