Rules Committee advances Pregnant Students Rights Act amid partisan exchange over information and enforcement
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Summary
The committee voted to report HR 6,359, the Pregnant Students Rights Act, which would require colleges to tell pregnant students about Title IX rights and campus/community resources; supporters say it clarifies students' rights, critics say it selectively limits information and relies on an under‑resourced Office for Civil Rights for enforcement.
The House Rules Committee advanced HR 6,359, the Pregnant Students Rights Act, by including it in a Rules package reported under a closed rule. The bill would require institutions of higher education to inform pregnant and parenting students about accommodations and available campus and community resources and to provide information on how to file Title IX complaints.
Supporters framed the bill as a narrow clarification of existing law. Chairman Wahlberg said the legislation "reinforces Title IX, not supplementing it" and aims to address instances where pregnant students have received incorrect or incomplete information about their rights and available accommodations.
Democrats pressed a different interpretation. Ranking Member Mr. Scott and other Democrats argued the bill is not neutral and said it "cherry‑picks" information, focusing on resources that encourage carrying a pregnancy to term while omitting contraception, miscarriage care and situations where abortion may be medically necessary. "When the information isn't there, it can become dangerous," Mr. Scott said, citing state‑level evidence that restrictions on reproductive care have been linked to worse outcomes in some settings.
Members also questioned whether the bill's reliance on Title IX complaint processes is realistic given staffing and enforcement constraints at the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights. Witnesses and members cited a reported backlog and reduced staffing at OCR and asked whether the remedy the bill relies on — filing OCR complaints — would be effective in practice.
The Rules Committee included HR 6,359 in its closed rule for floor consideration. Under the rule, the Committee on Education and the Workforce’s recommended substitute was to be considered as adopted and debate time allocated equally between the chair and ranking member of that committee.