2024 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE BILL NO. 294
BY SENATORS HODGES, BASS, CLOUD, EDMONDS, FESI, HENRY, MIGUEZ,
MORRIS, PRESSLY AND SEABAUGH AND REPRESENTATIVES
AMEDEE, CARLSON, EDMONSTON, MELERINE AND OWEN
1 AN ACT
2 To amend and reenact the heading of Part XIV of Chapter 26 of Title 17 of the Louisiana
3 Revised Statutes of 1950, and R.S. 17:3399.31(1), (2), and (5), 3399.32(A), 3399.33,
4 the heading and introductory paragraph of R.S. 17:3399.34, and 3399.38 and to enact
5 R.S. 17:3399.34(4), (5), and (6), 3399.39, 3399.40, and 3399.41, relative to free
6 speech and First Amendment protected expressive activities on the campuses of
7 public postsecondary education institutions; to provide with respect to
8 constitutionally protected activities; to provide with respect to free speech; to provide
9 with respect to lawful assembly; to provide with respect to religious liberty; to
10 provide with respect to religious or faith-based student organizations; to provide with
11 respect to the election of officers, choice of leaders, or acceptance of members of
12 religious and faith-based student organizations; to prohibit protections for activities
13 conducted by organizations that have been designated as a foreign terrorist
14 organization by the federal government; to prohibit protections for activities that are
15 in violation of criminal law; to provide with respect to the right of association; to
16 provide with respect to individual dignity; to prohibit discrimination on the basis of
17 political ideas, affiliations, or ideology; to provide with respect to due process; to
18 provide for remedies; to provide for definitions; to provide for exclusions; to provide
19 for an effective date; and to provide for related matters.
20 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
21 Section 1. The heading of Part XIV of Chapter 26 of Title 17 of the Louisiana
22 Revised Statutes of 1950, and R.S. 17:3399.31(1), (2), and (5), 3399.32(A), 3399.33, the
23 heading and introductory paragraph of R.S. 17:3399.34, and 3399.38 are hereby amended
ACT No. 584
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1 and reenacted and R.S. 17:3399.34(4), (5), and (6), 3399.39, 3399.40, and 3399.41 are
2 hereby enacted to read as follows:
3 PART XIV. CAMPUS FREE EXPRESSION SPEECH AND FIRST
4 AMENDMENT P ROTECTED EXPRESSIVE ACTIVITIES ON CAMP USES
5 §3399.31. Definitions
6 As used in this Part, the following terms have the following meanings unless
7 the context clearly indicates otherwise:
8 (1) "Free speech and First Amendment Expressive protected expressive
9 activities" include but are not limited to any lawful verbal or written means by which
10 individuals or groups communicate ideas to one another, as provided by the First
11 Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America and by Article I,
12 Section 7 of the Constitution of Louisiana, including all forms of peaceful assembly,
13 lawful protest, speech, distribution of literature, carrying signs, and circulating
14 petitions. This "Free speech and First Amendment protected expressive
15 activities" expressly excludes all of the following:
16 (a) commercial Commercial activities where in which individuals or groups
17 are being compensated or attempting to advertise, market, or accrue financial gain
18 to any individual, corporation, business, or organization.
19 (b) Activities in which an individual or group is knowingly being
20 monetarily funded or organized by any individual, corporation, business, or
21 organization that has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization or
22 foreign adversary by the United States Department of State, pursuant to 8
23 U.S.C. 1189 or 15 CFR 7.4.
24 (c) Any criminal activity which is prohibited under Title 14 of the
25 Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950 or any other provision of state law with
26 criminal penalties.
27 (2) "Material and substantial disruption" means when a person, with the
28 intent and knowledge of doing so, significantly hinders expressive activity free
29 speech and First Amendment protected expressive activities, prevents the
30 communication of the message, or prevents the transaction of the business of a
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1 lawful meeting, gathering, or procession by either of the following:
2 (a) Engaging in fighting assault, battery, attempted battery, violence, or
3 similar unlawful behavior in violation of Title 14 of the Louisiana Revised
4 Statutes of 1950 or any other provision of state law with criminal penalties.
5 (b) Physically blocking or using threats of violence to prevent any person
6 from attending, listening to, viewing, or otherwise participating in an expressive
7 activity a free speech and First Amendment protected expressive activity.
8 * * *
9 (5) "Student-on-student discriminatory harassment" means unwelcome
10 conduct that targets its a victim on the basis of a class protected under federal, state,
11 or local law in violation of this Part and that is so severe, pervasive, and objectively
12 offensive and so undermines and detracts from the victim's educational experience
13 that the victim is effectively denied equal access to an institution's resources and
14 opportunities.
15 * * *
16 §3399.32. Expressive Free speech and First Amendment protected expressive
17 activities; public postsecondary education institutions; protected
18 A. Expressive Free speech and First Amendment protected expressive
19 activities at public postsecondary education institutions by students, administrators,
20 faculty members, staff members, and invited guests are protected, pursuant to the
21 First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America and
22 Article I, Section 7 of the Constitution of Louisiana.
23 * * *
24 §3399.33. Freedom of association; religious liberty; faith-based student
25 organizations; political or ideological belief-based organizations
26 A. No public postsecondary education institution shall deny a political or
27 ideological belief-based organization or a religious or faith-based student
28 organization any benefit or privilege available to any other student organization, or
29 otherwise discriminate against a political or ideological belief-based organization
30 or a faith-based organization, based on the expression political, ideological, or
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1 religious beliefs of the organization, including any requirement that the.
2 B. No public postsecondary education institution shall engage in
3 discrimination on the basis of political, ideological, or religious beliefs against
4 any organization or the organization's leaders or members of the organization in
5 a manner that does any of the following:
6 (1) Affirm and adhere to Restricts the organization's sincerely held religious
7 beliefs or the political or ideological beliefs of the organization.
8 (2) Comply Restricts compliance with the organization's standards of
9 conduct with respect to free speech and First Amendment protected expressive
10 activities.
11 (3) Further Restricts the organization's mission or purpose, as defined by the
12 organization with respect to free speech and First Amendment protected
13 expressive activities.
14 (4) Requires the organization to accept elected officers, choose leaders,
15 or accept members who are not members of the same religion or the same
16 political party or who do not share the same ideological beliefs if to do so would
17 violate the organization's standards of conduct.
18 §3399.34. Institutional policies on free expression speech and First Amendment
19 protected expressive activities
20 Each public postsecondary education institution shall develop policies,
21 regulations, and expectations of students regarding free expression and association
22 speech and First Amendment protected expressive activities on campus that are
23 consistent with this Part and the policies of its management board. The policies shall
24 outline the rights of students, administrators, faculty, and staff and shall:
25 * * *
26 (4) Include a statement that each institution shall strive to ensure the
27 fullest degree of protection for each student's political views and freedom of
28 association.
29 (5) Include a statement that every professor or instructor at the
30 institution shall be prohibited from imposing the professor's political views on
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1 students in violation of R.S. 17:3399.39.
2 (6) Include a statement that the institution is engaged in protecting its
3 students from student-on-student discriminatory harassment pursuant to R.S.
4 17:3399.32(F).
5 * * *
6 §3399.38. Conflict with other laws
7 A. The provisions of this Part shall supersede and control to the extent of any
8 conflict with any other provision of law and shall govern a public postsecondary
9 education institution's obligation to address all forms of discriminatory harassment
10 perpetrated by one student on another, including sexual harassment.
11 B. Nothing in this Section shall be construed to limit or deny any
12 protections or remedies available to a student pursuant to any other provision
13 of law.
14 §3399.39. Right to individual dignity; each student's right to be free from
15 discrimination on the basis of political ideas, affiliations, or
16 ideology
17 A. Article I, Section 3 of the Constitution of Louisiana guarantees that
18 each person, including a college or university student, has the right to
19 "individual dignity" and further provides that protections are guaranteed
20 against discrimination based upon the student's "political ideas or affiliations".
21 B. A public postsecondary education management board shall make
22 reasonable efforts to protect students from discrimination on the basis of
23 political ideas, affiliations, or ideology.
24 C. No professor or instructor who teaches a class to students at an
25 institution of higher education shall impose the professor's or instructor's
26 political views onto students and, therefore, shall be prohibited from doing any
27 of the following:
28 (1) Requiring a student to attend a political protest or engage in any
29 other political activity outside the classroom that aligns with the political views
30 of the professor or instructor.
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1 (2) Requiring a student to participate in a certain political activity
2 outside the classroom as a condition of obtaining the letter grade to which the
3 student would otherwise be entitled based upon the student's actual academic
4 performance in the class.
5 §3399.40. Due process requirements; right to an attorney
6 A public postsecondary education management board shall be prohibited
7 from denying any student the right to have an attorney present at any
8 disciplinary hearings to which the student is a party if the student desires to
9 engage an attorney at the student's expense.
10 §3399.41. Remedies
11 A. The attorney general may obtain injunctive relief, protective order,
12 writ of mandamus, or declaratory relief to prevent any violation of this Part.
13 Should the attorney general prevail, the court shall award reasonable attorney
14 fees and costs.
15 B. A student who is harmed in violation of this Part shall have a cause
16 of action for remedies as provided for in this Subsection and may obtain
17 appropriate relief, including but not limited to any of the following:
18 (1) Injunctive relief, protective order, writ of mandamus or a
19 prohibition, or declaratory relief to prevent any violation of this Part. The
20 court may waive the requirement that the student petitioner post bond to obtain
21 injunctive relief for good cause shown.
22 (2) Actual damages.
23 (3) Recovery of reasonable attorney fees and costs.
24 Section 2. The Louisiana State Law Institute, pursuant to its statutory authority, is
25 hereby authorized and directed to make technical changes by changing the term "expressive
26 activities" to "free speech and First Amendment protected expressive activities" contained
27 in Part XIV of Chapter 26 of Title 17 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, and
28 comprised of R.S. 17:3399.31 through 3399.40.
29 Section 3. This Act shall become effective upon signature by the governor or, if not
30 signed by the governor, upon expiration of the time for bills to become law without signature
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1 by the governor, as provided by Article III, Section 18 of the Constitution of Louisiana. If
2 vetoed by the governor and subsequently approved by the legislature, this Act shall become
3 effective on the day following such approval.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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