FROM HIGHER ED DIVE: “According to PEN America’s count, 21 states have enacted bills that censor higher education since 2021, with nearly 40% of the U.S. population now living in a state with such a policy.”

From PEN AMERICA: “Any way you slice it, 2025 is already a record-breaking year for higher education censorship, with a bumper crop of more than 70 bills and policies introduced across 26 states. Twenty-two of them have become law in 16 states. All of these bills aim to extend a web of state control over higher education, deploying new strategies to restrict classroom teaching and undermine academic freedom on college campuses.”

Higher Education Restrictions Enacted by States in 2025 (through June 30th), including educational gag orders and other restrictions. The 16 states involved are:

Mountain States: Idaho, Utah, Wyoming

Upper Midwest: North Dakota

Midwest: Indiana, Ohio, Kansas, Iowa

Northeast: None

Southwest: Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas

South: West Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi.