Read the full stored bill text
89(R) SB 2972 - Enrolled version - Bill Text
S.B. No. 2972
AN ACT
relating to expressive activities at public institutions of higher
education.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Sections 51.9315(a)(2) and (3), Education Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(2) "Expressive activities" means any speech or
expressive conduct protected by the First Amendment to the United
States Constitution or by 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
:
(A)
commercial speech
;
(B) defamation;
(C) unlawful harassment;
(D) incitement to imminent unlawful activity;
(E) obscenity; or
(F) threats to engage in unlawful activity
.
(3)
"Governing board" and "institution
[
"Institution
]
of higher education"
have
[
has
] the
meanings
[
meaning
] assigned by
Section 61.003.
SECTION 2. Section 51.9315, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (b), (c), (d), and (f) and adding Subsections
(d-1), (k), and (l) to read as follows:
(b) It is the policy of this state and the purpose of this
section to protect the expressive rights of persons guaranteed by
the constitutions of the United States and of this state by:
(1) recognizing freedom of speech and assembly as
central to the mission of institutions of higher education; and
(2) ensuring that
students enrolled at and employees
of an institution of higher education
[
all persons
] may assemble
peaceably on the campuses of
the institution
[
institutions of
higher education
] for expressive activities, including to listen to
or observe the expressive activities of others.
(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
students enrolled at and employees of the
institution
[
any person
] to engage in expressive activities in
the
common outdoor
[
those
] areas of the institution's campus freely, as
long as the
expressive activity
[
person's conduct
]:
(1)
[
(A)
] is not unlawful; and
(2)
[
(B)
] does not materially and substantially
disrupt the functioning of the institution.
(d) Notwithstanding Subsection (c), an institution of
higher education may adopt a policy that imposes reasonable
restrictions on the time, place, and manner of expressive
activities
of students enrolled at and employees of the institution
in the common outdoor areas of the institution's campus if those
restrictions:
(1) are narrowly tailored to 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
assemble or distribute written material without a permit or other
permission from the institution.
(d-1)
The governing board of an institution of higher
education shall designate the areas on the institution's campus
that are public forums, consistent with the First Amendment to the
United States Constitution and Section 8, Article I, Texas
Constitution.
(f) Each institution of higher education shall adopt a
policy detailing [
students'
] rights and responsibilities regarding
expressive activities at the institution. The policy must:
(1) allow:
(A)
members of the university community
[
any
person
] to, subject to reasonable restrictions adopted under
Subsection (d), engage in expressive activities on campus,
including by responding to the expressive activities of others; and
(B) student organizations and faculty to,
subject to
Subdivision (2)(B)(ii) and
Subsection (h), invite
speakers to speak on campus;
(2) prohibit:
(A)
using a device to amplify sound while
engaging in expressive activities on campus during class hours
that:
(i) intimidate others;
(ii) interfere with campus operations; or
(iii)
interfere with an institution
employee's or a peace officer's lawful performance of a duty;
(B)
during the last two weeks of a semester or
term, engaging in expressive activities:
(i)
in the common outdoor areas of the
institution's campus in a manner that materially and substantially
disrupts the functioning of the institution;
(ii)
by inviting speakers to speak on
campus;
(iii) by using a device to amplify sound; or
(iv)
by using drums or other percussive
instruments;
(C)
camping or erecting tents or other living
accommodations on campus;
(D)
wearing a disguise or other means of
concealing a person's identity while engaging in expressive
activities on campus with the intent to:
(i)
obstruct the enforcement of the
institution's rules or the law by avoiding identification;
(ii) intimidate others; or
(iii)
interfere with an institution
employee's or a peace officer's lawful performance of a duty;
(E)
lowering the institution's flag of the United
States or of this state with the intent to raise the flag of another
nation or a flag representing an organization or group of people;
and
(F)
engaging in expressive activities on campus
between the hours of 10 p.m. and 8 a.m.;
(3)
[
(2)
] establish disciplinary sanctions for
students, student organizations, or
employees
[
faculty
] who unduly
interfere with the expressive activities of others on campus
or
violate an institution policy or state law
;
(4)
[
(3)
] include a grievance procedure for
addressing complaints of a violation of this section;
(5)
require students enrolled at or employees of the
institution to present proof of identity and status at the
institution on request by an institution official on the
institution's campus engaging in an official duty;
(6)
[
(4)
] be approved by a majority vote of the
institution's governing board before final adoption; and
(7)
[
(5)
] be posted on the institution's Internet
website.
(k)
Nothing in this section limits the authority of an
institution of higher education to adopt rules differentiating
between the rights of students and employees to engage in
expressive activities on campus and those of persons not affiliated
with the institution.
(l)
Nothing in this section may be construed to limit or
infringe on a person's right to freedom of speech or expression
protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution
or by Section 8, Article I, Texas Constitution.
SECTION 3. Section 51.9315, Education Code, as amended by
this Act, applies beginning with the 2025-2026 academic year.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2025.
______________________________
______________________________
President of the Senate
Speaker of the House
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 2972 passed the Senate on
May 14, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 21, Nays 10;
May 29, 2025, Senate refused to concur in House amendments and
requested appointment of Conference Committee; May 30, 2025, House
granted request of the Senate; June 1, 2025, Senate adopted
Conference Committee Report by the following vote: Yeas 22,
Nays 9.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 2972 passed the House, with
amendments, on May 28, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 97,
Nays 39, two present not voting; May 30, 2025, House granted
request of the Senate for appointment of Conference Committee;
June 1, 2025, House adopted Conference Committee Report by the
following vote: Yeas 97, Nays 39, one present not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
Approved:
______________________________
Date
______________________________
Governor