The US Protest Law Tracker follows state and federal legislation introduced since January 2017 that restricts the right to peaceful assembly. For more information, visit our Analysis of US Anti-Protest Bills page.
Latest updates: May. 9, 2025 (Arizona, New Jersey, North Carolina), Apr. 30, 2025 (Idaho, Indiana), Apr. 29, 2025 (Pennsylvania, Tennessee)
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Pennsylvania
SB 683: New penalties for protests near pipelines and other infrastructure
Would create several new criminal offenses that could cover fossil fuel protesters and protest organizers. Under the bill, “conspir[ing] with another person” to trespass onto “critical infrastructure” property would be a third-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and a minimum $5,000 fine. The bill defines “critical infrastructure” broadly to include a range of posted or fenced-off areas containing facilities for gas and oil production, storage, and distribution, including above- and belowground pipelines, as well as a number of electric, water, telecommunications, and other utilities—whether in operation or under construction. As such, under the bill, planning a protest that would enter onto a pipeline construction site would be a crime punishable by up to a year in jail, even if the protest never takes place. Actually trespassing onto a pipeline construction site or other “critical infrastructure” property would likewise be punishable by up to a year in jail, under the bill, and doing so with intent to “vandalize, deface, tamper with equipment or impede or inhibit operations” would be a third-degree felony, punishable by up to three years in prison. As the bill does not further define “impede or inhibit,” a protest that entered onto a pipeline construction site with the goal of even fleetingly delaying construction could seemingly be covered by the felony offense. Willfully “vandalizing” or “defacing” “critical infrastructure,” or conspiring to do so, would be a third-degree felony as well. The bill further provides that the owner of “critical infrastructure” may sue anyone who is convicted of or merely arrested for an offense under the bill and claim damages for any harm to property, “including damages to pipeline construction."
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See full text of bill here)
Status: pending
Introduced 28 Apr 2025.
Issue(s): Civil Liability, Protest Supporters or Funders, Infrastructure, Trespass
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Pennsylvania
HB 2351: Barring financial aid for student protesters who commit certain crimes
Would bar state financial aid to students convicted of certain protest-related offenses. The bill requires that the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency deny all forms of financial assistance to any student who is convicted of offenses including trespass at an educational facility, government building, religious facility, or the grounds “adjacent to and owned or occupied by” such an entity. The bill’s sponsors cited protesters for Palestinian rights who occupied buildings on college and university campuses as motivation for the bill.
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See full text of bill here)
Status: defeated / expired
Introduced 14 Jun 2024.
Issue(s): Campus Protests, Trespass, Limit on Public Benefits
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Pennsylvania
HB 2352: New criminal penalties for protesters in or near academic and government buildings
Would create a new felony offense, “institutional trespass,” that could cover individuals who engage in disruptive protests in certain public or private locations. Under the bill, it is unlawful to enter an educational facility, government building, religious facility, or the grounds “adjacent to and owned or occupied by” such an entity, with a prohibited purpose, including “disrupting the work or operation of the occupant.” The offense is a third degree felony, punishable by up to seven years in prison and $15,000. The bill’s sponsors cited protesters for Palestinian rights who occupied buildings on college and university campuses as motivation for the bill.
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See full text of bill here)
Status: defeated / expired
Introduced 10 Jun 2024.
Issue(s): Campus Protests, Trespass
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Pennsylvania
SB 887: New penalties for protests near "critical infrastructure"
Would heighten potential penalties for protests near oil and gas pipelines and other critical infrastructure by creating a new offense of "critical infrastructure facility trespass." According to the bill, entering or merely attempting to enter property containing a critical infrastructure facility, without permission of the property owner, would be a third degree felony punishable by up to one year in prison; remaining at the facility after being ordered to leave would be a second degree felony, likewise punishable by up to one year in prison. Entering a critical infrastructure facility with the intent to "damage, destroy, vandalize, deface, tamper with equipment or impede or inhibit operations of the facility," would be a second degree felony punishable by imprisonment for up to one year. It would also be a second degree felony, subject to one year's imprisonment, to "conspire[] with another person to commit" any of the above offences. An individual who commits any of the offenses a second time would face penalties of the next felony degree. The law newly defines "critical infrastructure facility" under Pennsylvania law to include a broad range of oil, gas, electric, water, telecommunications, and railroad facilities, such as gas and oil pipelines "buried or above ground." The definition of "critical infrastructure facility" applies to facilities "constructed or under construction," and includes "equipment and machinery, regardless of whether stored on location or at a storage yard, to the extent that it is used to construct a critical infrastructure facility." (See full text of bill here)
Status: defeated / expired
Introduced 7 Oct 2019.
Issue(s): Protest Supporters or Funders, Infrastructure, Trespass
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Pennsylvania
SB 323: Charging protesters for the costs of responding to a protest
Would make individual protesters potentially liable for "public safety response costs" incurred by the state or a political subdivision during a protest or demonstration. Like SB 176, introduced in the 2017-2018 session, the bill allows local authorities to seek restitution from protesters convicted of a misdemeanor or felony in the course of a protest or demonstration, in order to pay for the costs of responding to the event. Such costs could include outlays for police, fire department, and medical services, as well as "related legal, administrative, and court expenses." (See full text of bill here)
Status: defeated / expired
Introduced 22 Feb 2019.
Issue(s): Security Costs
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Pennsylvania
SB 754: Charging protesters for the costs of responding to a protest
Would make individual protesters potentially liable for "public safety response costs" incurred by the state or "political subdivision" during a protest or rally. The bill allows local authorities to seek restitution from protesters convicted of a misdemeanor or felony in the course of a protest or demonstration, in order to pay for the costs of responding to the event. Such costs could include overtime for police officers and emergency medical services, as well as "related legal, administrative, and court expenses." (See full text of bill here)
Status: defeated / expired
Introduced 16 Aug 2017.
Issue(s): Security Costs
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Pennsylvania
SB 652: Heightened penalties for protests near critical infrastructure
Would heighten potential penalties for protests around critical infrastructure such as gas and oil pipelines by providing for the crime of "criminal trespass" onto a critical infrastructure facility. Under the bill, it is a felony to enter a critical infrastructure facility "with the intent to willfully damage, destroy, vandalize, deface, tamper with equipment or impede or inhibit the operations of the facility." The bill broadly defines "critical infrastructure facility" to include natural gas facilities and pipelines, "whether constructed or under construction," as well as "equipment and machinery, regardless of location, to the extent that it is used to construct, maintain, or operate a critical infrastructure facility." Other facilities considered critical infrastructure include cell phone towers, telephone poles, and railroad tracks that are fenced off or posted as no-entry areas. Under the bill, entering such an area with the intent to cause damage or disruption is a second-degree felony. An individual who "conspires" to do so commits a first-degree felony. The bill was substantially amended on 25 September 2018, including to significantly expand the definition of "critical infrastructure facility." (See full text of bill here)
Status: defeated / expired
Introduced 25 Apr 2017; Approved by Senate 23 May 2018
Issue(s): Infrastructure, Trespass
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