BATON ROUGE - Louisiana's public colleges and universities will only have limited authority to ask applying students about their criminal histories to determine admission.

  

Gov. John Bel Edwards' office said Monday the governor has signed into law the "ban the box" legislation sponsored by Rep. Vincent Pierre, a Lafayette Democrat.

  

The legislation contains exceptions.

  

Schools still can ask about convictions for stalking, rape and sexual battery during the admissions process. If a potential student is denied admission because of such a conviction, the applicant can appeal the rejection.

  

After granting admission, colleges also will be able to ask about criminal convictions for a variety of reasons, including to determine if they'll limit participation in campus programs, financial aid and housing.

  

The new law takes effect Aug. 1.