Charter Challenge to Ministerial Order 030/2025
We support developmentally appropriate materials. We also support clarity, fairness, and minimal impairment. Alberta’s current implementation timeline and lack of tools are causing unnecessary removals and stress for staff and students. Help us fund a measured, lawful solution through the courts.
The Order: Key Facts
What the Order Requires
- Remove materials with explicit sexual content by October 1, 2025.
- Restrict non-explicit sexual content for K–9; may allow access for Grades 10–12 if developmentally appropriate.
- Supervised access; maintain a public catalogue; provide info to the Minister on request.
- Adopt and publish policies by January 1, 2026.
Why This Is a Problem
- Timeline forces removals before policies exist.
- No provincial list or screening tools; staff must guess.
- Risk of unnecessary removals and inconsistent application across districts.
Our Position
- We respect the government’s authority to set standards.
- Standards must be specific, measured, and enforceable.
- Provide a list and/or tools; align deadlines; clarify enforcement.
The Legal Challenge
Relief We Will Seek
- An interim preservation order to prevent discarding or destroying books while the case is heard.
- An interlocutory injunction suspending enforcement of the Order.
- Constitutional relief to ensure any limits are clear, justified, and minimally impairing.
Why the Charter Applies
- Freedom of expression protects receiving information and ideas.
- Limits must be prescribed by law, with clear standards that constrain discretion.
- Blanket or vague rules are not minimally impairing when narrower options exist.
How Funds Will Be Used
- Court filing fees and service
- Affidavits, exhibits, and expert support
- Injunction hearing preparation
- Public accountability and reporting
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Transparency
We will publish updates on filings, hearing dates, and outcomes. If the court grants preservation or suspends enforcement, we will post the order. Funds will be used solely for the litigation and related costs set out above. Any remainder will be accounted for publicly.
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Our Letter to the Minister
Read the full letter
Dear Minister Nicolaides,
Re: Ministerial Order #030/2025 – School Library Materials
I am writing as a supporter of your government and its efforts to strengthen Alberta’s education system. I share your intent to ensure students have access to materials that are developmentally appropriate and consistent with creating safe, caring learning environments.
That said, I am concerned that the implementation of Ministerial Order #030/2025 will unintentionally create fear, confusion, and unnecessary workload for school authorities, particularly for library staff.
The Timeline Problem
The Order requires schools to remove materials with explicit sexual content by October 1, 2025, yet districts are not required to have policies and procedures in place until January 1, 2026. This sequencing places staff in an impossible position: they must act quickly to avoid non-compliance, but without the benefit of clear policy guidance. The predictable result is that staff will feel compelled to remove more books than necessary simply to avoid risk.
This is neither efficient nor measured policy. At minimum, the compliance date for removals should be aligned with the date that school authorities are required to have policies in place.
Lack of Tools or Guidance
Another challenge is that library staff do not have the time or resources to individually read or research every book in their collections. Without a clear list of prohibited works, or tools to flag potential concerns, compliance is left to guesswork. This is not fair to staff who want to follow the rules, nor does it create consistency across the province.
- Provide a centralized list of titles to be removed, with a transparent mechanism for updating it over time; or
- Provide staff with practical tools (including technology-based solutions such as AI-supported catalogue scans) that allow them to identify and review potential problem titles.
Without such supports, staff will err on the side of caution, resulting in the unnecessary removal of valuable educational resources.
Enforcement and Charter Concerns
The Order is also silent on enforcement. What are the consequences of non-compliance? How will compliance be monitored? Staff deserve to know whether good-faith efforts will be protected, or whether they risk being punished for oversights.
Broad, vague restrictions also raise potential Charter concerns. Section 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects freedom of expression, and courts have consistently held that restrictions must be specific, justified, and minimally impairing. As written, the Order may invite legal challenges. Providing clarity, tools, and narrow, criteria-driven rules would strengthen both compliance and legal defensibility.
Conclusion
Minister, while I respect the authority of your office and this government to set policy in education, and even though I do not personally support banning books, I believe our students and educators deserve clarity and fairness—not uncertainty and the unnecessary removal of materials. If the government chooses to pursue this course, it has an obligation to ensure that the process is specific, measured, and enforceable.
- Align the October 1, 2025 removal deadline with the January 1, 2026 policy requirement.
- Provide either a central list of prohibited titles or the tools necessary for staff to identify them.
- Clarify how the Order will be enforced and what the consequences of non-compliance will be.
Taking these steps would reduce stress for library staff, prevent the unnecessary loss of educational resources, and make the Order more practical, consistent, and defensible.
Respectfully,
Greg Adams