S558-119

Introduced

To provide for the consideration of a definition of antisemitism set forth by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance for the enforcement of Federal antidiscrimination laws concerning education programs or activities, and for other purposes.

119th Congress Introduced Feb 13, 2025

Summary

What This Bill Does

The bill expands sense of Congress affirming that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act protects individuals facing discrimination based on actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, including Jewish individuals, defines congressional findings establishing that antisemitism is rising in US educational institutions and that the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism is a vital identification tool already used by the Department, and creates rules of construction limiting the scope of the Act: does not expand Secretary of Education authority, does not alter harassment standards, does not diminish existing rights, and explicitly preserves First. It relies on definition changes and compliance mandates. The main policy areas are Education and Foreign Policy.

Who Benefits and How

Jewish students and faculty could face lower compliance burdens, Jewish communities and individuals could face lower compliance burdens, and Jewish students in K-12 schools and higher education could face lower compliance burdens.

Who Bears the Burden and How

Universities receiving federal funds would take on compliance duties, Federally-funded institutions and programs would take on compliance duties, and Colleges and universities receiving federal funding would take on compliance duties.

Key Provisions

  • Expands sense of Congress affirming that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act protects individuals facing discrimination based on actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, including Jewish individuals...
  • Defines congressional findings establishing that antisemitism is rising in US educational institutions and that the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism is a vital identification tool already used by the Department...
  • Creates rules of construction limiting the scope of the Act: does not expand Secretary of Education authority, does not alter harassment standards, does not diminish existing rights, and explicitly preserves First...
  • Requires bill requiring use of IHRA definition of antisemitism in enforcement of Title VI civil rights protections.

Evidence Chain:

This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.

At a Glance

What This Bill Does

The bill expands sense of Congress affirming that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act protects individuals facing discrimination based on actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, including Jewish individuals, defines congressional findings establishing that antisemitism is rising in US educational institutions and that the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism is a vital identification tool already used by the Department, and creates rules of construction limiting the scope of the Act: does not expand Secretary of Education authority, does not alter harassment standards, does not diminish existing rights, and explicitly preserves First.

Key Policy Areas

Education, Foreign Policy

Primary Purpose

The bill expands sense of Congress affirming that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act protects individuals facing discrimination based on actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, including Jewish individuals, defines congressional findings establishing that antisemitism is rising in US educational institutions and that the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism is a vital identification tool already used by the Department, and creates rules of construction limiting the scope of the Act: does not expand Secretary of Education authority, does not alter harassment standards, does not diminish existing rights, and explicitly preserves First.

Policy Domains

Education Foreign Policy

Whole bill

Identified Gains
  • Jewish students and faculty
  • Jewish communities and individuals
  • Jewish students in K-12 schools and higher education
  • Israel
  • Free speech advocates and organizations
Model: codex-gpt-5:bulk-repair | Version: bill_summary_v2 | Source: is
Israel:
Jewish students and faculty:
Jewish communities and individuals:
Free speech advocates and organizations:
Jewish students in K-12 schools and higher education:
Identified Costs
  • Universities receiving federal funds
  • Federally-funded institutions and programs
  • Colleges and universities receiving federal funding
Model: codex-gpt-5:bulk-repair | Version: bill_summary_v2 | Source: is
Universities receiving federal funds:
Federally-funded institutions and programs:
Colleges and universities receiving federal funding:

Legislative Progress

Introduced
Introduced Committee Passed
Feb 13, 2025

Mr. Scott of South Carolina (for himself, Ms. Rosen, Mr. …

Stakeholder Effects

cui bono?

How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.

Education
6 mentions across 4 clauses
+2 positive -3 negative ?1 uncertain

Colleges and universities receiving federal funding, Federally-funded institutions and programs, Jewish students and faculty

Positive-direction: Jewish students and faculty, Jewish students in K-12 schools and higher education

Negative-direction: Colleges and universities receiving federal funding, Federally-funded institutions and programs, Universities receiving federal funds

Government
2 mentions across 2 clauses
?2 uncertain

Department of Education

General Public
1 mention across 1 clause
+1 positive

Jewish communities and individuals

Advocacy Groups
1 mention across 1 clause
+1 positive

Free speech advocates and organizations

Foreign Allies
1 mention across 1 clause
+1 positive

Israel

3/6
sections analyzed
Full impact breakdown

Bill Structure & Actor Mappings

Who is "The Secretary" in each section?

Domains
Education Foreign Policy
Actor Mappings
"secretary_of_education"
→ Secretary of Education

We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.

Learn more about our methodology