Judge: UW doesn’t have to fund conservative group

Associated Press

MADISON, Wis. — A federal judge says he won’t force the University of Wisconsin-Madison to fund a conservative student group.

Collegians for a Constructive Tomorrow, or CFACT, filed a lawsuit in 2009. The group argued that the university had denied its request for funding because of the group’s conservative views.

Under a landmark case, the university is required to allot funding from mandatory student fees on a “viewpoint neutral” basis.

The student panel that rejected CFACT’s funding request said the group had not completed its application on time.

But CFACT pointed out that the politically liberal Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group, or WISPIRG, received funding.

The Wisconsin State Journal reports U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman wrote in his opinion Wednesday that since the lawsuit was filed, WISPIRG has also lost its funding.