A new bill introduced by Rep. Cory Mills would jail publishers who knowingly provide sexually explicit books to schools.
The bill, H.R. 863, was filed by Rep. Mills last week and is being co-sponsored by Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and George Santos.
According to the description of the bill, it will “amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit a publishing house from knowingly furnishing sexually explicit material to a school or an educational agency, to prohibit Federal funds from being provided to a school that obtains or an educational agency that distributes sexually explicit material, and for other purposes.”
The Gateway Pundit previously reported on this bill, but the full text and information about the penalties for publishers were not available at that time.
According to a report from The Hill, publishing houses that violate the law would face a maximum fine of $500,000. Individuals in the company’s higher management may be personally subject to the same fines — plus up to five years in prison.
Additionally, the legislation would withhold federal funds from elementary or middle schools that obtain or distribute materials that contain a “sexually explicit visual depiction of any kind,” including photographs or drawings. The funds remain withheld until the materials are “relinquished or destroyed.”
The bill does allow exceptions for materials that are of “serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.”
“The battlefield for the future of our society is being fought within the classrooms of American schools. This bill targets the Left’s efforts to sexualize children in schools across the U.S.,” Rep. Mills said in a statement about the bill.
The congressman continued, “From school board meetings to new representation in local, state, and federal levels, Americans are waking up to the grim reality of woke indoctrination guised as a normal education. No more.”
The Hill report notes, “a whopping 1,600 books were banned in over 5,000 schools over the past year, according to a September PEN America report. More than 40 percent of the banned materials included LGBTQ characters or storylines.”
“Preventing pornographic materials from being taught in classrooms is completely distinct from naming freedom of expression or conversations being had across our society about gender and sexuality,” a spokesperson for Mills told The Hill. “In our view, any interpretation of this bill as an ‘assault’ on LGBT+ individuals is reading through biased lenses and are disconnected from reality.”
Many, but not all, of the most explicit books being pushed to children in recent times do contain transgender and gender-bending storylines.
In December, even the American Girl doll company released a book urging children to explore their “gender identity” — complete with tips on how to hide it from their parents.
The book titled A Smart Girl’s Guide: Body Image was written by a far-left activist and is marketed for children aged 3-12.
“If you haven’t gone through puberty yet, the doctor might offer medicine to delay your body’s changes, giving you more time to think about your gender identity,” one passage in the book states. “You can appreciate your body for everything it allows you to experience and still want to change certain things about it.”