Inside the Battle Over Texas’ Expanding Book Bans

Texas’ school library wars have entered a new phase. After the passage of Senate Bill 13 in June 2025, districts must pull titles deemed “profane,” “indecent,” or “sexually explicit” and expand parental oversight of student borrowing. At the center of the storm is a startup that saw opportunity in the upheaval.

In 2023, entrepreneur Steve Wandler testified in support of SB 13, arguing it would empower parents and hold school districts accountable. Public records show his company, Bookmarked, spent at least $80,000 lobbying in favor of the bill and later hired a prominent Texas lobbying firm to push its case.

A Startup Built for a Culture War

Founded after Wandler relocated from Canada to Texas, Bookmarked markets software designed to help districts comply with the new law. The platform promises to flag potentially problematic titles, streamline review processes, and give parents direct access to their children’s borrowing histories. Checkout data is stored on Amazon Web Services, and the company describes the tool as decision support rather than a censorship engine.

SB 13 also followed the broader fight over HB 900, which required vendors to rate school library books for sexual content before a federal appeals court blocked enforcement of that ratings mandate as unconstitutionally broad. Together, the measures reshaped how districts evaluate and manage collections.

Critics argue that tools aggregating and circulating lists of challenged books can quietly narrow what ends up on shelves. PEN America recorded 801 book bans in Texas schools between July 2022 and June 2023, more than any other state, with frequent targets including Gender Queer and Stamped From the Beginning. Classics such as Toni Morrison’s Beloved and The Bluest Eye have also faced removals.

A Long History, A National Flashpoint

Book challenges in Texas are not new. The ACLU of Texas documented 218 challenges to 134 books during the 2001–2002 school year alone. In 2021, a list of 850 titles circulated to superintendents reignited tensions, focusing heavily on books addressing race and LGBTQ+ themes.

Legal battles continue. In Llano County, 17 library books were removed in 2022. A federal judge ordered their return, and the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals later required eight titles — including They Called Themselves the K.K.K. and It’s Perfectly Normal — to be restored to shelves while litigation proceeds.

The fight in Texas mirrors clashes unfolding nationwide, from students pushing back against rising school book bans to debates over a federal bill seeking nationwide school book restrictions. For authors and readers, the stakes feel personal. What counts as oversight to one parent can look like erasure to another — and the shelves of America’s school libraries hang in the balance.