Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Sunday signed a sweeping new law that aims to protect free speech on college campuses across the Lone Star state.
โSome colleges are banning free speech on college campuses,โย the governor said in a video released on Twitter on Sunday as he signed the bill.ย โWell, no more. Because I am about to sign a law that protects free speech on college campuses in Texas.โ
โShouldnโt have to do it. First Amendment guarantees it,โ he added. โNow, itโs law in Texas.โ
I just signed a law protecting free speech on college campuses. #txlege pic.twitter.com/jHIh8431SH
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) June 10, 2019
Asย The College Fixย reportedย in April, the legislation, SB18, ensures that โthe common outdoor areas of the institutionโs campus are deemed traditional public forumsโ and allows universities to impose time/place/manner restrictions as long as those restrictions follow published and viewpoint-neutral criteria and allow for โampleโ alternative expression.
It also allows members of a university community โto assemble or distribute written material without a permit or other permissionโ from campus leaders. Whatโs more, it establishes โdisciplinary sanctions for students, student organizations, or faculty who unduly interfere with the expressive activities of others on campus.โ
Finally, it protects student organizations from denial of general university services based on the organizationโs viewpoint. It also prevents universities from charging more in security fees from student organizations due to potentially controversial speakers.
As part of an effort to hold campuses accountable, Texas universities must file a report in 2020 on how they are implementing the lawโs requirements.
The Texas legislation is similar to recent free speech bills passed since 2017 inย Alabama,ย Kentucky,ย South Dakota,ย Tennessee,ย Colorado,ย Iowaย andย Arkansas. The states passing the laws are mostly Republican-dominant states.
This article appeared at ZeroHedge.com at:ย ย https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-06-10/texas-governor-signs-sweeping-new-law-protecting-free-speech-college-campuses