Arizona Bill Would Restrict Teachers' Speech

Arizona doesn't want its teachers cussing in class—and new proposed legislation would actually make it illegal to do so. GOP state lawmakers are behind Senate Bill 1467, which would require public school teachers to adhere to the FCC's TV and radio standards. That means certain limits on obscene, indecent, or profane language, the Arizona Republic reports. One teacher notes that the bill applies to teachers' language not just in the classroom, but even if they are with a colleague.

The bill's sponsor says it came about after constituents complained about high school teachers using four-letter words around students. Right now, the proposed penalty for a first offense is a one-week suspension—and after the third offense, termination. But the sponsor says she will probably lower the first penalty to just a warning. She also may change the fact that the bill, at the moment, applies to public education levels as high as community college and university; she says that was not her intention. (More free speech stories.)