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Yesterday, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed into law , a bill that will strengthen students’ freedom of association at the state’s public colleges and universities. Sponsored by Rep. Karianne Lisonbee and Sen. Keven Stratton, the bill ensures that religious, political, and ideological student organizations can set their own membership and leadership requirements without interference from campus administrators.

The First Amendment guarantees citizens the right to freely associate with others who share their beliefs — and to not associate with those who don’t. FIREhas consistently opposed policies that force student groups to eliminate belief-based membership criteria to gain official recognition by their college. 

After all, the members of a group naturally shape its direction, and allowing individuals who fundamentally oppose its mission to vote or hold leadership positions can undermine the group’s very purpose. It makes little sense, for example, to force a Muslim student group to let atheists become voting members or for an environmentalist student group that raises awareness about the threats of climate change to allow climate change skeptics to hold office.

As we noted in our letter to Utah’s Senate Education Committee, the right to associate freely extends to students at public universities and to the student organizations they form. The Supreme Court has repeatedly upheld this principle, affirming in Healy v. James that public colleges cannot deny official recognition to student organizations solely based on their beliefs or associations. Similarly, in Widmar v. Vincent, the Court ruled that a public university violated the First Amendment by denying a religious student group access to campus facilities because of its religious beliefs.

Despite these clear precedents, the Supreme Court ruled in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez that universities can implement “all-comers” policies, meaning student organizations must accept any student who wants to join as a member or leader, even if that student openly opposes the group’s core principles. Following the ruling, FIREPresident and CEO Greg Lukianoff reaffirmed our commitment to freedom of association, saying, “FIREwill continue to defend the rights of expressive campus organizations to unite around shared beliefs and uphold the principle that College Democrats can be Democrats, College Atheists can be atheists, and College Christians can be Christians.”

Although Martinez found that all-comers policies are constitutionally permissible when applied uniformly, institutions with such policies have frequently enforced them selectively. For example, some religious organizations have been forced to accept members and leaders who do not share their faith, while secular groups have been  to set their own membership and leadership requirements without administrative intervention. This selective enforcement constitutes viewpoint discrimination, undermining the very protections that the First Amendment guarantees.

HB 390 ensures that Utah’s public universities cannot single out student groups for holding firm to their beliefs. The bill states: 

An institution may not deny any benefit or privilege that is available to any student organization, or discriminate against, a religious, political, or ideological student organization:

1. because such student organization is religious, political, or ideological;

2. on the basis of protected expressive activity engaged in by the student organization or the student organization's members; or

3. based on a requirement that a leader of the student organization:

   1. affirm or adhere to the sincerely held beliefs of the student organization;

   2. comply with a standard of conduct the student organization establishes; or

   3. further the mission, purpose, or standards of conduct of the student organization, as these are defined by the student organization.

With the enactment of this bill into law, Utah     strengthening First Amendment protections for belief-based organizations on campus. 

FIRE applauds Rep. Lisonbee and Sen. Stratton, the Utah Legislature, and Gov. Cox for standing up for students’ rights and ensuring true freedom of association in higher education.