DeSantis said, "There's not been a single book banned in the state of Florida."
His argument hinges on county school districts, and not the state, deciding which books to remove or restrict. But school districts are making book decisions to comply with state law.
The American Library Association says a "ban" is the removal of a book based on a person or group’s objection and experts we spoke to said a book is effectively banned in school when it’s pulled from a school library and cannot be taught.
A press release from DeSantis said in March that 23 districts had removed 175 titles, which contradicts his argument that not a single book was banned.