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Senate higher-education committee defeats bill to bar funding for colleges that permit activity tied to federally designated terrorist groups
Summary
The Senate Committee on Higher Education voted to defeat a bill that would have barred state funding to degree-granting institutions that 'directly or indirectly permit' activities supporting organizations designated under federal law, after members raised First Amendment and vagueness concerns.
The New York State Senate Committee on Higher Education on a voice and roll-call vote defeated legislation that would withhold state funding from degree-granting institutions that allow organizations or activities supporting groups designated as terrorist organizations under federal law.
Committee Chair Toby Stavisky said the measure, presented as "Senate bill 12 68 by Senator Rose," would amend education law to bar state funding “if the institution directly or indirectly permits organizations or activities in support of such organizations designated as terrorist organizations pursuant to 8 US code 11 89 on such campus.” The committee received a memo in opposition from the New York State Education Department and no memos in support.
Members who opposed the bill raised constitutional and practical concerns. Senator May asked how the bill’s phrase "directly or indirectly" would be applied, noting it could sweep in private student expression: “if a student…has a poster on their wall…that could…be interpreted in this way,” she said. Senator May and others also warned the measure could jeopardize state aid and research funding for institutions over speech by a small number of students.
Sponsor remarks and federal citation: Senator Rhodes (who spoke for the sponsor) responded that the statutory reference—identified during the hearing as "8 US code 11 89"—is the federal code used to define organizations the federal government recognizes as terrorist. Rhodes said the bill was intended to tie campus funding to whether an institution permits activities that support those federally designated organizations.
Outcome and procedure: A roll-call was taken and the committee recorded the tally as 8 to 3; the chair announced the bill was defeated. The transcript records the vote as "The vote is 8 to 3" and later states the bill was defeated.
Why it matters: Committee members framed the dispute as balancing campus safety and federal counterterrorism lists against free-speech protections and the risk of broad, unclear enforcement. Members noted that the breadth of the bill’s language could have unintended effects on financial aid and on ordinary campus expression.
What happened next: The committee moved on with the remainder of its agenda; no further action on this bill was recorded in the meeting.
