Llano County looks at new book purchases for library system since 2022
The Llano Library, pictured here, may be getting new books on its shelves for the first time since 2022 according to Llano County officials. Book purchases have been on a freeze since a lawsuit was filed against the county and its library system over allegations of First Amendment violations. Now, with the lawsuit over, books could be back on the county budget. Staff photo by Dakota Morrissiey
In the aftermath of the Llano County Library System lawsuit, county officials are looking at making library policy updates and new book purchases for the first time since the lawsuit was filed in 2022.
The Llano County Commissioners Court shared on Monday, Jan. 12, that it plans on purchasing new materials following updates to its library policies in the near future. Approval of new books could come as soon as the court’s next meeting, scheduled for Jan. 26.
“We definitely want to move forward and start purchasing new books for our library system, but we want to update our policies first,” Precinct 4 Commissioner Jerry Don Moss told the court after a lengthy executive session discussing the matter on Monday.
Llano County, which manages the county’s libraries, ceased purchasing new books when a lawsuit was filed against the county, and several of its officials, including Moss, in April 2022. The lawsuit was filed by seven county residents who claimed that their First Amendment rights were violated when several books were removed without proper processing from library shelves. After a lengthy and costly court battle, the lawsuit was effectively brought to an end in December 2025, with the U.S. Supreme Court siding with a decision in favor of Llano County.
“We were worried about purchasing new books without updating our policies because you never know when somebody will sue you.” Moss told DailyTrib. “I don’t know how many books were down, but we are going to get our libraries full and back to normal.”
According to Moss, $30,000 has been budgeted for new books at the Llano Library and Kingsland Library, and $10,000 for the Lakeshore Library.
The exact nature of the policy changes have not yet been determined. The county no longer has a functional library advisory board, which was effectively disbanded during the lawsuit due to expired term limits, so the decision will be made in conjunction with Commissioners Court members, the County Attorney’s Office, and Llano County Library System staff.
The freeze on book purchasing lost the county library system its Texas State Library and Archives Commission accreditation in 2023, which requires that a library system purchase a certain amount of books or make quantifiable investments in its libraries. But, Llano County regained its accreditation in September 2025 after purchasing new books indirectly through its online CloudLibrary system.
“Hopefully, with these lawsuits being over, we can get our library back to normal,” Moss said.
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You still have it wrong. The purchase freeze happened months before the lawsuit.