Free Speech On Campus Act

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3505 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require public institutions of higher education, as a condition of participating in programs under title IV of such Act, to provide a written statement and educational programming to new students on the rights of students under the first amendment to the Constitution. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 18, 2023 Mr. KILEY (for himself and Mr. OWENS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce A BILL To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require public institutions of higher education, as a condition of participating in programs under title IV of such Act, to provide a written statement and educational program- ming to new students on the rights of students under the first amendment to the Constitution. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Free Speech On Cam- 4 pus Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:59 Jun 06, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3505.IH H3505 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 3505 IH SEC. 2. PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT ON FREE- 1 DOM OF EXPRESSION. 2 Section 487(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 3 (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)) is amended by adding at the end the 4 following: 5 ‘‘(30) In the case of a public institution, the in- 6 stitution will carry out each of the following: 7 ‘‘(A) At each orientation for new and 8 transfer students, provide students attending 9 the orientation— 10 ‘‘(i) a written statement that— 11 ‘‘(I) explains the rights of stu- 12 dents under the first amendment to 13 the Constitution; 14 ‘‘(II) affirms the importance and 15 the commitment of the institution to 16 freedom of expression; and 17 ‘‘(III) includes assurances that 18 students, and individuals invited by 19 students to speak at the institution, 20 will not be treated in a manner that 21 violates the freedom of expression of 22 such students or individuals; and 23 ‘‘(ii) educational programming (in- 24 cluding online resources) that include each 25 of the following: 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:59 Jun 06, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3505.IH H3505 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 3505 IH ‘‘(I) Descriptions of policies, pro- 1 cedures, and protocols of the institu- 2 tion that protect freedom of expres- 3 sion and prohibit exclusionary behav- 4 ior. 5 ‘‘(II) Lessons that— 6 ‘‘(aa) teach and encourage 7 the expression of a wide range of 8 views in a productive and re- 9 spectful manner; and 10 ‘‘(bb) include an under- 11 standing of the first amendment 12 to the Constitution and its role in 13 supporting the commitment of 14 the institution to freedom of ex- 15 pression. 16 ‘‘(B) Post on the publicly accessible 17 website of the institution the statement de- 18 scribed in subparagraph (A)(i).’’. 19 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:59 Jun 06, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H3505.IH H3505 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB