Text: HF00315 Text: HF00317 Text: HF00300 - HF00399 Text: HF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
PAG LIN
1 1 Section 1. NEW SECTION. 659A.1 FREEDOM OF SPEECH.
1 2 It is an unfair and discriminatory practice for a public or
1 3 private postsecondary college, university, community college,
1 4 or trade school to make or enforce a rule subjecting students
1 5 to disciplinary sanctions solely on the basis of conduct that
1 6 is speech or other communication that, when engaged in outside
1 7 the campus of a public or private postsecondary institution,
1 8 is protected from government intrusion by the first amendment
1 9 of the Constitution of the United States or by Article I,
1 10 section 7, of the Constitution of the State of Iowa.
1 11 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 659A.2 STUDENT REMEDIES.
1 12 A student enrolled at a postsecondary educational
1 13 institution covered in this section that has made or enforced
1 14 any rule in violation of this section may bring a civil action
1 15 to obtain injunctive or declaratory relief. Venue for this
1 16 action shall be with the district court in the county in which
1 17 the postsecondary institution is located. In the event the
1 18 postsecondary institution has branches, venue shall be in the
1 19 county in which the student attends the postsecondary
1 20 educational institution.
1 21 A civil action brought pursuant to this section must be
1 22 filed with the district court within one hundred eighty days
1 23 after the alleged discriminatory or unfair practice occurred.
1 24 If requested in the petition for relief, a court hearing the
1 25 petition shall award attorney's fees to a plaintiff prevailing
1 26 in a civil action brought pursuant to this section. Upon
1 27 motion of the plaintiff, the district court shall order the
1 28 temporary restraint or injunction of any disciplinary sanction
1 29 imposed or contemplated by the postsecondary educational
1 30 institution which is based on an unfair or discriminatory
1 31 practice under this section during the pendency of an action
1 32 brought under this section. This temporary injunction shall
1 33 issue without bond or surety upon the request of the
1 34 plaintiff, any other provision of the Code or the rules of
1 35 civil procedure notwithstanding.
2 1 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION. 659A.3 AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSES.
2 2 The following shall be affirmative defenses to any action
2 3 brought under section 659A.2, if actually pleaded and proved
2 4 by the postsecondary educational institution:
2 5 1. That the private postsecondary educational institution
2 6 is controlled by a bona fide religious organization, to the
2 7 extent that the application of this chapter would not be
2 8 consistent with the religious tenets of the organization.
2 9 2. That the rule prohibits only behavior which would con-
2 10 stitute a public offense under the laws of the state of Iowa.
2 11 Sec. 4. NEW SECTION. 659A.4 PROHIBITIONS.
2 12 1. This chapter shall not be construed to authorize any
2 13 prior restraint of student speech.
2 14 2. This chapter does not prohibit the imposition of
2 15 discipline for harassment, threats, or intimidation, unless
2 16 constitutionally protected.
2 17 3. This chapter does not prohibit a postsecondary edu-
2 18 cational institution from adopting rules to prevent hate
2 19 crimes, as defined in section 729A.2, from being directed at
2 20 students in a manner that denies students full participation
2 21 in the educational process, as long as the rules conform to
2 22 standards established under the first amendment to the
2 23 Constitution of the United States and under Article I, section
2 24 7, of the Constitution of the State of Iowa for citizens
2 25 generally.
2 26 EXPLANATION
2 27 This bill prohibits postsecondary educational institutions
2 28 from disciplining students who are exercising their first
2 29 amendment rights of free speech, unless the exercise of these
2 30 rights constitutes a public offense in the state of Iowa or a
2 31 hate crime as defined in section 729A.2.
2 32 The bill also establishes a court procedure for obtaining
2 33 an injunction and for filing a complaint. The bill provides
2 34 for attorney's fees to be awarded to a prevailing plaintiff.
2 35 LSB 1447HH 76
3 1 cl/jw/5
Text: HF00315 Text: HF00317 Text: HF00300 - HF00399 Text: HF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
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