Among the most sacred hallmarks of our public education is the protection of free speech.
But the UC has limited just that since its 2024 implementation of Time, Place and Manner policies. These policies, which were finalized in 2025, limit when and where demonstrations can take place on campus.
The university’s TPM policies, implemented in the wake of a slew of 2024 pro-Palestine protests and encampments, limit demonstrations to narrow “areas of free expression” and bar students from demonstrating on campus between midnight and 6 a.m. The regulations might be legal – the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld viewpoint-neutral TPM policies – but they undeniably inhibit speech on campus that purports to support the free exchange of ideas and open debate.
[Related: UCLA’s finalized Time, Place and Manner policy alters public expression guidelines]
A potential solution seemed to arrive this February in the form of Assembly Bill 2551. The bill, which would ask the UC to hold open forums and report data about TPM policies, passed 44-8 in the Assembly.
Then, in September, Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed it.
[Related: Newsom vetoes bill requesting UC to report on Time, Place and Manner policies]
In a message accompanying his veto, Newsom said it would be redundant for the UC to hold additional TPM forums. The UC Board of Regents meets every other month and offers opportunities for public comment at its sessions.
To combat Newsom’s misguided veto and demonstrate its dedication to preserving free speech, it is imperative that UCLA hold its own open forums for student feedback on TPM policies.
Regents’ public comment meetings are notoriously busy – speakers have up to three minutes, though sometimes less depending on availability, to make their point. UCPD has also shut down demonstrations during public comment, including by arresting demonstrators and reading dispersal orders, making these so-called public forums far from neutral ground.
[Related: UC Regents amend, renew progressive tuition increases for new students]
Passing Assembly Bill 2551 and increasing transparency about the enforcement of TPM had the potential to combat the lack of freedom students currently feel. Nearly 40% of UCLA students say they have self-censored on campus at least once or twice a month, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression.
But UCLA doesn’t need a statewide bill to implement its own public forums. Doing so independently of the UC would rebuild trust with students and mark the university as a leader in students’ rights to free expression.
After all, there’s something oxymoronic about a public school that can’t answer questions about its limitations on public expression.
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