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Washington legislator reintroduces amendment striking high schools from student free press bill
Amendment was defeated in committee earlier this year
March 2, 2007
Rep. Jay Rodne
(R-North Bend) proposed the amendment to HB 1307 early last month while it was
being reviewed by the House Judiciary Committee because he said there is a legal
difference concerning high school students that should be taken into
consideration, referencing the 1988 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Hazelwood
v. Kuhlmeier.
"The Hazelwood decision used the most
deferential standard of review regarding those restrictions imposed on high
school student newspaper publications," Rodne said. "Schools can put reasonable
restrictions because of their special status with respect to minor
students."
A major concern with including high school students in the
bill is that he believes parents would also be "exposed" to liability, Rodne
said.
Six states already have state laws protecting student press freedom
similar to the Washington proposal, the last enacted in 1995.
State Rep.
Dave Upthegrove (D-Des Moines) introduced the Washington bill in January, which
passed the Judiciary Committee in February and was assigned to the Rules
Committee. The bill cut-off date for state House bills to be passed to the
Senate is March 14.
"The amendment would significantly reduce the scope
of the bill," Upthegrove said. "The most frequent and most flagrant
problems with inappropriate censorship have been at the high school
level. Our Republican Attorney General Rob McKenna supports the underlying
bill, and conservatives in other states have supported press freedom for high
school students."
By Erica Hudock, SPLC staff writer
© 2007 Student Press Law Center
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