Florida's education commissioner singled out Hillsborough County for keeping books he called inappropriate in high school libraries. The order affects every Hillsborough school, including Steinbrenner High School, which serves Lutz and Odessa families.

Education Commissioner Henry Mack sent a seven-page memo to all public school superintendents on Wednesday, Sept. 23, naming Hillsborough County as one where sexually explicit content remained on library shelves. Mack cited specific titles, including "Call Me by Your Name" and "Jack of Hearts (And Other Parts)."

He wrote that parents had told the Hillsborough County School Board about additional titles as recently as September, including "Kingdom of the Feared," "Kingdom of the Wicked," "Kingdom of the Cursed" and "1Q84."

What the 90-day action plan requires

The directive requires every superintendent to complete a 90-day action plan. That plan includes immediate library audits, a freeze on unvetted book donations and cross-referencing the state's list of discontinued titles.

Principals will be held personally accountable through a midyear certification process. Each school system must also create Library Materials Integrity Panels that include parents.

The order carries a financial threat. Under Section 1008.32 of the Florida Statutes, the State Board of Education can withhold state funds, discretionary grant funds and lottery funds from districts found unwilling or unable to comply.

Steinbrenner High was not named individually, and the commissioner did not tie any specific titles or library actions to the school.

Mack, who took office in late June, described the current review system as administrative neglect disguised as ignorance, according to the letter. He wrote that a process depending on parents to discover explicit material and force a response from school officials is unacceptable.

District silent amid history of book reviews

Spectrum Bay News 9 reported Thursday, Sept. 24, that it reached out to Hillsborough County school officials for a response but had not heard back. Hillsborough had not issued a public statement as of that date.

This is not the first time Hillsborough has faced state pressure over library materials. In June 2025, Superintendent Van Ayres placed more than 600 titles under review. In September 2025, the school board voted unanimously to remove the graphic novel "Blankets" and the novel "Identical" from school libraries, according to Hoodline.

Federal court challenge still pending

The enforcement push comes while a related legal challenge works through federal courts. In August 2025, U.S. District Judge Carlos Mendoza ruled key provisions of House Bill 1069, the 2023 state law used to remove library books, unconstitutional under the First Amendment. The state appealed, and the case remains before the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Hillsborough County Public Schools, the seventh-largest district in the country with more than 218,000 students, must now respond before the commissioner's deadline or risk losing funding. The school board has not announced a meeting to address the order.