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AB735,7,1514 3. Any person whose expressive rights were violated through the violation of
15this section.
AB735,7,1716 (c) Subject to par. (d), in an action brought under par. (a), if the court finds a
17violation, the court shall award to the plaintiffs all of the following:
AB735,7,2018 1. Total damages for all persons aggrieved by the violation of not less than $500
19for the initial violation plus $50 for each day the violation remains ongoing, which
20shall accrue starting on the day after the complaint is served on the board.
AB735,7,2121 2. Notwithstanding s. 814.04 (1), court costs and reasonable attorney fees.
AB735,8,222 (d) In an action brought under par. (a), the total damages, excluding court costs
23and attorney fees, that may be awarded to plaintiffs in a case or cases stemming from
24a single controversy may not exceed an aggregate amount of $100,000. In violations

1harming multiple plaintiffs, the court shall divide the damages equitably among
2them until the maximum award is exhausted, if applicable.
AB735,8,63 (e) If a court awards to plaintiffs damages, court costs, or attorney fees in an
4action brought under this subsection, the board shall pay the total amount of the
5award from moneys allocated under s. 36.09 (1) (h) to the violating institution for the
6institution's administrative expenses.
AB735,3 7Section 3. 38.04 (7m) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB735,8,138 38.04 (7m) Financial aids. By February 10 of each year, the board shall develop
9and submit to the higher educational aids board for its review under s. 39.285 (1) a
10proposed formula for the awarding of grants under s. 39.435, except for grants
11awarded under s. 39.435 (2) or (5), for the next fiscal year to students enrolled in the
12technical colleges. The proposed formula shall take into consideration any technical
13college's loss of funding allocation under s. 38.34 (4) (b) and (c).
AB735,4 14Section 4 . 38.34 of the statutes is created to read:
AB735,8,16 1538.34 Campus free speech and academic freedom. (1) Definitions. In
16this section:
AB735,8,1817 (a) “Employee” means a staff member, faculty member, or administrator
18employed by a district board.
AB735,8,1919 (b) “Student” means an individual enrolled in a district school.
AB735,8,21 20(2) First Amendment protections. (a) A district board may not do any of the
21following:
AB735,8,2322 1. Restrict noncommercial speech protected under the First Amendment of the
23U.S. Constitution.
AB735,9,3
12. Maintain and enforce time, place, and manner restrictions on expressive
2activities on the open outdoor areas of district campuses that are generally accessible
3to the public unless those restrictions meet all of the following requirements:
AB735,9,64 a. The restrictions are reasonable, in furtherance of a significant interest of the
5district board, and employ clear, published, content-neutral and viewpoint-neutral
6criteria.
AB735,9,97 b. The restrictions provide for ample alternative means for communication and
8allow for members of the district campus's community to spontaneously and
9contemporaneously distribute literature and assemble.
AB735,9,1210 3. Designate any area of a district campus a “free speech zone” or otherwise
11create policies restricting noncommercial expressive activities to a particular area
12of a district campus.
AB735,9,1413 4. Charge fees for additional security based on the anticipated content of speech
14or anticipated reaction to speech.
AB735,9,2315 5. Sanction individuals or groups for discriminatory harassment unless the
16speech is unwelcome, targets its victim on the basis of the victim's real or perceived
17membership in a class protected under federal, state, or local law, and is
18demonstrably so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it effectively bars
19a student from receiving equal access to educational opportunities or benefits. This
20subdivision does not preclude a district board from providing additional resources to
21a student affected by speech that cannot be sanctioned under this subdivision or from
22taking nonpunitive actions designed to promote a welcoming, inclusive
23environment.
AB735,9,2524 (b) All indoor and outdoor public areas owned or operated by a district board
25shall be considered public forums.
AB735,10,5
1(c) A district board shall make every reasonable effort to prevent protected
2speech and district board–sanctioned events, activities, and instruction from being
3disrupted. Nothing in this section shall prevent or inhibit a district board from
4preventing disruptions or punishing disrupters if the district board, to do so, does not
5prevent or punish expression that is protected under the First Amendment.
AB735,10,66 (d) A district board shall do all of the following:
AB735,10,97 1. Conduct an annual survey of all students and employees on First
8Amendment rights, academic freedom, perceived political, ideological, or other bias
9at the district schools, and whether campus culture promotes self-censorship.
AB735,10,1110 2. Annually submit to the legislature under s. 13.172 (2) a report detailing the
11results of the survey under subd. 1.
AB735,10,1312 3. Annually provide all students and employees with instruction in academic
13freedom, due process, and First Amendment protections.
AB735,10,17 14(3) Academic freedom. A district board may not sanction an individual on the
15basis of the content or viewpoints expressed while the individual is directly engaged
16in instruction, research, or service explicitly related to the individual's role as a
17student or faculty member of a district school.
AB735,10,25 18(4) Penalties; institutional aid. (a) A district board that violates this section,
19for 10 years following the date of the finding of the violation under par. (e), shall
20include a disclaimer on all notices, both printed or electronic, to individuals
21regarding admission to a technical college of the district, in a type size no smaller
22than the majority of the rest of the notice, in substantially the following form:
23“NOTICE: We are required by the State of Wisconsin to inform you that within the
24last 10 years ... [insert name of technical college] has violated the free speech or
25academic freedom provisions in the Wisconsin statutes.”
AB735,11,3
1(b) A district board that violates this section more than once in a 10-year period
2is ineligible for allocation of grants under s. 39.435, except grants awarded under s.
339.435 (2) or (5), for a period of no less than one fiscal year.
AB735,11,74 (c) In addition to the period of ineligibility under par. (b), if a district board
5administrator causes the violation of this section, the district board is not eligible for
6allocation of grants under s. 39.435, except grants awarded under s. 39.435 (2) or (5),
7until the administrator is permanently removed from his or her administrative role.
AB735,11,158 (d) If a district board that violates this section is ineligible under par. (b) or (c)
9for allocation of grants under s. 39.435, except grants awarded under s. 39.435 (2)
10or (5), the district board shall make an award of institutional financial aid to each
11student affected by the district board's ineligibility under par. (b) or (c) in the amount
12that the student would have received as a grant under s. 39.435 if the district board
13had not violated this section. The district board shall pay the institutional financial
14aid awarded to each student under this paragraph from moneys that the district
15board has allocated for its administrative expenses.
AB735,11,1716 (e) The penalties under this subsection apply if any of the following find, on the
17basis of a preponderance of the evidence, that the district board violated this section:
AB735,11,1818 1. A state or federal court in this state.
AB735,11,1919 2. The higher educational aids board.
AB735,11,2120 3. Any standing committee of the legislature having jurisdiction over matters
21relating to higher education.
AB735,11,24 22(5) Cause of action. (a) Any person identified in par. (b) may bring an action
23in circuit court against a district board for violation of this section and may seek any
24of the following:
AB735,11,2525 1. An injunction against violation of this section.
AB735,12,2
12. Recovery from the district board of compensatory damages for persons
2aggrieved by the violation.
AB735,12,33 (b) Any of the following persons may bring an action under par. (a):
AB735,12,44 1. The attorney general.
AB735,12,55 2. A district attorney.
AB735,12,76 3. Any person whose expressive rights were violated through the violation of
7this section.
AB735,12,98 (c) Subject to par. (d), in an action brought under par. (a), if the court finds a
9violation, the court shall award to the plaintiffs all of the following:
AB735,12,1210 1. Total damages for all persons aggrieved by the violation of not less than $500
11for the initial violation plus $50 for each day the violation remains ongoing, which
12shall accrue starting on the day after the complaint is served on the district board.
AB735,12,1313 2. Notwithstanding s. 814.04 (1), court costs and reasonable attorney fees.
AB735,12,1814 (d) In an action brought under par. (a), the total damages, excluding court costs
15and attorney fees, that may be awarded to plaintiffs in a case or cases stemming from
16a single controversy may not exceed an aggregate amount of $100,000. In violations
17harming multiple plaintiffs, the court shall divide the damages equitably among
18them until the maximum award is exhausted, if applicable.
AB735,12,2219 (e) If a court awards to plaintiffs damages, court costs, or attorney fees in an
20action brought under this subsection, the district board shall pay the total amount
21of the award from moneys that the district board has allocated for its administrative
22expenses.
AB735,12,2423 (f) Section 893.80 does not apply to an action brought against a district board
24under this section.
AB735,5 25Section 5. 39.285 (1) (c) of the statutes is created to read:
AB735,13,4
139.285 (1) (c) The board shall ensure that any proposed formula approved
2under par. (a) takes into consideration any University of Wisconsin institution's loss
3of funding allocation under s. 36.41 (4) (b) and (c) or technical college district board's
4loss of funding allocation under s. 38.34 (4) (b) and (c).
AB735,13,55 (End)
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