- Federal agenciesCreates a federal incentive for campuses to prevent antisemitic events and harassment.
- StudentsMay improve safety and campus climate for Jewish students by discouraging hostile events.
- Targeted stakeholdersProvides a single, internationally recognized definition of antisemitism for policy use.
Stop Antisemitism on College Campuses Act
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
The bill would amend the Higher Education Act to bar institutions of higher education from authorizing, facilitating, funding, or otherwise supporting any event that promotes antisemitism.
Institutions that violate this provision would be ineligible to participate in Title IV student loan and grant programs.
The bill adopts the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) May 26, 2016 working definition of antisemitism, including its contemporary examples.
Narrow policy aim but high ideological salience, legal vulnerability, and lack of compromise features reduce prospects.
Relative to its intended legislative type, this bill is a straightforward substantive amendment to the Higher Education Act that establishes a clear prohibition and links violation to Title IV program eligibility. It specifies prohibited institutional behaviors and adopts a named working definition of antisemitism, but it provides minimal implementation, enforcement, financial, or accountability detail.
Progressives emphasize IHRA definition may chill political speech
Who stands to gain, and who may push back.
- Targeted stakeholdersCould chill protected speech and academic expression through fear of funding loss.
- Targeted stakeholdersIHRA definition's contemporary examples may be interpreted broadly, risking selective enforcement.
- Targeted stakeholdersInstitutions face added administrative and legal costs to monitor and adjudicate events.
Why the argument around this bill splits.
Progressives emphasize IHRA definition may chill political speech
Likely supportive of the goal to reduce antisemitic harassment and protect Jewish students, but wary of wording and enforcement.
Concern centers on the IHRA definition's use, potential to label political speech about Israel as antisemitic, and risks to academic freedom.
Generally supportive of combating antisemitism while insisting on clear, narrowly tailored implementation.
Sees value in a uniform definition but wants procedural safeguards and clarity to avoid unintended funding losses or First Amendment challenges.
Likely strongly supportive: views bill as a necessary federal check on campus antisemitism and appropriate use of Title IV leverage.
Appreciates IHRA definition and expects clear consequences for institutions that permit antisemitic events.
The path through Congress.
Reached or meaningfully advanced
Reached or meaningfully advanced
Still ahead
Still ahead
Still ahead
Narrow policy aim but high ideological salience, legal vulnerability, and lack of compromise features reduce prospects.
- How "promoting antisemitism" will be adjudicated administratively or judicially
- Whether use of the IHRA definition will attract bipartisan support or provoke opposition
Recent votes on the bill.
No vote history yet
The bill has not accumulated any surfaced votes yet.
Go deeper than the headline read.
Progressives emphasize IHRA definition may chill political speech
Narrow policy aim but high ideological salience, legal vulnerability, and lack of compromise features reduce prospects.
Relative to its intended legislative type, this bill is a straightforward substantive amendment to the Higher Education Act that establishes a clear prohibition and links violation to Title IV program eligibility. It sp…
Go beyond the headline summary with full stakeholder mapping, legislative design analysis, passage barriers, and lens-by-lens tradeoff breakdowns.