With only 10 days left in the legislative session, lawmakers are scrambling to get their bills across the finish line (for better or worse). Several bills are speeding their way to meet deadlines — in some cases even skipping traditional legislative processes to do so.
On Monday, May 19, the House Higher Education Committee not only cancelled their scheduled hearing for the next day but convened in a formal meeting to vote out pending bills, including the “Death Star” bill, Senate Bill 37, and an anti-free speech bill.
SB 2972, which severely restricts student demonstrations and expressive activities on campus, was initially scheduled to have a public hearing on Tuesday, May 20. Instead, the hearing was cancelled, and the bill was voted out of committee with no public input in the House. And yes, this is completely legal. Because SB 2972 already had a public hearing in the Senate Education K-16 Committee over a month ago, it does not require the House to open it to public comments.
SB 2972 by Sen. Brandon Creighton places new restrictions on what is classified as “free speech” on college campuses, using vague terms like “obscenity.” Depending on who you ask, obscenity can have a multitude of meanings. With definitions like this being implemented into statute, it creates a dangerous precedent for censorship. If the school administration doesn’t like or agree with what a student says, administrators could define it as “obscene” and incite disciplinary proceedings that can escalate to a violation of state law.
The bill also removes a provision in current law that allows for “ample alternative means of expression” and restricts which areas of public, open campuses are considered “public forums,” allowing institutions to decide where students can and cannot engage in expressive activities. For such a substantive bill, it would seem to be not only courtesy, but tradition, to allow public comment. Instead, the bill sped through the Calendars Committee and is scheduled to be heard on the House floor this Saturday, May 24.
The House Higher Ed Committee also voted on SB 37, which unfortunately passed along party lines. Despite concerns from Republican members on the committee, and the catastrophic impact bill will have on their local community colleges, universities, and health institutions, these lawmakers voted to in favor of SB 37. It is also scheduled to be heard on the House floor this Saturday.
Over in the Senate Education K-16 Committee, House Bill 5294, a so-called “anti-DEI” bill for medical schools was heard on Thursday, May 24. The bill is authored by Rep. Greg Bonnen, with its Senate counterpart authored by Creighton.
The bill authors argue that Texas medical schools are “quietly shifting away from merit-based standards” and aim to reform grading systems and admissions practices. Currently, several medical schools in Texas grade coursework on a “Pass/Fail” system, where numerical or letter grades are not recorded. This is often used in the first year of medical school, a time when students are adjusting to the rigor and demands of the program.
HB 5294 would require all medical schools to grade on an A-F scale and prohibit the use of pass/fail grading. This is counterproductive to addressing the mental health crisis medical students are facing. The National Institute of Health (NIH) has identified medical student burnout as a major issue, with heavy pressure on performance leading to mental health issues.
The NIH has also studied the impact of pass/fail grading and found that students graded on a numerical or letter scale faced significantly higher levels of stress, emotional exhaustion, and were more likely to burn out or drop out.
HB 5294 also prohibits “granting preference on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin to an applicant for admission.” A Supreme Court case in 2023 already invalidated affirmative action admissions, including those for medical schools. The bill’s provisions on admission standards are nothing more than virtue signaling for the movement opposing diversity, equity, and inclusion practices and programs. The bill was left pending in committee.
With the “Death Star” higher ed bill making its way to the House floor, our faculty members have been showing out to the Capitol every day to make their opposition to SB 37 clear. We need you to help us and contact your representative to tell them to vote NO on SB 37. Click to call your representative now.