Florida limits academic travel

After July 1, faculty members at Florida's public universities will no longer be able to travel to countries identified by the U.S. State Department as "sponsors of terrorism." The law banning travel to this set of countries-including Florida's neighbor, Cuba-was signed by Gov. Jeb Bush on May 30. Under the law, researchers at state universities would not be able to use state or private funds to "implement, organize, direct, coordinate, or administer" travel to identified terrorist states, which, in addition to Cuba, include North Korea, Iraq, Iran, Libya, and Sudan. Faculty at community colleges face similar bans, while those at private colleges and universities would be barred from using state funding for such activities. The Florida law tightens the U.S. policy in this area, which requires scholars who want to travel to one of the listed countries to obtain a government license. The new law likely will be challenged by groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, which argues in a statement that the law "intrude[s] politics into academic research" and questions whether it may also "interfere with the policies of the federal government."