In good news for Illinois high school journalists, Illinois House Bill 5902, sponsored by Democratic State Representative Will Guzzardi, passed out of committee April 6 with an 11-0 vote.

Though Illinois already has a law protecting public college students, this bill would protect high school journalists from administrative censorship and instead hold them accountable to laws covering professional journalism. Teachers and advisers also cannot be retaliated against under the bill, which is also known as “New Voices” legislation.

“Though I think it’s awesome for free speech and for giving students a voice, it could be bad in the wrong hands,” English department chair DeeAnn Andershock said.

“I, too, believe that public school administrators should allow students, under the guidance of advisers, to exercise all aspects of free speech,” English teacher Kathleen Beckman said in an email. “I like that the bill protects both journalists enrolled in a class and those who may choose to produce ‘independent’ type print or digital reporting.”

Some states, including nearby Iowa, Arkansas and Kansas, have passed similar laws to override the restrictions on student media after the 1988 Supreme Court case Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier.

However, Beckman said she worried that for an “anti-Hazelwood” bill, the language in the potential law was comparable to the Hazelwood decision.

“I do find this particular wording problematic: ‘…the violation of policies of the school district, or the material and substantial disruption of the orderly operation of the school…’ because, first, it sounds pretty similar to the Hazelwood case and, second, I’m thinking a district could simply write policies that would prohibit certain topics from being reported on,” Beckman said. “I hope that would not be the case and that this bill would override any preemptive attempts by a district to limit a student’s First Amendment rights.”

Community High School District 117 currently reserves the right to censor student publications.

“School-sponsored publications, productions and web sites are part of the curriculum and are not a public forum for general student use,” the D117 Board policy said. “School authorities may edit or delete material that is inconsistent with the District’s educational mission.”

For HB 5902 to pass in Illinois, it must first survive debate on the House floor, passed by the House, passed by the Senate and signed into law by the governor.