Title: Free Right to Expression in Education Act
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Free Right to Expression in Education Act
This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require public institutions of higher education to allow a person to engage in noncommercial, expressive activity in outdoor areas on campuses if the person's conduct is lawful. Expressive activities include: (1) distributing literature; (2) circulating a petition; or (3) peacefully assembling, protesting, or speaking. It excludes violence, harassment, or obscenity.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2394 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2394

    To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to ensure that public 
 institutions of higher education protect expressive activities in the 
                        outdoor areas on campus.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            February 7, 2018

   Mr. Hatch introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to ensure that public 
 institutions of higher education protect expressive activities in the 
                        outdoor areas on campus.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Free Right to Expression in 
Education Act''.

SEC. 2. CAMPUS INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS.

    Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et 
seq.) is amended--
            (1) in section 487(a), by adding at the end the following:
            ``(30) In the case of an institution that is a public 
        institution, the institution will comply with the expressive 
        activity protections described in section 493E.''; and
            (2) in part G, by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 493E. CAMPUS INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS.

    ``(a) Definition of Expressive Activities.--
            ``(1) In general.--In this section, the term `expressive 
        activity' includes--
                    ``(A) peacefully assembling, protesting, or 
                speaking;
                    ``(B) distributing literature;
                    ``(C) carrying a sign; or
                    ``(D) circulating a petition.
            ``(2) Exclusions.--In this section, the term `expressive 
        activity' does not include violence, harassment, or obscenity 
        (as defined by the Secretary in accordance with the precedents 
        of the Supreme Court of the United States).
    ``(b) Expressive Activities at an Institution.--
            ``(1) In general.--Each public institution of higher 
        education participating in a program under this title may not 
        prohibit, subject to paragraph (2), a person from freely 
        engaging in noncommercial expressive activity in an outdoor 
        area on the institution's campus if the person's conduct is 
        lawful.
            ``(2) Restrictions.--An institution of higher education 
        described in paragraph (1) may maintain and enforce reasonable 
        time, place, or manner restrictions on an expressive activity 
        in an outdoor area of the institution's campus, if the 
        restriction--
                    ``(A) is narrowly tailored to serve a significant 
                institutional interest;
                    ``(B) is based on published, content-neutral, and 
                viewpoint-neutral criteria; and
                    ``(C) leaves open ample alternative channels for 
                communication.
            ``(3) Application.--The protections provided under 
        paragraph (1) do not apply to expressive activity in an area on 
        an institution's campus that is not an outdoor area.
    ``(c) Causes of Action.--
            ``(1) Authorization.--The following persons may bring an 
        action in a Federal court of competent jurisdiction to enjoin a 
        violation of this section or to recover compensatory damages, 
        reasonable court costs, or reasonable attorney fees:
                    ``(A) The Attorney General.
                    ``(B) A person claiming that the person's 
                expressive activity rights, as described in subsection 
                (b)(1), were violated.
            ``(2) Actions.--In an action brought under this subsection, 
        if the court finds a violation of this section, the court--
                    ``(A) shall--
                            ``(i) enjoin the violation; and
                            ``(ii) if a person whose expressive 
                        activity rights were violated brought the 
                        action, award the person--
                                    ``(I) not less than $500 for an 
                                initial violation; and
                                    ``(II) if the person notifies the 
                                institution of the violation, $50 for 
                                each day the violation continues after 
                                the notification if the institution did 
                                not act to discontinue the cause of the 
                                violation; and
                    ``(B) may award a prevailing plaintiff--
                            ``(i) compensatory damages;
                            ``(ii) reasonable court costs; or
                            ``(iii) reasonable attorney fees.
    ``(d) Statute of Limitations.--
            ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (3), an 
        action under this section may not be brought later than 1 year 
        after the date on which the cause of action accrues.
            ``(2) Continuing violation.--Each day that a violation of 
        this section continues after an initial violation of this 
        section, and each day that an institution's policy in violation 
        of this section remains in effect, shall constitute a 
        continuing violation of this section.
            ``(3) Extension.--For a continuing violation described in 
        paragraph (2), the limitation described in paragraph (1) shall 
        extend to 1 year after the date on which the most recent 
        violation occurs.''.
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