85R13608 KJE-F
By: Cain H.B. No. 2527
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the protection of expressive activities at public
institutions of higher education.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter Z, Chapter 51, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 51.9315 to read as follows:
Sec. 51.9315. PROTECTED EXPRESSION ON CAMPUS. (a) In this
section:
(1) "Expressive activities" means any speech or
expressive conduct protected by the First Amendment to the United
States Constitution or Section 8, Article I, Texas Constitution,
and includes assemblies, protests, speeches, the distribution of
written material, the carrying of signs, and the circulation of
petitions. The term does not include commercial speech.
(2) "Institution of higher education" has the meaning
assigned by Section 61.003.
(b) It is the policy of this state to protect the expressive
rights of persons guaranteed by the constitutions of the United
States and of this state by ensuring that:
(1) all persons may assemble peaceably on the campuses
of institutions of higher education for expressive activities; and
(2) the expressive rights of persons on the campuses
of institutions of higher education are not unnecessarily
restricted or impeded by rules or policies adopted by the
institutions.
(c) An institution of higher education shall:
(1) ensure that the common outdoor areas of the
institution's campus are deemed traditional public forums; and
(2) permit any person to engage in expressive
activities on those areas of the institution's campus freely, as
long as the person's conduct:
(A) is not unlawful; and
(B) does not materially and substantially
disrupt the functioning of the institution.
(d) Notwithstanding Subsection (c), an institution of
higher education by rule may maintain and enforce reasonable
restrictions on the time, place, and manner of expressive
activities on the common outdoor areas of the institution's campus
if those restrictions:
(1) serve a significant institutional interest;
(2) employ clear, published, content-neutral, and
viewpoint-neutral criteria;
(3) provide for ample alternative means of expression;
and
(4) allow members of the university community to
spontaneously and contemporaneously assemble or distribute written
material without a permit or other permission from the institution.
(e) Subsections (c) and (d) do not limit the right of
student expression at other campus locations.
(f) The protections under this section apply equally to
students and to student groups and organizations, regardless of
whether the group or organization is recognized by or registered
with the institution of higher education.
(g) Not later than the first anniversary of the date that a
violation of this section is alleged to have occurred at an
institution of higher education, the attorney general or a person
whose expressive rights have been violated under this section may
bring an action for injunctive relief to compel the institution to
comply with this section or to recover compensatory damages, court
costs, and reasonable attorney's fees. For purposes of computing
the limitation period under this subsection, each day of a
continuing violation of this section, including each day that a
rule or policy of the institution that violates this section
remains in effect, constitutes a separate violation.
(h) In addition to the cause of action under Subsection (g),
a person whose expressive rights are affected by a rule or policy
adopted by an institution of higher education may file suit against
the institution for declaratory judgment in the manner provided by
Chapter 37, Civil Practice and Remedies Code.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.