Spotlight PA, the Centre Daily Times, and StateCollege.com have filed a federal lawsuit against the Penn State Board of Trustees over their new policies, citing restrictions on free speech and access to information under the First Amendment.

In July 2024 and November 2025, Penn State changed its bylaws, requiring trustees to get approval from the University before speaking to the media in any capacity. The punishment can include sanctions or, in some cases, removal from the board. The three news organizations note that the university is a publicly funded institution.

The amendment to the bylaws reads: “Negative or critical public statements about the Board, the University or its students, alumni, community, faculty, staff, and other stakeholders do not serve the University’s interests and are inconsistent with a Trustee’s fiduciary obligation to act always in the best interests of the University.”

The organizations are asking Penn State to declare the aforementioned policy, which is known as the gag policy, unconstitutional.

“The right to dissent is the lifeblood of democracy,” said Heather Murray, associate director of the Cornell Law School First Amendment Clinic, in an email to the Associated Press. “Blanket bans on trustees making critical statements about Penn State stakeholders and requiring trustees to get preapproval to talk to journalists about any matters that have come before the board plainly run afoul of the First Amendment.”

The lawsuit specifically named Vice Chair Richard Sokolov, governance committee member Chair Daniel Onorato, and David Kleppinger as defendants for their role in overseeing the gag policy.

The organizations claim the policy allows the university to pick and choose what information the media is allowed to receive from the trustees.

Spotlight PA previously sued the Penn State Board of Trustees in 2023 under the Sunshine Act for violating the First Amendment. The organization claimed Penn State was violating the violations of Pennsylvania’s open meetings law.