[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7612 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7612

   To affirm and protect the First Amendment rights of students and 
   student organizations at public institutions of higher education.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 11, 2024

Mrs. Houchin (for herself, Mrs. McClain, and Mr. Owens) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and 
                             the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To affirm and protect the First Amendment rights of students and 
   student organizations at public institutions of higher education.

    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 ``Students Bill of Rights Act of 
2024''.

SEC. 2. STUDENTS BILL OF RIGHTS.

    The Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) is 
amended by inserting after section 112 the following new section:

``SEC. 112A. STUDENTS BILL OF RIGHTS TO FURTHER PROTECT SPEECH AND 
              ASSOCIATION.

    ``(a) Protected Rights.--A covered public institution that receives 
funds under this Act, including through participation in a program 
authorized under title IV, shall comply with the following 
requirements:
            ``(1) Recognized student organizations.--A covered public 
        institution that has recognized student organizations shall 
        comply with the following requirements:
                    ``(A) Faculty advisors.--A covered public 
                institution may not deny recognition to a student 
                organization solely because the organization is unable 
                to obtain a faculty advisor or sponsor, provided that 
                the organization meets each of the other institutional 
                requirements for such recognition. The institution 
                shall ensure that any policy or practice related to the 
                recognition of a student organization--
                            ``(i) does not require a faculty or staff 
                        member of the institution to serve as faculty 
                        advisor or to otherwise participate in, 
                        support, or sponsor the organization; or
                            ``(ii) if the institution does have a 
                        requirement that a faculty or staff member 
                        serve as described in clause (i) as a condition 
                        for recognition of the student organization, 
                        and an organization that meets each of the 
                        other institutional requirements for such 
                        recognition is unable to secure such a faculty 
                        or staff member, provides for an alternative to 
                        such requirement, which may include waiver of 
                        such requirement or the institution assigning a 
                        faculty or staff member to such organization.
                    ``(B) Affiliation.--A covered public institution 
                may not deny recognition to a student organization 
                solely because of the organization's affiliation with, 
                or status as a chapter of, a national or other 
                organization.
                    ``(C) Appeal options for recognition.--A covered 
                public institution shall provide an appeals process by 
                which a student organization that has been denied 
                recognition by the institution may appeal to an 
                institutional appellate entity for reconsideration. The 
                institution shall ensure that such appellate entity did 
                not participate in any prior proceeding related to the 
                denial of recognition to such organization.
            ``(2) Distribution of funds to student organizations.--A 
        covered public institution that collects a mandatory fee from 
        students for the costs of student activities and events and 
        provides funds generated from such student fees to one or more 
        recognized student organizations of the institution shall--
                    ``(A) establish and make publicly available clear, 
                objective, content- and viewpoint-neutral, and 
                exhaustive standards to be used by the institution to 
                determine--
                            ``(i) the total amount of funds made 
                        available for allocations to the recognized 
                        student organizations; and
                            ``(ii) the allocations of such total amount 
                        to individual recognized student organizations;
                    ``(B) ensure that allocations are made to the 
                recognized student organizations in accordance with the 
                standards established pursuant to subparagraph (A);
                    ``(C) upon the request of a recognized student 
                organization that has been denied all or a portion of 
                an allocation described in subparagraph (B), provide to 
                the organization, in writing (which may include 
                electronic communication) and in a timely manner, the 
                specific reasons for such denial and information of the 
                appeals process described in subparagraph (D);
                    ``(D) provide an appeals process by which a 
                recognized student organization that has been denied 
                all or a portion of an allocation described in 
                subparagraph (B) may appeal to an institutional 
                appellate entity for reconsideration, and the 
                institution shall ensure that such appellate entity did 
                not participate in any prior proceeding related to such 
                allocation; and
                    ``(E) have in place policies and procedures to 
                disqualify an individual or entity from participating 
                in a determination described in subparagraph (A) or 
                (B), or an appeal described in subparagraph (D), if 
                such individual or entity has failed to apply the 
                standards for determinations established by the 
                institution pursuant to this paragraph.
            ``(3) Assessment of security fees for events.--A covered 
        public institution shall establish and make publicly available 
        clear, objective, content- and viewpoint-neutral, and 
        exhaustive standards to be used by the institution to--
                    ``(A) determine the amount of any security fee for 
                an event or activity organized by a student or student 
                organization; and
                    ``(B) ensure that a determination of such an amount 
                may not be based, in whole or in part, on--
                            ``(i) the content of expression or 
                        viewpoint of the student or student 
                        organization;
                            ``(ii) the purpose or content of expression 
                        of the event or activity organized by the 
                        student or student organization;
                            ``(iii) the content of expression or 
                        viewpoint of an invited guest of the student or 
                        student organization; or
                            ``(iv) an anticipated reaction by students 
                        or the public to the event or activity due to 
                        the purpose, content of expression, or 
                        viewpoint expressed at the event or activity by 
                        the student, student organization, or an 
                        invited guest.
            ``(4) Protections for invited guests and speakers.--A 
        covered public institution shall establish and make publicly 
        available clear, objective, content- and viewpoint-neutral, and 
        exhaustive standards to be used by the institution related to 
        the safety and protection of speakers and guests who are 
        invited to the institution by a student or student 
        organization.
    ``(b) Enforcement.--
            ``(1) Cause of action.--
                    ``(A) Civil action.--Whoever is harmed by a covered 
                public institution by the maintenance of a policy or 
                practice of the institution that is in violation of a 
                requirement described in subsection (a) may bring a 
                civil action in a Federal court for appropriate relief.
                    ``(B) Appropriate relief.--For the purposes of this 
                paragraph, appropriate relief includes--
                            ``(i) a temporary or permanent injunction; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) awarding a prevailing plaintiff--
                                    ``(I) compensatory damages;
                                    ``(II) reasonable court costs; and
                                    ``(III) reasonable attorney fees.
                    ``(C) Statute of limitations.--A civil action under 
                this paragraph may not be commenced later than 2 years 
                after the cause of action accrues.
            ``(2) In general.--In the case of a court's non-default, 
        final judgment in a civil action brought under paragraph (1) 
        that a covered public institution is in violation of a 
        requirement described in subsection (a), such covered public 
        institution shall--
                    ``(A) not later than 7 days after the date on which 
                the court makes such a non-default, final judgment, 
                notify the Secretary of such judgment and submit to the 
                Secretary a copy of the non-default, final judgment; 
                and
                    ``(B) not later than 30 days after the date on 
                which the court makes such a non-default, final 
                judgment, submit to the Secretary a report that--
                            ``(i) certifies that the standard, policy, 
                        practice, or procedure that is in violation of 
                        the requirement described in subsection (a) is 
                        no longer in use; and
                            ``(ii) provides evidence to support such 
                        certification.
            ``(3) Revocation of eligibility.--In the case of a covered 
        public institution that does not notify the Secretary as 
        required under paragraph (2)(A) or submit the report required 
        under paragraph (2)(B), the Secretary shall revoke the 
        eligibility of such institution to receive funds under this 
        Act, including through participation in a program authorized 
        under title IV, for each award year following the conclusion of 
        the award year in which a court made a non-default, final 
        judgment in a civil action brought under paragraph (1) that the 
        institution is in violation of a requirement described in 
        subsection (a).
            ``(4) Restoration of eligibility.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A covered public institution 
                that loses eligibility under paragraph (3) to receive 
                funds under this Act may seek to restore such 
                eligibility by submitting to the Secretary the report 
                described in paragraph (2)(B).
                    ``(B) Determination by the secretary.--Not later 
                than 90 days after a covered public institution submits 
                a report under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall 
                review such report and make a determination with 
                respect to whether such report contained sufficient 
                evidence to demonstrate that such institution is no 
                longer in violation of a requirement described in 
                subsection (a).
                    ``(C) Restoration.--If the Secretary makes a 
                determination under subparagraph (B) that the covered 
                public institution is no longer in violation of a 
                requirement described in subsection (a), the Secretary 
                shall restore the eligibility of such institution to 
                receive funds under this Act, including through 
                participation in a program authorized under title IV, 
                for each award year following the conclusion of the 
                award year in which such determination is made.
    ``(c) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
construed to infringe upon or otherwise impact the protections of an 
institution of higher education under title VII of the Civil Rights Act 
of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) and title IX of the Education 
Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.).
    ``(d) Report to Congress.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
the enactment of the Students Bill of Rights Act of 2024 and on an 
annual basis thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 
Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives and the 
Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions a report 
that includes--
            ``(1) a compilation of--
                    ``(A) the notifications of violation received by 
                the Secretary under subsection (b)(2)(A) in the year 
                for which such report is being submitted; and
                    ``(B) the reports submitted to the Secretary under 
                subsection (b)(2)(B) for such year; and
            ``(2) any action taken by the Secretary revoke or restore 
        eligibility under paragraphs (3) and (4) of subsection (b) for 
        such year.
    ``(e) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Covered public institution.--The term `covered public 
        institution' means an institution of higher education, as 
        defined in section 101, that is a public institution.
            ``(2) Content- and viewpoint-neutral.--The term `content- 
        and viewpoint-neutral', when used with respect to a policy, 
        practice, determination, fee assessment, or allocation applied 
        to a student organization, means a policy, practice, 
        determination, fee assessment, or allocation that does not take 
        into consideration any purpose of, or viewpoints held or 
        expressed by, such organization.
            ``(3) Non-default, final judgment.--The term `non-default, 
        final judgment' means a final judgment by a court for a civil 
        action brought under paragraph (1) that a covered public 
        institution is in violation of a requirement described in 
        subsection (a) that the covered public institution chooses not 
        to appeal or that is not subject to further appeal.
            ``(4) Recognized student organization.--The term 
        `recognized student organization' means a student organization 
        that has been determined by a covered public institution to 
        meet institutional requirements to qualify for certain 
        privileges granted by the institution, such as use of 
        institutional venues, resources, and funding.
            ``(5) Security fee.--The term `security fee' means a fee 
        charged to a student or student organization for an event or 
        activity organized by the student or student organization on 
        the campus of the institution that is intended to cover the 
        costs incurred by the institution for additional security 
        measures needed to ensure the security of the institution, 
        students, faculty, staff, or surrounding community as a result 
        of such event or activity.''.

SEC. 3. PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT.

    Section 487(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1094(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(30) In the 
case of an institution that is a covered public institution under 
section 112A, the institution will comply with the requirements of such 
section.''.
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