Texas Senate weighs bill limiting universities as public spaces for speech, demonstrations
Senate Bill 2972 by Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, who chairs the Senate Education K-16 Committee, received its second approval from senators Tuesday, leaving one more vote before it advances to the House. The bill comes a year after multiple pro-Palestinian protests broke out at college campuses across Texas, resulting in more than 150 demonstrators getting arrested and some Jewish students feeling unsafe.
The 2019 law, SB 18, was priority legislation for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, which was passed with enthusiasm from Republican lawmakers who feared conservative voices were being silenced on campus. However, an interim hearing in 2024 after the pro-Palestinian protests, which notably opposed Texas' strong pro-Israel stance, sought to investigate how universities could better manage free speech.
"The committee substitute of SB 2972 balances First Amendment rights of faculty, students and staff while returning local control to university leadership to ensure order and safety on campus to limit disruption during finals and class hours and the ability for peace officers to keep students safe during these organized efforts," Creighton said on the Senate floor Tuesday.
More: Texas lawmakers probe universities' compliance with anti-DEI law, free speech: Our takeaways
As per the bill, university boards of regents would have authority to designate areas on a campus to serve as limited public forums, but they would no longer be required to have a free speech area. University open spaces would be considered private unless designated otherwise, Creighton confirmed in response to Democratic Sen. Sarah Eckhart's questions on the floor.
Additionally, SB 2972 instructs institutions of higher education to prohibit expressive activities that include amplified sound or drums, encampments, wearing a face mask to conceal a person's identity and demonstrations that occur during finals week — all features of the pro-Palestinian protests, which universities and lawmakers deemed to be disruptive and threatening. The protesters have asserted their demonstrations were peaceful.
Creighton's proposal would also bar speech on campuses between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. and the U.S. and Texas flags could not be replaced by any other.
More: A year ago, 136 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested at UT. How campus has changed.
Creighton's bill resembles changes UT adopted after two large pro-Palestinian protests last spring, which a spokesperson said at the time were regular updates and clarifications to the school's policies. At an April 16 Senate K-16 Education Committee hearing, Amanda Cochran-McCall, UT's legal affairs vice president, was called as a resource witness for the bill, but senators did not call on her with questions.
Multiple students have sued the University of Texas for allegedly violating their free speech rights when they were arrested during the pro-Palestinian protests in April 2024. Free speech groups have decried UT's police response to the demonstrations, which was supported by Gov. Greg Abbott and applauded by conservative lawmakers. Texas Department of Public Safety troopers arrived mounted on horseback to control the demonstrations. Police used zip ties to detain protesters and pepper spray was used as a crowd control measure.
At a Senate hearing in April, Sameeha Rizvi, a UT alum who is also a representative of the Council of American-Islamic Relations for Texas, said the restrictions in Creighton's bill would chill lawful speech. The bill would bar students from holding peaceful vigils in the evening or speaking up during the last two weeks of a semester, she said.
More: Analysis: UT increases limits on free speech after pro-Palestinian protests, Abbott order
Creighton's bill joins several proposals aimed at curbing "disruptive" free speech after the pro-Palestinian protests. Sen. Mayes Middleton, R-Galveston, authored SB 2595, which the Senate passed last week, would make it a criminal offense for people to conceal their identity while 'intentionally" harassing, intimidating or threatening someone or a group of people in a public space. Middleton's bill closely resembles model mask ban legislation by the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank, that has been implemented in places like Nassau County, New York and North Carolina.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas Senate poised to advance bill limiting free speech at colleges
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