Informed Electorate Act

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3928 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to reform the American History for Freedom program, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 16, 2021 Mr. CAWTHORN (for himself, Mr. MANN, Mr. OWENS, and Ms. SALAZAR) in- troduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Edu- cation and Labor A BILL To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to reform the American History for Freedom program, 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 ‘‘Informed Electorate 4 Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) A growing contingent of ideological extrem- 8 ists seeking to transform our Nation’s under- 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:57 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3928.IH H3928 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 3928 IH standing of the founding principles of 1787 and 1 what makes our country great are promoting histori- 2 cally inaccurate and morally bankrupt curriculum at 3 elementary and secondary schools. 4 (2) Too many individuals in the United States 5 have their rights of speech, peaceable assembly, and 6 religious practice violated by zealous government of- 7 ficials. 8 (3) Informed and enthusiastic civic engagement 9 signifies and sustains a healthy body politic. 10 (4) There is widespread ignorance of western 11 civilization’s economic systems and historical events 12 that have created unprecedented human prosperity. 13 SEC. 3. AMENDMENT TO AMERICAN HISTORY FOR FREE- 14 DOM PROGRAM. 15 Section 805 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 16 U.S.C. 1161e) is amended to read as follows: 17 ‘‘SEC. 805. AMERICAN HISTORY FOR FREEDOM. 18 ‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From the amounts ap- 19 propriated under subsection (f), the Secretary is author- 20 ized to award 2-year grants, on a competitive basis, to eli- 21 gible institutions to establish academic centers or aca- 22 demic programs that— 23 ‘‘(1) promote and impart knowledge of— 24 ‘‘(A) traditional American history; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:57 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3928.IH H3928 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 3928 IH ‘‘(B) the history and achievements of 1 Western civilization; and 2 ‘‘(C) the importance of civic engagement 3 and the First Amendment to protect and safe- 4 guard free society; and 5 ‘‘(2) such institutions continue to operate and 6 fund after the end of the grant period described in 7 subsection (a). 8 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 9 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION.—The term eligi- 10 ble institution means an institution of higher edu- 11 cation as defined in section 101. 12 ‘‘(2) FREE INSTITUTION.—The term free insti- 13 tution means an institution that emerged out of 14 Western civilization, such as democracy, constitu- 15 tional government, individual rights, market econom- 16 ics, religious freedom and religious tolerance, 17 meritocracy, and freedom of thought and inquiry. 18 ‘‘(3) TRADITIONAL AMERICAN HISTORY.—The 19 term traditional American history means— 20 ‘‘(A) the significant constitutional, polit- 21 ical, intellectual, economic, and foreign policy 22 trends and issues that have shaped the course 23 of American history; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:57 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3928.IH H3928 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 3928 IH ‘‘(B) the key episodes, turning points, and 1 leading figures involved in the constitutional, 2 political, intellectual, diplomatic, and economic 3 history of the United States, including the sign- 4 ing of the Declaration of Independence, the 5 Constitutional Convention of 1787, the Bill of 6 Rights, the Emancipation Proclamation, the 7 13th Amendment to the Constitution, the 14th 8 Amendment to the Constitution, and the Civil 9 Rights Act of 1964. 10 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.— 11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible institution 12 that desires a grant under this section shall submit 13 an application to the Secretary at such time, in such 14 manner, and containing such information as the Sec- 15 retary may reasonably require. 16 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each application submitted 17 under paragraph (1) shall include a description of— 18 ‘‘(A) how funds made available under this 19 section will be used for the activities set forth 20 under subsection (e), including how such activi- 21 ties will increase knowledge with respect to tra- 22 ditional American history, free institutions, the 23 First Amendment to the Constitution, or West- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:57 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3928.IH H3928 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 3928 IH ern civilization and how the funds will increase 1 civic engagement; 2 ‘‘(B) how the eligible institution will ensure 3 that information about the activities funded 4 under this section is widely disseminated pursu- 5 ant to subsection (e)(1)(B); 6 ‘‘(C) any activities to be undertaken pursu- 7 ant to subsection (e)(2)(A), including identifica- 8 tion of entities intended to participate; 9 ‘‘(D) how funds made available under this 10 section shall be used to supplement and not 11 supplant non-Federal funds available for the ac- 12 tivities described in subsection (e); and 13 ‘‘(E) such fiscal controls and accounting 14 procedures as may be necessary to ensure prop- 15 er disbursement of and accounting for funding 16 made available to the eligible institution under 17 this section. 18 ‘‘(d) AWARD BASIS.—In awarding grants under this 19 section, the Secretary shall take into consideration the ca- 20 pability of the eligible institution to— 21 ‘‘(1) increase access to quality programming 22 that expands knowledge of traditional American his- 23 tory, free institutions, or Western civilization; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:57 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3928.IH H3928 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 3928 IH ‘‘(2) involve personnel with strong expertise in 1 traditional American history, free institutions, or 2 Western civilization; and 3 ‘‘(3) sustain the activities funded under this 4 section after the grant has expired. 5 ‘‘(e) USE OF FUNDS.— 6 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED USE OF FUNDS.—Funds pro- 7 vided under this section shall be used to— 8 ‘‘(A) establish or strengthen academic pro- 9 grams or centers focused on traditional Amer- 10 ican history, free institutions, or Western civili- 11 zation, which may include — 12 ‘‘(i) design and implementation of 13 programs of study, courses, lecture series, 14 seminars, and symposia; 15 ‘‘(ii) development, publication, and 16 dissemination of instructional materials; 17 ‘‘(iii) research; 18 ‘‘(iv) support for faculty teaching in 19 undergraduate and, if applicable, graduate 20 programs; 21 ‘‘(v) support for graduate and post- 22 graduate fellowships, if applicable; or 23 ‘‘(vi) teacher preparation initiatives 24 that stress content mastery regarding tra- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:57 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3928.IH H3928 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 3928 IH ditional American history, free institutions, 1 or Western civilization; and 2 ‘‘(B) conduct outreach activities to ensure 3 that information about the activities funded 4 under this section is widely disseminated— 5 ‘‘(i) to undergraduate students (in- 6 cluding students enrolled in teacher edu- 7 cation programs, if applicable); 8 ‘‘(ii) to graduate students (including 9 students enrolled in teacher education pro- 10 grams, if applicable); 11 ‘‘(iii) to faculty; 12 ‘‘(iv) to local educational agencies; 13 and 14 ‘‘(v) within the local community and 15 the general public. 16 ‘‘(2) ALLOWABLE USE OF FUNDS.—Funds pro- 17 vided under this section may be used to support— 18 ‘‘(A) collaboration with entities such as— 19 ‘‘(i) local educational agencies, for the 20 purpose of providing elementary and sec- 21 ondary school teachers an opportunity to 22 enhance their knowledge of traditional 23 American history, free institutions, or 24 Western civilization; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:57 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3928.IH H3928 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 3928 IH ‘‘(ii) nonprofit organizations whose 1 mission is consistent with the purpose of 2 this section, such as academic organiza- 3 tions, museums, and libraries, for assist- 4 ance in carrying out activities described 5 under subsection (a); and 6 ‘‘(B) other activities that meet the pur- 7 poses of this section. 8 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITED USE OF FUNDS.—Funds pro- 9 vided under this section may not be used for the 10 purpose of promoting, endorsing, teaching, or dis- 11 tributing material related to the 1619 Project or 12 Critical Race Theory. 13 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For the 14 purpose of carrying out this section, there are authorized 15 to be appropriated $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 16 2022 through 2027.’’. 17 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:57 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H3928.IH H3928 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS