ACRE Act

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2349 To provide for equal protection of the law and to prohibit discrimination and preferential treatment on the basis of race, color, national origin, or sex in the administration of programs of the Department of Agri- culture, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 1, 2021 Mr. TIFFANY (for himself and Mr. OWENS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture A BILL To provide for equal protection of the law and to prohibit discrimination and preferential treatment on the basis of race, color, national origin, or sex in the administra- tion of programs of the Department of Agriculture, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Agriculture Civil 4 Rights and Equality Act’’ or the ‘‘ACRE Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:50 May 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2349.IH H2349 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2349 IH SEC. 2. ANTI-DISCRIMINATION POLICIES. 1 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi- 2 sion of law, the Secretary of Agriculture (or any officer, 3 employee, or other designee of the Secretary) (referred to 4 in this Act as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall not— 5 (1) intentionally discriminate against, or grant 6 a preference to, any person or group based in whole 7 or in part on race, color, national origin, or sex, in 8 connection with any contract or subcontract entered 9 into by the Secretary, award made by the Secretary, 10 employment with the Department of Agriculture, or 11 any other program or activity carried out by the 12 Secretary; or 13 (2) require, direct, or encourage any entity 14 under a contract or subcontract withe Secretary, or 15 the recipient of a license issued by the Secretary or 16 financial assistance provided under a program ad- 17 ministered by the Secretary, to discriminate inten- 18 tionally against, or grant a preference to, any person 19 or group based in whole or in part on race, color, 20 national origin, or sex, in connection with such a 21 contract, subcontract, license, or financial assistance. 22 (b) STATES, TERRITORIES, AND PRIVATE ENTI- 23 TIES.—A State, territory, or private entity (including in- 24 stitutions of higher education (as defined in section 101 25 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)) 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:50 May 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2349.IH H2349 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2349 IH that receives financial assistance through a program ad- 1 ministered by the Secretary shall not, as a condition of 2 receiving such funding, discriminate against, or grant a 3 preference to, any person or group based in whole or in 4 part on race, color, national origin, or sex— 5 (1) in connection with any grant, activity, 6 project, contract (or subcontract) carried out using 7 such funds, including the salaries and expenses of 8 any employees paid using such funds; or 9 (2) with respect to determining admission to 10 any such institution of higher education. 11 (c) CERTAIN SEX-BASED CLASSIFICATIONS.—Noth- 12 ing in subsection (a) or (b) shall be construed as prohib- 13 iting or limiting any classification based on sex if— 14 (1) the classification is applied with respect to 15 employment; and 16 (2) the classification would be exempt from the 17 prohibitions of title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 18 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a et seq.) by reason of section 19 703(e)(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 2000e–2(e)(1)). 20 (d) CIVIL ACTION.— 21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any person who is aggrieved 22 by conduct prohibited by subsection (a) or (b), may 23 commence a civil action in the appropriate district 24 court of the United States to obtain appropriate re- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:50 May 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2349.IH H2349 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2349 IH lief (which may include back pay), against Secretary 1 or a State, territory, or private entity referred to in 2 subsection (b). 3 (2) DAMAGES.—A prevailing plaintiff in a civil 4 action under paragraph (1) may recover reasonable 5 attorney’s fees. 6 (3) EFFECT ON OTHER LAW.—The remedies 7 available to a plaintiff pursuant to a civil action 8 under paragraph (1) shall not affect any remedy 9 available to such a plaintiff under any other State 10 or Federal law. 11 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:50 May 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H2349.IH H2349 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS