[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1795 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1795

   To modify the criteria for recognition of accrediting agencies or 
           associations for institutions of higher education.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              June 1, 2023

 Mr. Rubio (for himself, Mr. Lee, and Mr. Scott of Florida) introduced 
the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee 
               on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To modify the criteria for recognition of accrediting agencies or 
           associations for institutions of higher education.

    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 ``Fairness in Higher Education 
Accreditation Act''.

SEC. 2. CRITERIA FOR RECOGNITION OF ACCREDITING AGENCIES OR 
              ASSOCIATIONS.

    Section 496 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) 
is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) in paragraph (5)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (I), by striking 
                        ``and'' after the semicolon;
                            (ii) in subparagraph (J), by inserting 
                        ``and'' after the semicolon; and
                            (iii) by inserting after subparagraph (J), 
                        and before the flush text, the following:
                    ``(K) except in the case of an institution 
                described in subsection (r)(2), success in ensuring a 
                right of free inquiry (as defined in subsection 
                (r)(1));'';
                    (B) in paragraph (7), by striking ``and'' after the 
                semicolon;
                    (C) in paragraph (8), by striking the period at the 
                end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (D) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(9) as part of the accrediting process, such an agency or 
        association shall not consider--
                    ``(A) the diversity, equity, and inclusion policies 
                of an institution of higher education; and
                    ``(B) the racial composition of the accepted 
                applicants, students, or the faculty or staff, of an 
                institution of higher education.'';
            (2) in subsection (g), in the second sentence, by striking 
        ``Nothing in this Act'' and inserting ``Subject to subsection 
        (a)(9), nothing in this Act'';
            (3) in subsection (p), by striking ``Nothing in subsection 
        (a)(5)'' and inserting ``Subject to subsection (a)(9), nothing 
        in subsection (a)(5)''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(r) Free Inquiry.--
            ``(1) Free inquiry.--In this section, the term `free 
        inquiry' means--
                    ``(A) in the case of a public institution of higher 
                education that is legally required to abide by the 
                First Amendment to the Constitution, compliance with--
                            ``(i) the First Amendment to the 
                        Constitution, including protections for freedom 
                        of speech, association, press, religion, 
                        assembly, and petition; and
                            ``(ii) the institution's own written 
                        policies regarding academic freedom; or
                    ``(B) in the case of a private institution of 
                higher education, adherence to the institution's 
                written institutional policies concerning freedom of 
                speech, association, press, religion, assembly, 
                petition, and academic freedom.
            ``(2) Religious exemption.--An institution described in any 
        of subparagraphs (A) through (F) shall not be subject to the 
        free inquiry requirements of subsection (a)(5)(K). Such exempt 
        institutions shall include:
                    ``(A) An institution that is a school or department 
                of divinity.
                    ``(B) An institution that requires its faculty, 
                students, or employees to be members of, or otherwise 
                engage in religious practices of, or espouse a personal 
                belief in, the religion of the organization by which it 
                claims to be controlled.
                    ``(C) An institution that in its charter or 
                catalog, or other official publication, contains an 
                explicit statement that it is controlled by a religious 
                organization or an organ thereof, or is committed to 
                the doctrines or practices of a particular religion, 
                and the members of its governing body are appointed by 
                the controlling religious organization or an organ 
                thereof, and it receives a significant amount of 
                financial support from the controlling religious 
                organization or an organ thereof.
                    ``(D) An institution that has a doctrinal statement 
                or a statement of religious practices, along with a 
                statement that members of the institution community 
                must engage in the religious practices of, or espouse a 
                personal belief in, the religion, its practices, or the 
                doctrinal statement or statement of religious 
                practices.
                    ``(E) An institution that has a published 
                institutional mission that is approved by the governing 
                body of an educational institution and that includes, 
                refers to, or is predicated upon religious tenets, 
                beliefs, or teachings.
                    ``(F) An institution with respect to which there is 
                other evidence sufficient to establish that the 
                institution is controlled by a religious organization, 
                pursuant to section 901(a)(3) of the Education 
                Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681(a)(3)).''.

SEC. 3. CIVIL ACTION.

    An institution of higher education (as defined in section 102 of 
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002), and including both 
public and private institutions as so defined) that is subject to a 
denial, withdrawal, or termination of accreditation as a result of an 
accrediting agency or association's violation of the prohibition 
established in paragraph (9) of section 496(a) of the Higher Education 
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099b(a)), as added by section 2 of this Act, 
may pursue a civil action in accordance with subsections (e) and (f) of 
such section 496.
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