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H.R. 2555

U.S. House•House Floor Calendar

Summary

H.R. 2555, the Freedom of Association in Higher Education Act of 2026, was introduced in the House on Apr 1, 2025 by Rep. Erin Houchin (R) with 46 co-sponsors. It last saw action on Aug 27, 2026: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 682.

Record

Text

H.R. 2555 has 46 co-sponsors.

hb2555/introduced.txt
IB
  Union Calendar No. 682
  119TH CONGRESS
  2D SESSION
  H. R. 2555
  [Report No. 119–781]
  To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for certain freedom
  of association protections, and for other purposes.
  IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
  APRIL 1, 2025
  Mrs. HOUCHIN (for herself and Mr. GARCIA of California) introduced the fol-
  lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Work-
  force
  AUGUST 27, 2026
  Additional sponsors: Mr. MANN, Mr. JOHNSON of South Dakota, Mr. CAREY,
  Mr. GROTHMAN, Mr. HAMADEH of Arizona, Mr. FRY, Mrs. HINSON, Mr.
  MOORE of Utah, Mr. WALKINSHAW, Mr. ROGERS of Alabama, Mr. HUD-
  SON, Ms. VAN DUYNE, Mr. BISHOP, Ms. FOXX, Mr. BURCHETT, Ms.
  TENNEY, Ms. STEFANIK, Mr. TAYLOR, Mrs. KIGGANS of Virginia, Mr.
  NORMAN, Mr. GOTTHEIMER, Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas, Mr. SHREVE, Mrs.
  GRIJALVA, Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. LALOTA, Mr. STEUBE,
  Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas, Mr. FINE, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. VAN ORDEN, Ms.
  ADAMS, Mrs. MCBATH, Mrs. MCCLAIN DELANEY, Ms. WILSON of Flor-
  ida, Mrs. BICE, Mr. HARRIS of North Carolina, Mr. NEWHOUSE, Mr.
  ROSE, Mr. GUEST, Mr. SCHMIDT, Mr. WITTMAN, Mr. THOMPSON of
  Pennsylvania, Mr. LANDSMAN, and Mr. HILL of Arkansas
  AUGUST 27, 2026
  Deleted sponsors: Mr. GARCIA of California (added April 1, 2025; deleted
  June 25, 2026), Mr. BISHOP (added April 14, 2026; deleted April 20,
  2026) and Mr. LANDSMAN (added June 25, 2026; deleted June 30,
  2026)
  AUGUST 27, 2026
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  Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole
  House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
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  [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]
  [For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 1, 2025]
  A BILL
  To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide
  for certain freedom of association protections, and for
  other purposes.
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
  2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
   SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Freedom of Association
  5 in Higher Education Act of 2026’’.
   SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are as fol-
  8 lows:
(1) Protect any student in a single-sex social or-
ganization or any single-sex social organization from
any adverse action by an institution of higher edu-
cation based on the membership practice of such orga-
nization of limiting membership only to individuals
of one sex.
(2) Ensure—
(A) any student at an institution of higher
education in a single-sex social organization is
treated without bias in comparison to students
who do not participate in single-sex social orga-
nizations; and
(B) any single-sex social organization is
treated by an institution of higher education
without bias in comparison to other social orga-
nizations that are not single-sex.
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(3) Protect the rights of students to freely asso-
ciate with and participate in single-sex social organi-
zations.
   SEC. 3. FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION PROTECTIONS FOR STU-
DENTS IN SINGLE-SEX SOCIAL ORGANIZA-
TIONS.
Part B of title I of the Higher Education Act of 1965
  8 (20 U.S.C. 1011 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end
  9 the following:
    ‘‘SEC. 124. FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION PROTECTIONS FOR
STUDENTS IN SINGLE-SEX SOCIAL ORGANIZA-
TIONS.
‘‘(a) UPHOLDING FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION PROTEC-
    TIONS.—Any student (or group of students) enrolled in an
  15 institution of higher education that receives funds under
  16 this Act, including through an institution’s participation
  17 in any program under title IV, shall—
‘‘(1) be able to form, apply to join, join, partici-
pate in, or lead a single-sex social organization of the
student’s sex, whether or not such organization is offi-
cially recognized by the institution; and
‘‘(2) if selected for membership by any single-sex
social organization, be able to join, participate in, or
lead such single-sex social organization, subject to the
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standards of such organization for regulating its own
membership.
‘‘(b) NONRETALIATION AGAINST STUDENTS OF SIN-
   GLE-SEX SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS.—An institution of high-
  5 er education that receives funds under this Act, including
  6 through an institution’s participation in any program
  7 under title IV, shall not—
‘‘(1) take any action to require or coerce a stu-
dent or prospective student who is a member or pro-
spective member of a single-sex social organization to
waive the protections provided under subsection (a),
including as a condition of enrolling in the institu-
tion;
‘‘(2) take any adverse action against a single-sex
social organization, or a student who is a member or
a prospective member of a single-sex social organiza-
tion, based on the membership practice of such orga-
nization limiting membership only to individuals of
one sex; or
‘‘(3) impose a recruitment restriction (including
a recruitment restriction relating to the schedule for
membership recruitment) on a single-sex social orga-
nization recognized by the institution, which is not
imposed upon other social organizations by the insti-
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tution, unless the single-sex social organization (or a
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council of similar organizations) and the institution
have entered into a mutually agreed upon written
agreement that allows the institution to impose such
restriction.
‘‘(c) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec-
  6 tion shall be construed to—
‘‘(1) require an institution of higher education to
officially recognize a single-sex social organization;
‘‘(2) prohibit an institution of higher education
from taking an adverse action against a student who
forms, applies to join, joins, participates in, or leads
a single-sex social organization—
‘‘(A) due to academic or nonacademic mis-
conduct;
‘‘(B) because the stated purpose of such or-
ganization is directed to inciting or producing
imminent lawless action and is likely to incite
or produce such action; or
‘‘(C) in the case of private institutions, be-
cause the institution determines that the purpose
of such organization is incompatible with the re-
ligious mission of the institution,
provided that the adverse action is not based on the
membership practice of the organization of limiting
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membership only to individuals of one sex;
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‘‘(3) prevent a single-sex social organization
from regulating its own membership;
‘‘(4) inhibit the ability of the faculty of an insti-
tution of higher education to express an opinion (ei-
ther individually or collectively) about membership in
a single-sex social organization, or otherwise inhibit
the academic freedom of such faculty to research,
write, or publish material about membership in such
an organization; or
‘‘(5) create enforceable rights against a single-sex
social organization or against an institution of higher
education due to the decision of such organization to
deny membership to an individual student.
‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
‘‘(1) ADVERSE ACTION.—The term ‘adverse ac-
tion’ includes the following actions taken by an insti-
tution of higher education with respect to a single-sex
social organization or a member or prospective mem-
ber of a single-sex social organization:
‘‘(A) Expulsion, suspension, probation, cen-
sure, condemnation, formal reprimand, or any
other disciplinary action, coercive action, or
sanction taken by an institution of higher edu-
cation or an administrative unit of such institu-
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tion.
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‘‘(B) An oral or written warning with re-
spect to an action described in subparagraph (A)
made by an official of an institution of higher
education acting in their official capacity.
‘‘(C) An action to deny participation in
any education program or activity, including the
withholding of any rights, privileges, or opportu-
nities afforded other students on campus.
‘‘(D) An action to withhold, in whole or in
part, any financial assistance (including schol-
arships and on-campus employment), or denying
the opportunity to apply for financial assistance,
a scholarship, a graduate fellowship, or on-cam-
pus employment.
‘‘(E) An action to deny or restrict access to
on-campus housing.
‘‘(F) An action to deny any certification,
endorsement, or letter of recommendation that
may be required by a student’s current or future
employer, a government agency, a licensing
board, an institution of higher education, a
scholarship program, or a graduate fellowship to
which the student applies or seeks to apply.
‘‘(G) An action to deny participation in
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any sports team, club, or other student organiza-
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tion, including a denial of any leadership posi-
tion in any sports team, club, or other student
organization.
‘‘(H) An action to withdraw the institu-
tion’s official recognition of such organization.
‘‘(I) An action to require any student to
certify that such student is not a member of a
single-sex social organization or to disclose the
student’s membership in a single-sex social orga-
nization in a manner that is different from dis-
closure of a student’s membership in a social or-
ganization that is not a single-sex social organi-
zation.
‘‘(J) An action to interject an institution’s
own criteria into the membership practices of the
organization in any manner that conflicts with
the rights of such organization under title IX of
the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C.
1681 et seq.) or this section.
‘‘(K) An action to impose additional re-
quirements on or with respect to advisors serving
a single-sex social organization that are not im-
posed on social organizations that are not single-
sex social organizations.
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‘‘(2) SINGLE-SEX SOCIAL ORGANIZATION.—The
term ‘single-sex social organization’ means—
‘‘(A) a social fraternity or sorority de-
scribed in section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986 which is exempt from taxation
under section 501(a) of such Code, or a social or-
ganization that has been historically single-sex,
the active membership of which consists pri-
marily of students or alumni of an institution of
higher education; or
‘‘(B) a single-sex private social club (in-
cluding an independent organization located off-
campus) that consists primarily of students or
alumni of an institution of higher education.
‘‘(3) SEX.—The term ‘sex’ means the biological
sex of an individual, either male or female.
‘‘(A) FEMALE.—The term ‘female’ means an
individual who has, had, will have, or would
have, but for a congenital anomaly or inten-
tional or unintentional disruption, the reproduc-
tive system that at some point produces, trans-
ports, and utilizes eggs for fertilization.
‘‘(B) MALE.—The term ‘male’ means an in-
dividual who has, had, will have, or would have,
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but for a congenital anomaly or intentional or
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unintentional disruption, the reproductive sys-
tem that at some point produces, transports, and
utilizes sperm for fertilization.’’.
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  Union Calendar No. 682
119TH CONGRESS
   2D SESSION       H. R. 2555
  [Report No. 119–781]
  H2555
  A BILL
  E:\BILLS\H2555.RH
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to
  provide for certain freedom of association protec-
  tions, and for other purposes.
  Sfmt 6651
  AUGUST 27, 2026
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Com-
  mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union,
  Fmt 6651
  and ordered to be printed
  Frm 00012
  PO 00000
  Jkt 069200
  21:23 Aug 27, 2026
  VerDate Sep 11 2014
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Tracker

The tracker indicates the progress of this legislation as it moves through the legislative process.

  1. Introduced2025-04-01
  2. Passed House
  3. Passed Senate
  4. Conference
  5. To President
  6. Became Law

CRS Summary

The summaries are the Congressional Research Service’s, one per stage. Read them in full.

Introduced in House Apr 1, 2025

hb2555/introduced-in-house.md

Shown Here:
Introduced in House (04/01/2025)

Freedom of Association in Higher Education Act of 2025

This bill establishes freedom of association protections for college students in single-sex social organizations.

Specifically, the bill gives students (or groups of students) enrolled at institutions of higher education (IHEs) the right to form or join social organizations, including single-sex social organizations.

Additionally, the bill prohibits IHEs that participate in federal student aid programs from

  • taking adverse actions against single-sex social organizations or students who are members or prospective members of such organizations based solely on the practice of limiting membership to only individuals of one sex;
  • taking actions that require or coerce members or prospective members of such organizations to waive protections provided under the bill, including as a condition of enrolling in the IHE; or
  • imposing a recruitment restriction on a single-sex social organization that is not imposed upon other student organizations, unless the organization and IHE have entered into a written agreement allowing the restriction.

Sponsors

Rep. Erin Houchin (R) sponsors H.R. 2555, and 46 members have co-sponsored it, 1 of them from the day it was introduced; 3 have since withdrawn.

Committees

H.R. 2555 went before 1 committee: Education and Workforce.

Education and Workforce
Education and Workforce
Reported By · Aug 27, 2026 · 824 Bills

Actions

H.R. 2555 has taken 6 actions since Apr 1, 2025, the latest on Aug 27, 2026.

ChamberAction
Aug 27, 2026
House
Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Education and Workforce. H. Rept. 119-781.Education and Workforce Committee
Aug 27, 2026
House
Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 682.
Jun 25, 2026
House
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session HeldEducation and Workforce Committee
Jun 25, 2026
House
Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 18 - 15.Education and Workforce Committee
Apr 1, 2025
House
Introduced in House

Votes

H.R. 2555 has not gone to a roll call.

1 bill is related to H.R. 2555, as Identical bill.

Titles

H.R. 2555 goes by 4 titles, 2 of them short titles.

  • Freedom of Association in Higher Education Act of 2026 — Display Title
  • Freedom of Association in Higher Education Act of 2026 — Short Title(s) as Reported to House
  • Freedom of Association in Higher Education Act of 2025 — Short Title(s) as Introduced
  • To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for certain freedom of association protections, and for other purposes. — Official Title as Introduced

Lobbying

6 clients hired 5 firms and 43 registered lobbyists who named H.R. 2555 in 12 quarterly filings, 2025 to 2026. Reported under the Lobbying Disclosure Act; a filing’s income covers everything its registrant worked that quarter, so the amounts below are the filings’, not this bill’s.

Filed under Education, Taxation/Internal Revenue Code, Civil Rights/Civil Liberties, Health Issues, Agriculture, Budget/Appropriations, Defense, Family issues/Abortion/Adoption.

Clients

Who paid to be heard, by how many filings named the bill.

ClientBusinessStateFirmsFilingsReported
FRATERNAL GOVERNMENT RELATIONS COALITIONInformal coalition of PanHellenic and Fraternal organizationsIndiana16$260K
NATIONAL PANHELLENIC CONFERENCETrade AssociationIndiana12$50K
NORTH AMERICAN INTERFRATERNITY CONFERENCEMens fraternity trade association.Indiana11$20K
ALLIANCE DEFENDING FREEDOMReligious Liberty, Life, Parental Rights, Free SpeechVirginia11—
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS—District of Columbia11—
FOUNDATION FOR INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS AND EXPRESSION (FIRE)Nonprofit organization specializing in higher education student and faculty civil rights.Pennsylvania11—

Firms

Registrants who filed on the bill, by filings.

RegistrantClientsFilingsReported
ARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER LLP27$280K
MEHLMAN CONSULTING, INC.12$50K
ALLIANCE DEFENDING FREEDOM11—
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS11—
FOUNDATION FOR INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS AND EXPRESSION (FIRE)11—

Lobbyists

Named on the filings that cite the bill. The 20 named most often, of 43.

LobbyistFirmsClientsFilings
KEVIN O'NEILL127
MIKAYLA MARCUM127
TAYLOR CAZEAULT127
VINCENT BROWN127
KATHERINE KEANE125
DYLAN KELEMEN123
EMILY CRAWFORD123
EMILY MAHAFFY123
ALEXANDER PERKINS112
ALYENE MLINAR112
ANNIE WOLF112
BRUCE MEHLMAN112
CAITLIN VAN SANT112
DAVID THOMAS112
DEAN ROSEN112
EARL FLOOD112
ELISE FINLEY PICKERING112
ERICA CHABOT112
HELEN TOLAR112
JON ADAME112

Filings

The documents themselves, on the Senate’s Lobbying Disclosure site, largest reported first.

ClientRegistrantPeriodReportedDocument
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERSAMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS2026 second_quarter$410K2nd Quarter - Report
FRATERNAL GOVERNMENT RELATIONS COALITIONARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER LLP2026 first_quarter$50K1st Quarter - Report
FRATERNAL GOVERNMENT RELATIONS COALITIONARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER LLP2025 fourth_quarter$50K4th Quarter - Report
FRATERNAL GOVERNMENT RELATIONS COALITIONARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER LLP2025 third_quarter$50K3rd Quarter - Report
FRATERNAL GOVERNMENT RELATIONS COALITIONARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER LLP2025 second_quarter$50K2nd Quarter - Report
FRATERNAL GOVERNMENT RELATIONS COALITIONARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER LLP2025 first_quarter$50K1st Quarter - Report
ALLIANCE DEFENDING FREEDOMALLIANCE DEFENDING FREEDOM2026 second_quarter$40K2nd Quarter - Report
NATIONAL PANHELLENIC CONFERENCEMEHLMAN CONSULTING, INC.2026 second_quarter$30K2nd Quarter - Report
NORTH AMERICAN INTERFRATERNITY CONFERENCEARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER LLP2026 second_quarter$20K2nd Quarter - Report
NATIONAL PANHELLENIC CONFERENCEMEHLMAN CONSULTING, INC.2026 first_quarter$20K1st Quarter - Report
FOUNDATION FOR INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS AND EXPRESSION (FIRE)FOUNDATION FOR INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS AND EXPRESSION (FIRE)2026 second_quarter$15K2nd Quarter - Report
FRATERNAL GOVERNMENT RELATIONS COALITIONARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER LLP2026 second_quarter$10K2nd Quarter - Termina…

Classification

The Congressional Research Service files H.R. 2555 under Education, one of its 31 policy areas, and gives it 3 legislative subjects.

CRS Subjects

CRS assigns every bill one policy area from its 31; H.R. 2555’s is Education.

hr2555/policy-areas.txt
EducationAgriculture and FoodAnimalsArmed Forces and National SecurityArts, Culture, ReligionCivil Rights and Liberties, Minority IssuesCommerceCongressCrime and Law EnforcementEconomics and Public FinanceEmergency ManagementEnergyEnvironmental ProtectionFamiliesFinance and Financial SectorForeign Trade and International FinanceGovernment Operations and PoliticsHealthHousing and Community DevelopmentImmigrationInternational AffairsLabor and EmploymentLawNative AmericansPublic Lands and Natural ResourcesScience, Technology, CommunicationsSocial WelfareSports and RecreationTaxationTransportation and Public WorksWater Resources Development

Legislative Subjects

H.R. 2555 carries 3 of CRS’s legislative subjects, from Higher education to Sex, gender, sexual orientation discrimination.

hr2555/subjects.txt
Higher educationSchool administrationSex, gender, sexual orientation discrimination

Constitutional authority

The clause the sponsor cites as Congress’s power to enact H.R. 2555, as entered in the Congressional Record.

[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 58 (Tuesday, April 1, 2025)][House]From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]By Mrs. HOUCHIN:H.R. 2555.Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuantto the following:Article 1, Section 8[Page H1405]

Source: congress.gov · legiscan.com