It has gotten to the point where we need elected representatives to fight for due process on college campuses.

Ashe Schow reports at the Washington Examiner.

Georgia legislator: Adopt due process protections or forget about your budget

A Georgia legislator responsible for appropriating state funds to colleges and universities is threatening to halt budget discussions with his state’s schools unless they adopt basic due process protections for accused students.

State Rep. Earl Ehrhart, chairman of the Appropriations subcommittee on Higher Education, told college presidents in no uncertain terms to adopt such protections.

“You think you’ve got an issue with federal bureaucrats threatening your federal funds?” Ehrhart said at the close of a hearing on due process. “This committee controls your funds, Mr. President, and I want to see a clear statement from all of you — beyond what the [Board of] Regents is requiring — before I’m even going to have a conversation with you about your budgets, presidents.”

Ehrhart said he wouldn’t even talk to college presidents until they adopt “simple, basic due process protections.”

“If you don’t protect the students of this state with due process, don’t come looking for money,” Ehrhart added.

This is the clearest declaration by any legislator in the country regarding the protection of due process rights for students accused of misconduct on college campuses. The hearing on Monday focused on two cases at Georgia Tech, one involving accusations of racism and the other involving an accusation of sexual misconduct.