HR 1394 · 117th Congress 2021–2023, ended

Black History is American History Act

Introduced Feb 26, 2021 Originated House Sponsor Joyce Beatty D-OH

Fact sheet Spreadsheet

Latest action · Feb 26, 2021 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.

  1. IntroducedFeb 26, 2021
  2. Passed HouseNot reached
  3. Passed SenateNot reached
  4. To the PresidentNot reached
  5. Became lawNot reached

Summary

Black History is American History Act

This bill requires entities (e.g., institutions of higher education, libraries, and museums), in order to be eligible for certain grants administered by the Department of Education (ED), to include Black history in their teaching of American history. It also requires Black history to be included in tests administered by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

Specifically, the bill mandates the inclusion of Black history as a required component of American history for such entities to be eligible for American History and Civics Academies' competitive grants. These grants support the establishment of (1) Presidential Academies for Teachers of American History and Civics, which offer workshops to teachers of American history and civics to strengthen their knowledge and prepare them to teach in these subjects; and (2) Congressional Academies for Students of American History and Civics, which support high school students in developing an understanding of these subjects. (Currently, Black history is not a required component of American history for either academy.)

In addition, ED must give priority to grant applicants that align their activities with programs and resources of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of African American History and Culture.

The bill also requires the inclusion of Black history in tests administered by the NAEP, which measures student academic achievement in various subjects.

Cosponsors 67

Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Feb 26, 2021 to Nov 30, 2022; 45 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.

SeatCosponsorSigned on
D-NYAdriano EspaillatOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NJAlbio SiresOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-FLAlcee L. HastingsOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-INAndré CarsonOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-MDAnthony G. BrownOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-MAAyanna PressleyOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-ILBobby L. RushOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NJBonnie Watson ColemanOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NYCarolyn B. MaloneyOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-PAChrissy HoulahanOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-MIDaniel T. KildeeOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NCDavid E. PriceOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-MIDebbie DingellOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-FLDebbie Wasserman SchultzOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NCDeborah K. RossOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-WADerek KilmerOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-CODiana DeGetteOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-PADwight EvansOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-DCEleanor Holmes NortonOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NYGrace MengOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-MPGregorio Kilili Camacho SablanOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NYGregory W. MeeksOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-WIGwen MooreOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-GAHenry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr.OriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-CTJahana HayesOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-MAJames P. McGovernOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-ILJanice D. SchakowskyOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NYJerrold NadlerOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-CAJerry McNerneyOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-TNJim CooperOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-CAKaren BassOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NYKathleen M. RiceOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-FLKathy CastorOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-OHMarcy KapturOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-WIMark PocanOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-CANanette Diaz BarragánOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NYNydia M. VelázquezOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-WAPramila JayapalOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-ILRobin L. KellyOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NYSean Patrick MaloneyOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NVSteven HorsfordOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-WASuzan K. DelBeneOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NYThomas R. SuozziOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-FLVal Butler DemingsOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-NYYvette D. ClarkeOriginalFeb 26, 2021
D-MNAngie CraigMar 2, 2021
D-VADonald S. Beyer, Jr.Mar 2, 2021
D-OREarl BlumenauerMar 2, 2021
D-CARo KhannaMar 2, 2021
D-MNIlhan OmarMar 9, 2021
D-MEChellie PingreeMar 23, 2021
D-CAMark DeSaulnierMar 23, 2021
D-VAAbigail Davis SpanbergerApr 1, 2021
D-NMTeresa Leger FernandezMay 17, 2021
D-PABrendan F. BoyleJun 17, 2021
D-CADoris O. MatsuiJun 17, 2021
D-MAJake AuchinclossJun 17, 2021
D-DELisa Blunt RochesterJun 17, 2021
D-CAMike ThompsonJun 17, 2021
D-TXAl GreenJun 22, 2021
D-CAAlan S. LowenthalJun 22, 2021
D-CAAnna G. EshooJun 22, 2021
D-WAMarilyn StricklandJun 22, 2021
D-MNBetty McCollumJun 24, 2021
D-AZRuben GallegoAug 20, 2021
D-OHShontel M. BrownNov 9, 2021
D-CATed LieuNov 30, 2022

Committees 1

Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.

ChamberCommitteeWhat it did
HouseEducation and Workforce Committee
Referred Feb 26, 2021

Actions 2

Everything that happened, newest first.

  1. Feb 26, 2021Introduced in House
  2. Feb 26, 2021Referred 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

Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuant to the following: Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution

The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 167, no. 37, February 26, 2021, page H859.

Titles 2

Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.

Official Title as Introduced
To authorize the Secretary of Education to award grants to eligible entities to carry out educational programs that include the history of peoples of African descent in the settling and founding of America, the economic and political environments that led to the development, institutionalization, and abolition of slavery and its impact on all Americans, the exploration and expansion of America, impact on and contributions to the development and enhancement of American life, United States history, literature, the economy, politics, body of laws, and culture, and for other purposes.
Short Title(s) as Introduced
Black History is American History Act

Subjects

Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Education.

Text 1

Each version as it was printed, newest first.

  1. Feb 26, 2021Introduced in House

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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.