Florida's "viewpoint diversity" bill for higher ed heads to governor

Republican-backed HB 233, which passed both House and Senate and needs only the governor's signature, would make colleges and universities ask professors annually about their political beliefs to "assess the status of intellectual freedom and viewpoint diversity."

Driving the news: The legislation comes as conservatives complain about a so-called liberal indoctrination of students, Florida Politics reports.

• But Republican Sen. Ray Rodrigues, who is shepherding the legislation through the Senate, opposed assertions that the effort is political.
• The bill says the survey should be "objective, nonpartisan, and statistically valid," but doesn't say how results should be used.

The big picture: As Inside Higher Ed points out, a similar bill was introduced in Florida in 2019 and met with faculty opposition.

• Some critics asked how a new survey would help when numerous studies demonstrate that professors are overwhelmingly liberal and despite this, students tend to develop more positive attitudes about both liberals and conservatives after a year of college.