United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee 61 D cosponsors

HR 844 — Black History is American History Act

Last action — Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced January 31, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the House.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

Upgrade to see the exact probability and what's driving it.

A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Stalled 26% · moderate confidence

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 61 sponsors

    1 primary, 60 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (61 D).

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

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.

Bill Text

How this bill changes current law

13 changes Share ↗

Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

The bill updates existing laws to explicitly include Black history in American history education programs and assessments.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6661(a)

    , which shall include Black history

    It mandates that Black history be included in the education program focused on American history.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6661(a)(2)

    , which shall include Black history

    It specifies that Black history is part of the quality teaching requirements in American history education.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6662(a)(1)

    , which shall include Black history

    It requires that the Presidential Academies include Black history in their programs for teachers.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6662(a)(2)

    , which shall include Black history

    It mandates that Congressional Academies focus on Black history for participating students.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6662(c)(1)

    , which shall include Black history

    It ensures that the definition of eligible entities for grants includes focusing on Black history in teaching.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6662(e)(1)(A)

    , which shall include Black history

    It broadens grant uses at Presidential Academies to explicitly include Black history.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6662(e)(1)(B)(I)

    , which shall include Black history

    It emphasizes that professional development for teachers must include knowledge of Black history.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6662(e)(1)(B)(II)

    , which shall include Black history

    It specifies that seminar topics must cover Black history in American history teaching.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6662(e)(2)

    , which shall include Black history

    It requires that the selection of teachers for the program must consider their ability to teach Black history.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6662(f)(1)

    , which shall include Black history

    It mandates that Congressional Academies also focus on Black history in their teaching programs.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6663(a)

    , which shall include Black history

    It directs national activities to include Black history in their innovative educational strategies.

  • 20 U.S.C. 6663(b)(1)(A)

    , which shall include Black history

    It requires that grants promote strategies in American history teaching that incorporate Black history.

  • 20 U.S.C. 9622(b)(2)(D)

    (which shall include Black history)

    It ensures that assessments in history will incorporate elements of Black history.

Action History

  1. Introduced in House

  2. Introduced in House

  3. Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

Export CSV (upgrade) →

1 sponsors · 60 co-sponsors · 486 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (60)

Not signed on (486)

486 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 486 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

civil-rights education
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does HR 844 do?
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.
Who sponsors HR 844?
HR 844 is sponsored by Beatty, Joyce (Democratic), Johnson, Henry C. "Hank" (Democratic), Kamlager-Dove, Sydney (Democratic), Kennedy, Timothy M. (Democratic), Kelly, Robin L. (Democratic), Larsen, Rick (Democratic), Lynch, Stephen F. (Democratic), Magaziner, Seth (Democratic), McBath, Lucy (Democratic), McIver, LaMonica (Democratic), Meeks, Gregory W. (Democratic), Menendez, Robert (Democratic), Meng, Grace (Democratic), Norton, Eleanor Holmes (Democratic), Plaskett, Stacey E. (Democratic), Pressley, Ayanna (Democratic), Sewell, Terri A. (Democratic), Strickland, Marilyn (Democratic), Sykes, Emilia Strong (Democratic), Thanedar, Shri (Democratic), Thompson, Bennie G. (Democratic), Tlaib, Rashida (Democratic), Wasserman Schultz, Debbie (Democratic), Underwood, Lauren (Democratic), Velázquez, Nydia M. (Democratic), Waters, Maxine (Democratic), Watson Coleman, Bonnie (Democratic), Williams, Nikema (Democratic), Wilson, Frederica S. (Democratic), Salinas, Andrea (Democratic), Lieu, Ted (Democratic), Carbajal, Salud O. (Democratic), Adams, Alma S. (Democratic), Barragán, Nanette Diaz (Democratic), Bishop, Sanford D. (Democratic), Bonamici, Suzanne (Democratic), Brown, Shontel M. (Democratic), Carson, André (Democratic), Carter, Troy A. (Democratic), Castor, Kathy (Democratic), Cherfilus-McCormick, Sheila (Democratic), Clarke, Yvette D. (Democratic), Cleaver, Emanuel (Democratic), Clyburn, James E. (Democratic), Davis, Danny K. (Democratic), Davis, Donald G. (Democratic), DeGette, Diana (Democratic), DeSaulnier, Mark (Democratic), Dingell, Debbie (Democratic), Doggett, Lloyd (Democratic), Evans, Dwight (Democratic), Foushee, Valerie P. (Democratic), Frankel, Lois (Democratic), Frost, Maxwell (Democratic), Goldman, Daniel S. (Democratic), Green, Al (Democratic), Grijalva, Raúl M. (Democratic), Hayes, Jahana (Democratic), Horsford, Steven (Democratic), Ivey, Glenn (Democratic), and Jackson, Jonathan L. (Democratic).
What is the current status of HR 844?
This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced January 31, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track HR 844?
Track HR 844 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

Make your voice heard on HR 844

Find the representatives who decide this bill and tell them where you stand — for yourself, or mobilize your whole list in one click with One Click Politics advocacy software.

Find my representatives → Run a campaign

Stay ahead of HR 844

Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

One Click Politics tracks every bill in Congress and all 50 states.

Track this bill →