BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - A Louisiana House GOP leader said he’s so worried about university decisions to jettison appearances from controversial speakers that he wants to enact a new free speech law for his state’s campuses.
Alexandria Rep. Lance Harris, chairman of the House Republican Delegation, cited Berkeley’s canceling of conservative commentator Ann Coulter’s on-campus speech as one example why he’s proposed to enact a “policy on free expression” for Louisiana public colleges. He said he’s gotten calls from students concerned about “their ability to speak freely on campus.”
“It’s not just Berkeley. It’s not just California. It’s happening all over the United States,” Harris said. “What idea are they coming after next?”
Harris’ proposal would require colleges to adopt a statement saying they strive for free expression on campuses, won’t shield students from unwelcome or offensive speech and permit protests and demonstrations.
The bill allows the attorney general, students and others to file lawsuits if they feel First Amendment rights have been illegally restricted and receive court and attorney fees, and an award of at least $1,000, if the lawsuit is successful.
Louisiana’s Board of Regents would have to create a 15-member “committee on free expression” to report annually on controversies or barriers to free speech that the panel finds.
The House Education Committee advanced the bill Tuesday without objection. But Democratic lawmakers said they want Harris to work with campus leaders on the proposal’s language before House floor debate.
New Orleans Rep. Walt Leger, the House’s top-ranking Democrat, said he wants to protect speech on college campuses, saying it gives students a healthy exposure to diverse views. But he said schools should be involved in developing the policy to address any safety concerns.
“This is a very substantive bill with a lot of moving parts,” Leger said.
Harris said he hadn’t spoken with higher education officials about the bill before Tuesday’s hearing, but he pledged to do so.
“We’ll make sure it’s right, or I won’t move the bill,” he said.
Harris said his proposal is modeled after an Arizona law passed in 2016 that prevents colleges and universities from restricting free speech in a public forum and lays out guidelines for when limitations are acceptable.
“It tries to assure that universities will stay neutral in the universe of ideas,” Harris said.
The bill gives college governing boards the ability to regulate student speech when it violates a law, is considered unprotected defamation as described by a court, is harassment or disrupts a university’s functions. Speech could be restricted if intended “to communicate a serious expression of an intent to commit an act of unlawful violence” against someone.
Rep. Patricia Smith, a Baton Rouge Democrat, didn’t vote against the bill - but she questioned the need for it. An LSU official noted that controversial right-wing commentator Milo Yiannopoulos spoke on campus in September without incident.
“Right now, there isn’t a problem in Louisiana,” Smith said.
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House Bill 269: www.legis.la.gov
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