# Texas College Protest Law Faces Federal Challenge

> Texas law restricting campus protests after midnight and during finals faces constitutional test in federal court.
- Title: Texas College Protest Law Faces Federal Challenge | Shortify
- Summary: Texas law restricting campus protests after midnight and during finals faces constitutional test in federal court. Texas' Campus Protection Act, which bans…
- Keywords: texas, campus protection act, first amendment, ut austin, ut dallas, senate bill 2972, federal appeals court, student protest, news, local, College, Protest
- Source: The Texas Tribune — https://feeds.texastribune.org/link/16799/17490298/texas-college-campus-protest-first-amendment-lawsuit
- Author: Jessica Priest
- Published: 2026-10-06T10:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: texas, campus protection act, first amendment, ut austin, ut dallas, senate bill 2972, federal appeals court, student protest, news, local
## Texas law restricts campus protests
A Texas law restricting protesting on public college campuses will face a constitutional test Tuesday.
## Senate Bill 2972 details
The law requires Texas public colleges to adopt policies barring expressive activity from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. and prohibits amplified sound during final two weeks of term.
## Law passed in 2025
Legislators passed Senate Bill 2972 in response to pro-Palestinian protests at colleges that occurred across the state in 2024.
## Protest context
Demonstrations intensified after students at Columbia University set up an encampment in April 2024 and later occupied a building.
## UT Austin response
Days later, hundreds of students walked out of the University of Texas at Austin to demand the university system divest from weapons manufacturers supplying Israel.
## State Sen. Creighton's stance
State Sen. Brandon Creighton, who would later author SB 2972, praised the response saying the First Amendment does not protect violence or harassment.
## Law took effect
The law took effect on Sept. 1, 2025.
## Students challenged law
Students and student groups at UT Austin and UT Dallas sued arguing the restrictions on expressive activity overnight and during finals are too broad.
## District court ruling
U.S. District Judge David Alan Ezra temporarily blocked UT System officials from enforcing the challenged provisions on Oct. 14, 2025.
## Key takeaway

Texas' Campus Protection Act, which bans protests overnight and during final weeks of term, is challenged as unconstitutional by student groups for overreaching First Amendment protections.