Pregnant Students' Rights Act
Floor Speech
Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 6359, the Pregnant Students' Rights Act.
This bill requires schools to provide pregnant students with information about on campus and community resources and accommodations to assist them in carrying a baby to term while they pursue an education.
Unfortunately, instead of sharing unbiased and comprehensive information, this bill requires schools to distribute only partial information about a student's rights under Title IX and selective information and resources that solely encourage students to carry a pregnancy to term.
It provides no information about rights and accommodations for students who may find themselves in a medical situation that requires an abortion. Now, repeating the idea that comprehensive information must be provided does not make it true.
Title IX entitles the students to the information, but this bill only requires some of that information to be provided. Now while the bill's proponents continue to assert that students are unaware of their rights, they provide no justification or evidence that students are any more or less aware of their rights or accommodations specific to carrying a child to term. If we are concerned about students who do not have a full understanding of their rights, then we should provide all of the information necessary to address their concerns.
By shielding students from health information, resources, and the rights that are available to them, Republicans are denying them the ability to choose what may be best for them and their families.
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Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Randall).
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Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. First, I suggest that that big, ugly bill gave tax cuts primarily to the wealthy, but, meanwhile, it cut healthcare, Medicaid, SNAP benefits, and ran up trillions of dollars in additional debt.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a letter from over 50 organizations representing civil rights, labor organizations, youth advocates, women's rights, reproductive rights, and others. January 20, 2026. Hon. Mike Johnson, Speaker, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Hon. Hakeem Jeffries, Minority Leader, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Speaker Johnson and Leader Jeffries: We, the undersigned organizations, represent a diverse group of advocates and experts dedicated to advancing civil rights protections and institutional resources for pregnant and parenting students. We write to share our opposition to the Pregnant Students' Rights Act--a thinly veiled anti-abortion law which would not address the key barriers to pregnant students' educational attainment, but would instead further shame and stigmatize people for their pregnancy outcomes.
This bill that purports to ``protect the rights of pregnant students'' falls far short of the protections that are actually necessary for pregnant and parenting students and their children.
More than 3 million undergraduate students in the United States are parents, which is nearly one in five. Despite earning higher GPAs than non-parenting students, parenting college students are less likely to graduate. This is not due to personal failing, but rather a lack of institutional support and recognition of the unique barriers to college completion for parenting students. Pregnant and parenting students often experience feeling disconnected from the larger education community and are not aware of who they can speak to when they experience discrimination because of their pregnancy or parenting status.
Students who are pregnant and/or parents deserve to complete their education free from bias and harassment, in environments that support them on their educational journeys. Unfortunately, pregnant and parenting students are routinely stigmatized, discriminated against, and denied the resources, accommodations, and support they need to thrive in their educational institutions. Many pregnant students risk their health or the health of their pregnancies, because they are unaware of their right to accommodations, including leaves of absence, lactation accommodations, academic adjustments-- including virtual learning and extensions on completing assignments--financial aid eligibility, and child care. Ensuring that students are informed about their educational institution's policies that can further their academic achievement while also supporting their health and caregiving needs is an important step in addressing the systemic barriers that can keep pregnant and parenting students from graduating.
Unfortunately, the proposed bill would do little to mitigate these harms and instead risks further stigmatizing pregnant and parenting students. The proposed bill relies on anti-abortion language and seeks to limit students' reproductive healthcare decisions. This language is part of a political ploy that the anti-abortion movement hopes to use to further its case for a national abortion ban now that the Supreme Court has overturned the federal constitutional right to abortion care as established in Roe v. Wade. Furthermore, the bill language undermines existing legal protections under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) for pregnant students experiencing a range of outcomes related to their pregnancies.
Our belief in personal autonomy and respect for every person's capacity to make their own decisions--including whether to continue their pregnancy or not--is at the core of our work to support pregnant and parenting students. This bill does not contain any meaningful supports that would actually help pregnant and parenting students be able to remain enrolled and meet their educational goals.
Such supports are critically needed, and include:
Explicit protections under Title IX
Nondiscrimination protections at the state and local level
Accessible and affordable child care, and increased funding for on-campus child care
Access to early education and pre-kindergarten services
Transportation access
Support for basic needs, including food, housing, clothing, etc.
Flexible school attendance policies
Lactation accommodations
Less stigma and shame around young parenthood
Increased accountability measures for institutions who fail to protect pregnant and parenting students
Federal funding to support campus Title IX offices' work to prevent and investigate discrimination against pregnant students
Mandatory data collection on student parents to help institutions better target supports and meet the unique needs of this population
As mentioned above, pregnant and parenting students do face stigma and need adequate resources to combat discrimination. However, the Pregnant Students' Rights Act contains little more than a hollow directive for these students to file complaints with the Department of Education, which the Trump Administration has been systematically decimating since taking office, even promising to dismantle the agency. A series of Executive Orders issued early in 2025 substantially impacted the Department's enforcement of civil rights laws, by prioritizing weaponizing these laws to advance discrimination instead of protecting students, including pregnant and parenting students. Education Secretary Linda McMahon fired nearly half of Department staff--with the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), which is responsible for ensuring schools comply with federal civil rights laws, being particularly impacted. And Secretary McMahon also closed most of OCR's twelve regional offices that have responsibility to investigate alleged violations of civil rights laws. Directing pregnant students to an institution that has been gutted by the current Administration is little more than lip service.
There is an alternate path forward. We applaud the bipartisan legislation put forward by Representatives Lucy McBath, Deborah Ross, and Don Bacon: the Understanding Student Parent Outcomes Act of 2025. This bill would make a meaningful difference by allowing essential data collection on the barriers to college graduation for pregnant and parenting students. Legislation like this is necessary to ensure that pregnant and parenting students can complete their education and that they and their families are protected.
Although pregnant and parenting students face many roadblocks, they can thrive when their educational institutions listen to them, support them, and prevent discrimination against them, While balancing their health, caregiving responsibilities, and educational goals is challenging, these added responsibilities often renew students' dedication to their studies. While the decision to parent and/or continue pregnancy is a personal one, the barriers that pregnant and parenting students face are not. This proposed bill would reinforce structural and institutional bias and scrutiny of the decisions students make regarding their personal lives.
We welcome the opportunity to have an open dialogue with the sponsors of the ``Pregnant Students' Rights Act'' and with any other members of Congress who are ready to be the champion that pregnant and parenting students in our nation need and deserve. Sincerely,
Advocates for Youth, AFT, AFL-CIO, All* in Action Fund, American Association of University Women (AAUW), American Atheists, American Civil Liberties Union, American Humanist Association, Center for Reproductive Rights, Clearinghouse on Women's Issues, End Rape On Campus, Equal Rights Advocates, Feminist Majority, Girls for Gender Equity, Guttmacher Institute, Healthy Teen Network, Ibis Reproductive Health, Just Solutions, Justice and Joy National Collaborative, Know Your IX, Legal Momentum, the Women's Legal Defense & Education Fund. MANA, A National Latina Organization, MomsRising, National Council of Jewish Women, National Education Association, National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association, National Institute for Reproductive Health, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice, National Network of Abortion Funds, National Organization for Women, National Organization of API Ending Sexual Violence, National Partnership for Women & Families, National Women's Law Center Action Fund, National Women's Political Caucus, New America Higher Education Policy Program, Physicians for Reproductive Health, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Positive Women's Network-USA, Power to Decide, Public Justice, Reproaction.
Reproductive Freedom for All, Rocky Mountain Victim Law Center, SIECUS: Sex Ed for Social Change, Stop Sexual Assault in Schools, Tahirih Justice Center, The Pregnant Scholar at WorkLife Law, Transgender Law Center, UltraViolet Action, Union for Reform Judaism, University Survivors Movement, Women Employed, Women of Reform Judaism, Women's Law Project.
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Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, they describe the Pregnant Students' Rights Act as: ``a thinly veiled anti-abortion law which would not address key barriers to pregnant students' educational attainment, but would instead further shame and stigmatize people for their pregnancy outcomes.''
They further say: ``This bill that purports to `protect the rights of pregnant students' falls far short of the protections that are actually necessary for pregnant and parenting students and their children.''
It points out that if you really want to be serious, there are some things that we could actually do to support the students, such as: explicit protections under Title IX; nondiscrimination protections at the State and local level; accessible and affordable childcare; access to early childhood education and pre-kindergarten services; transportation services; and others that would actually make a difference.
Mr. Speaker, we have constantly heard that they are providing comprehensive information and not amending Title IX. The fact is that Title IX does have comprehensive rights that are listed under Title IX that are comprehensive.
This bill, however, only requires partial information about those rights. When only partial information is given, that could have fatal consequences to women. Tragically, women have died because of anti- abortion legislation that was passed in some States that require women to be close to death before they can have what could have been a safe abortion if performed earlier. If they mistime it and get closer to death than they thought, many have actually died in those circumstances.
Legislators voted for those laws. We have to note that we should not allow colleges to withhold information that could save women's lives.
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Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Bonamici).
Mr. Speaker, in closing, since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, State abortion bans have undermined healthcare for pregnant women, causing women to experience life-threatening health conditions and complications, with some women tragically losing their lives because of laws that legislators voted for.
Now, House Republicans are going to make things worse by limiting students' access to information about available resources, including information about their right to receive accommodations and protections under Federal civil rights laws available to pregnant or parenting students on college campuses. Women should have access to all relevant information so they can make informed decisions about their futures.
By requiring schools to provide only some information that encourages students to carry a pregnancy to term, this bill could unduly endanger students' health by keeping them in the dark about their rights and resources available to them.
The supporters keep saying that they are not amending Title IX, which entitles students to all of this information. They keep ignoring the fact that this bill only requires that some, not all, of that important information be provided. Repeating a misrepresentation does not make it true.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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