[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 943 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        H.R.943

                     One Hundred Sixteenth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE SECOND SESSION

           Begun and held at the City of Washington on Friday,
            the third day of January, two thousand and twenty


                                 An Act


 
To authorize the Director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum 
    to support Holocaust education programs, 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 ``Never Again Education Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
    The Congress finds the following:
        (1) The United States has demonstrated a commitment to 
    remembrance and education about the Holocaust through bilateral 
    relationships and engagement in international organizations such as 
    the United Nations and the International Holocaust Remembrance 
    Alliance; the United States works to promote Holocaust education as 
    a means to understand the importance of democratic principles, use 
    and abuse of power, and to raise awareness about the importance of 
    genocide prevention today.
        (2) The Congress has played a critical role in preserving the 
    memory of the Holocaust and promoting awareness, including by 
    authorizing the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum as an 
    independent establishment of the Federal Government to ensure that 
    ``the study of the Holocaust become part of the curriculum in every 
    school system in the country'', as well as by establishing a 
    national Holocaust Remembrance Day in 1978.
        (3) 75 years after the conclusion of World War II, with the 
    decreasing number of eyewitnesses and growing distance of students 
    and their families from this history, it is important to 
    institutionalize education about the events of the Holocaust such 
    as the German Nazis' racist ideology, propaganda, and plan to lead 
    a state to war and, with their collaborators, kill millions--
    including the systematic murder of 6,000,000 Jewish people; as well 
    as the persecution and murder of millions of others in the name of 
    racial purity, political, ideological, and behavioral grounds, 
    among them Roma, the disabled, the Slavs, Communists, Socialists, 
    Jehovah's Witnesses, and homosexuals.
        (4) As intolerance, antisemitism, and bigotry are promoted by 
    hate groups, Holocaust education provides a context in which to 
    learn about the danger of what can happen when hate goes 
    unchallenged and there is indifference in the face of the 
    oppression of others; learning how and why the Holocaust happened 
    is an important component of the education of citizens of the 
    United States.
        (5) Today, those who deny that the Holocaust occurred or 
    distort the true nature of the Holocaust continue to find forums, 
    especially online; this denial and distortion dishonors those who 
    were persecuted, and murdered, making it even more of a national 
    imperative to educate students in the United States so that they 
    may explore the lessons that the Holocaust provides for all people, 
    sensitize communities to the circumstances that gave rise to the 
    Holocaust, and help youth be less susceptible to the falsehood of 
    Holocaust denial and distortion and to the destructive messages of 
    hate that arise from Holocaust denial and distortion.
        (6) Currently, 12 States (California, Connecticut, Florida, 
    Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, 
    Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island) require by law that schools 
    teach students about the Holocaust; more schools and teachers, 
    including those in underserved communities, can and should deliver 
    quality Holocaust education.
        (7) For more than 30 years, the United States Holocaust 
    Memorial Museum has worked to build and support the field of 
    Holocaust education, and advance the quality and sustainability of 
    Holocaust education at the local, State, and national levels, by 
    engaging teachers and students across disciplines and grade levels.
        (8) The Federal Government, through support for educational 
    activities of national museums established under Federal law, can 
    assist teachers in efforts to incorporate historically accurate 
    instruction on human rights atrocities, including the Holocaust, in 
    curricula.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
    In this Act:
        (1) Antisemitism.--The term ``antisemitism'' means a certain 
    perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. 
    Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed 
    toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals or their property, toward 
    Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.
        (2) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of the 
    United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
        (3) Eligible program participant.--The term ``eligible program 
    participant'' means--
            (A) a high school teacher, a teacher of one of the middle 
        grades, or a school leader of a high school or a school that 
        includes one of the middle grades (as such terms are defined in 
        section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
        1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801));
            (B) an educational leader or expert who is not employed by 
        a local educational agency (as defined in section 8101 of the 
        Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
        7801)) or an elementary school or secondary school (as such 
        terms are so defined) that is independent of any local 
        educational agency; or
            (C) a prospective teacher enrolled in a program of 
        postsecondary education coursework or preservice clinical 
        education.
        (4) Holocaust.--The term ``the Holocaust'' means the 
    systematic, bureaucratic, state-sponsored persecution and murder of 
    6,000,000 Jews by the Nazi regime and its allies and collaborators. 
    During the era of the Holocaust, German authorities also targeted 
    other groups because of their perceived ``racial inferiority'', 
    such as Roma, the disabled, and Slavs. Other groups were persecuted 
    on political, ideological, and behavioral grounds, among them 
    Communists, Socialists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and homosexuals.
        (5) Holocaust denial and distortion.--The term ``Holocaust 
    denial and distortion'' means discourse and propaganda that deny 
    the historical reality and the extent of the extermination of the 
    Jews by the Nazis and their accomplices during World War II, known 
    as the Holocaust. Holocaust denial refers specifically to any 
    attempt to claim that the Holocaust did not take place. Holocaust 
    distortion refers to efforts to excuse or minimize the events of 
    the Holocaust or its principal elements, including collaborators 
    and allies of Nazi Germany, to blame the Jews for causing their own 
    genocide, or to portray the Holocaust as a positive historical 
    event.
        (6) Holocaust education center.--The term ``Holocaust education 
    center'' means an institution that furthers the teaching and 
    learning about the Holocaust by offering programs for students and 
    training for teachers and other types of professional leadership 
    audiences.
        (7) Holocaust education program.--The term ``Holocaust 
    education program'' means a program that has as its specific and 
    primary purpose to improve awareness and understanding of the 
    Holocaust and educate individuals on the lessons of the Holocaust 
    as a means to raise awareness about the importance of preventing 
    genocide, hate, and bigotry against any group of people.
SEC. 4. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.
    (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this Act $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2021 and 
each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.
    (b) Donations, Gifts, Bequests, and Devises of Property.--In 
accordance with chapter 23 of title 36, United States Code, and in 
furtherance of the purposes of this Act, the Director is authorized to 
solicit, accept, hold, administer, invest, and use donated funds and 
gifts, bequests, and devises of property, both real and personal.
    (c) Use of Funds.--The Director, using funds appropriated under 
subsection (a) and resources received under subsection (b), and 
including through the engagement of eligible program participants as 
appropriate--
        (1) shall develop and nationally disseminate accurate, 
    relevant, and accessible resources to promote understanding about 
    how and why the Holocaust happened, which shall include digital 
    resources and may include other types of resources, such as print 
    resources and traveling exhibitions; and
        (2) may carry out one or more of the following Holocaust 
    education program activities:
            (A) Development, dissemination, and implementation of 
        principles of sound pedagogy for teaching about the Holocaust.
            (B) Provision of professional development for eligible 
        program participants, such as through--
                (i) local, regional, and national workshops;
                (ii) teacher trainings in conjunction with Holocaust 
            education centers and other appropriate partners;
                (iii) engagement with--

                    (I) local educational agencies (as defined in 
                section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
                Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 21 7801)); and
                    (II) high schools and schools that include one of 
                the middle grades (as so defined) that are independent 
                of any local educational agency; and

                (iv) operation and expansion of a teacher fellowship 
            program to cultivate and support leaders in Holocaust 
            education.
            (C) Engagement with State and local education leaders to 
        encourage the adoption of resources supported under this Act 
        into curricula across diverse disciplines.
            (D) Evaluation and research to assess the effectiveness and 
        impact of Holocaust education programs, which may include 
        completion of the report required under section 8.
    (d) Applications.--The Director may seek the engagement of an 
eligible program participant under subsection (c) by requiring 
submission of an application to the Director at such time, in such 
manner, and based on such competitive criteria as the Director may 
require.
SEC. 5. ONLINE HOLOCAUST EDUCATION RESOURCES.
    (a) Website.--The Director shall maintain on the website of the 
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum a special section designated 
for Holocaust education resources to improve awareness and 
understanding of the Holocaust and educate individuals on the lessons 
of the Holocaust as a means to raise awareness about the importance of 
preventing genocide, hate, and bigotry against any group of people. The 
website and resources shall be made publically available.
    (b) Information Distribution.--The Director shall distribute 
information about the activities funded under this Act through the 
website of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and shall 
respond to inquiries for supplementary information concerning such 
activities.
    (c) Best Practices.--The information distributed by the Director 
shall include best practices for educators.
SEC. 6. UNITED STATES HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL COUNCIL.
    The United States Holocaust Memorial Council established under 
section 2302 of title 36, United States Code, shall have governance 
responsibility for the programs and activities carried out under this 
Act in accordance with chapter 23 of title 36, United States Code.
SEC. 7. ENGAGEMENT OF ELIGIBLE PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS.
    (a) In General.--An eligible program participant shall be engaged 
at the discretion of the Director to participate in Holocaust education 
program activities authorized under this Act and approved by the 
Director pursuant to an application described in section 4(d).
    (b) Engagement Period.--Engagement of eligible program participants 
under this Act shall be for a period determined by the Director.
    (c) Priority.--In engaging eligible program participants under 
section 4, the Director shall give priority to applications from such 
participants who work for or with a local educational agency, or a 
school that is independent of any local educational agency, that does 
not, at the time application is made, offer any Holocaust education 
programming.
SEC. 8. ANNUAL REPORT.
    Not later than February 1 of each year, the Director shall submit 
to the Congress a report describing the activities carried out under 
this Act.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.