Improving Access to Higher Education Act of 2019
Latest action · Oct 11, 2019 Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedOct 11, 2019
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Improving Access to Higher Education Act of 2019
This bill addresses accessibility issues of students with disabilities in higher education.
Specifically, the bill revises a grant program that supports postsecondary institutions of higher education (IHE) in educating students with disabilities. The Department of Education must award at least five grants to an IHE that provides professional development and technical assistance in order to improve access to and completion of postsecondary education for students, including students with disabilities.
The bill also (1) revises and reauthorizes through FY2024 a program for national technical assistance centers that assist students with disabilities, and (2) reauthorizes through FY2024 a program to promote training and job placement of real-time writers to provide closed captioning of videos.
Further, the bill establishes a new program that awards grants to IHEs for certain activities that improve accessibility of instruction and materials, such as distance education courses. The bill also establishes an independent commission to develop guidelines for accessible postsecondary electronic instructional materials and related technologies.
In addition, the bill requires each IHE to establish an office of accessibility to develop and implement policies that support students with disabilities.
Cosponsors 5
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Oct 11, 2019.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-MA | Ayanna Pressley | Original | Oct 11, 2019 |
| D-RI | James R. Langevin | Original | Oct 11, 2019 |
| D-CA | Jared Huffman | Original | Oct 11, 2019 |
| D-CA | Josh Harder | Original | Oct 11, 2019 |
| D-CA | Ro Khanna | Original | Oct 11, 2019 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Education and Workforce Committee | Referred Oct 11, 2019 |
Actions 2
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Oct 11, 2019Introduced in House
- Oct 11, 2019Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 165, no. 161, October 11, 2019, page H8112.
Related bills 4
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 3095 | AIM HIGH Act | Related bill | Dec 18, 2019 |
| HR 4674 | College Affordability Act | Related bill | Dec 28, 2020 |
| HR 5312 | AIM HIGH Act | Related bill | Dec 5, 2019 |
| HR 9468 | Improving Access to Higher Education Act | Reintroduced Bill | Dec 8, 2022 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to improve accessibility to, and completion of, postsecondary education for students, including students with disabilities, and for other purposes.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Improving Access to Higher Education Act of 2019
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Education.
- Advisory bodies
- Computers and information technology
- Disability and health-based discrimination
- Disability and paralysis
- Education
- Education programs funding
- Educational technology and distance education
- Government information and archives
- Higher education
- Judicial procedure and administration
- Student records
- Teaching, teachers, curricula
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Oct 11, 2019Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
