Wisconsin Assembly passes campus free speech bill

MADISON - Lawmakers late Wednesday voted to crack down on University of Wisconsin System students who disrupt other people's speeches and events, pitting one set of free speech concerns against another. 

Republicans who control the state Legislature are pushing Assembly Bill 299 to protect conservative voices on campus. The Assembly sent the bill to the state Senate on a 61-36 vote Wednesday night, with Republican Rep. Bob Gannon of West Bend joining all Democrats in opposing the bill. 

"Today we are ensuring that simply because you are a young adult on a college campus, your constitutional rights do not go away," lead sponsor Rep. Jesse Kremer (R-Kewaskum) said. "Around the country we've had situations that have gotten to the point of demonstration shout downs and we do not want to get to that point in Wisconsin."

Critics argue the bill isn't needed in Wisconsin and would actually hinder freedom of speech by suspending or expelling students.  

“Our colleges and universities should be a place to vigorously debate ideas and ultimately learn from one another. Instead, this campus gag rule creates an atmosphere of fear where free expression and dissent are discouraged,”  Rep. Lisa Subeck (D-Madison) said. 

Gannon said he also had some concerns that liberals could try to use the legislation to silence conservative students who might want to protest abortion, gun control or other government policies. Gannon said he supported holding young students accountable for the free exchange of ideas but said more responsibility for that should be placed on the UW administration and faculty.

"I'm afraid it's going to intimidate students into silence — conservative students into silence," Gannon said.  

Tensions have mounted in recent months between liberal campuses and conservative speakers. At the University of Wisconsin-Madison in November, conservative speaker and former Breitbart editor Ben Shapiro gave a speech to a conservative student organization and was interrupted by liberal activists. 

Shapiro had to stop his speech for seven minutes while protesters chanted and yelled. 

Kremer's bill, co-sponsored by Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester), is aimed at ensuring that violent protests, like those seen at University of California-Berkeley, don't occur in Wisconsin. He said the bill would not affect classroom discussions but would give Wisconsin the strongest measure in the country to prevent disruptions of free speech. 

"College campuses should be the one place where the most honest, the most open debate happens," Vos said. 

The UW System currently has policies in place to reprimand students who are out of line during protests. Sponsors of the bill, however, say those policies don't work and want to replace them. 

But opponents say the bill doesn't clearly spell out what conduct will be punished and could have a chilling effect on speech. 

The proposal would have established a special council in charge of disciplinary hearings when a student is accused of preventing someone from speaking or restricting their free expression. But an amendment offered Wednesday by Kremer dropped the council idea and instead gave the responsibility for discipline to the Board of Regents. 

Under the bill, anyone could report a student at one of the system's four-year or two-year colleges for violating the policies and a student would automatically be sent to a disciplinary hearing if reported twice. 

A student found guilty of two violations would be suspended for a minimum of one semester. A third violation would result in the student being kicked out of the university. 

During freshman and transfer student orientation, students would be informed of the system's free expression policies and receive First Amendment training and instructors would get annual training. 

The Assembly approved three other bills Wednesday: 

Voucher schools. Senate Bill 293 would eliminate some accountability requirements for private schools that receive taxpayer-funded vouchers, including rules that dictate standards for meeting average attendance levels and promoting students from one grade to the next. The Assembly voted, 67-30, to send the bill to Gov. Scott Walker. 

The proposal would also require that the schools conduct background checks on employees similar to those required of public school teachers and would impose penalties on schools that knowingly falsify information. The bill would also allow public schools that lose special-needs students to private voucher schools to recoup those funds from state and local taxpayers.

Renewable energy.Senate Bill 144 would allow waste heat from manufacturing to count toward renewable energy requirements in the state, a controversial concept since it's different from traditional renewable sources such as wind or solar power.  The Assembly sent the bill to Walker on a voice vote. 

Chiropractors. Assembly Bill 260 would allow licensed chiropractors to perform physical examinations for youth sports teams, a role reserved for physicians. The bill was approved on a voice vote and now goes to the Senate.