[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4277 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4277
To require public institutions of higher education to disseminate
information on the rights of, and accommodations and resources for,
pregnant students, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 19 (legislative day, May 17), 2022
Mr. Rubio (for himself, Mr. Rounds, Mr. Braun, Mr. Inhofe, and Mr.
Scott of South Carolina) introduced the following bill; which was read
twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and
Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require public institutions of higher education to disseminate
information on the rights of, and accommodations and resources for,
pregnant students, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Pregnant Students' Rights Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Female students who are enrolled at institutions of
higher education and experiencing unplanned pregnancies may
face pressure that their only option is to receive an abortion
or risk academic failure.
(2) 27.6 percent of all abortions in the United States are
performed on women of college age, between the ages of 20 and
24, according to a 2019 report by the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention.
(3) A significant proportion of abortions in the United
States are performed on women of college age who may be unaware
of their rights under title IX of the Education Amendments of
1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.) or deprived of an alternative to
receiving an abortion.
(4) Additionally, women on college campuses may fear
institutional reprisal, loss of athletic scholarship, and
possible negative impact on academic opportunities.
(5) An academic disparity exists because of the lack of
resources, support, and notifications available for female
college students who do not wish to receive an abortion or who
carry their unborn babies to term.
SEC. 3. NOTICE OF PREGNANT STUDENT RIGHTS, ACCOMMODATIONS, AND
RESOURCES.
Section 485 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(n) Pregnant Students' Rights, Accommodations, and Resources.--
``(1) Information dissemination activities; establishment
of protocol.--
``(A) In general.--Each public institution of
higher education participating in any program under
this title shall--
``(i) in a manner consistent with title IX
of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C.
1681 et seq.), carry out the information
dissemination activities described in
subparagraph (B) for admitted but not enrolled
and enrolled students (including those
attending or planning to attend less than full
time) on the rights and resources (including
protections and accommodations) for pregnant
students (or students who may become pregnant)
while enrolled at such institution of higher
education that--
``(I) exclude abortion services;
``(II) may help such a student
carry their unborn babies to term; and
``(III) include information on how
to file a complaint with the Department
if such a student believes there was a
violation of title IX of the Education
Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et
seq.) by the institution on account of
such student's pregnancy; and
``(ii) establish a protocol to meet with a
student described in clause (i)(III), which
shall include a meeting with relevant
leadership at the institution of higher
education, and other relevant parties.
``(B) Description of information dissemination
requirements.--The information dissemination activities
described in this subparagraph shall include--
``(i) annual campus-wide emails; or
``(ii) the provision of information in
student handbooks, at each orientation for
enrolled students, or on the publicly available
website of the institution of higher education.
``(2) Annual report to congress.--
``(A) In general.--Each public institution of
higher education participating in any program under
this title shall--
``(i) on an annual basis, compile and
submit to the Secretary--
``(I) responses to the questions
described in subparagraph (B) from
students enrolled at such institution
of higher education who voluntarily
provided such responses; and
``(II) a description of any actions
taken by the institution of higher
education to address each complaint by
a student that there was a violation of
title IX of the Education Amendments of
1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.) by the
institution on account of such
student's pregnancy, including any
actions taken in accordance with the
protocol established under paragraph
(1)(A)(ii); and
``(ii) ensure that any such responses
remain confidential and do not reveal any
personally identifiable information with
respect to a student.
``(B) Questions for enrolled students.--The
questions described in this subparagraph shall
include--
``(i) if such student experienced an
unexpected pregnancy while enrolled at the
institution of higher education;
``(ii) if such student felt there were
adequate resources on campus relating to
protections, accommodations, and other
resources for pregnant students besides
abortion-related services;
``(iii) if such a student believes there
was a violation of title IX of the Education
Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.) by
the institution on account of such student's
pregnancy; and
``(iv) if such student considered dropping
out or withdrawing from classes because of
pregnancy, new motherhood, stillbirth, or
miscarriage.
``(C) Report.--The Secretary shall, on an annual
basis--
``(i) prepare a report that compiles the
responses received under subparagraph (A) from
each public institution of higher education
participating in any program under this title;
and
``(ii) submit such report to the
authorizing committees, and the Committees on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives
and the Senate.''.
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