The national tide of specious attempts to ban books from public libraries has not left its noxious flotsam to foul the shelves at the Baker County Public Library.

This is a fine thing.

It suggests that local residents, whatever some might think about certain books or other materials available to library patrons, place a greater value on collective freedom than on their personal preferences.

It heartens me to believe that I live in a community which rejects the notion that certain of America’s fundamental principles are negotiable, among them that each of us can decide what we read, watch and listen to.

Perhaps it helps that Baker County, a place of modest population in a relatively remote corner of Oregon, lies outside the mainstream of cultural debate and hasn’t attracted attention from outside agitators.

If so, we are fortunate that we haven’t been the setting for their grim rituals of repression, haven’t been subject to their smug assurance that their self-righteousness ought to supplant individual choice.

Nonetheless, the national trend in such matters should not be ignored.

The American Library Association reported that challenges to books and other materials at libraries rose by 65% in 2023.

Perry Stokes, the Baker County Library director, and the library district’s board of directors, are aware of this troubling trajectory.

That, along with the need to periodically review the district’s policies, prompted the board on April 9 to approve new guidelines for library patrons who want to challenge books or other items at the library.

The policy, which is available online at bakerlib.org/, is a much more comprehensive document than the one it replaces, which was last updated in November 2019.

More comprehensive, and better.

The new policy requires patrons, prior to filing a formal challenge, to meet with Stokes.

That’s basically what has happened in the few cases over the past several years when a resident expressed concerned about a book, Stokes said.

The idea, he said, is to resolve such situations and, more important, to avoid removing anything from the shelves.

Patrons who aren’t satisfied after meeting with Stokes can fill out the formal request to review a book or other item.

The new policy ensures that people making such challenges have a legitimate interest in what’s available at Baker County libraries. It requires, for instance, that the person be an adult who lives in Baker County and has a library card.

“Requests from groups or organizations will not be considered,” the form states.

This sensible policy prevents groups from, in effect, hijacking the process.

The new policy also limits individuals to challenging only a single item per request, and to one request per month. A book that is challenged but stays at the library would be exempt from another challenge for three years.

These limitations reflect Stokes’ approach to the topic, which he distills with a piquant comparison to the criminal justice system, another fundamental part of America’s commitment to protecting the rights of individuals — “All books offered by the library are considered innocent until proven guilty.”

The challenge form that’s part of the new policy also forces patrons to explain their rationale for removing an item, and to do so much more thoroughly than offering a generic platitude such as “I think the book is inappropriate.”

The form includes questions such as: “Has reading, listening, or viewing this material directly caused you, or one of your family members, personal or financial harm? If YES, please describe. Be as specific as possible to show a clear connection between the alleged harm and the library material.”

Another question: “What alternate material representing the viewpoint of this material in a “better way” would you recommend the library include in its collection?”

The form could fairly be described as aggressive in its attempt to persuade patrons to justify their objection.

Which is as it should be.

If an individual seeks to decide what thousands of other people ought to be able to check out from a public library, then that person ought to be subject to considerable scrutiny.

The new policy treats this matter with the gravity it deserves, and sets the threshold for removing books at an appropriately lofty level.

The ability to bring something home from a public library isn’t enshrined in the Bill of Rights. But it’s surely an activity that belongs in the same category — it’s on the same shelf, if you will — as such cherished American concepts as the right to speak, to worship and to gather.