IIB 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4570 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 19, 2016 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, 

and Forestry 

AN ACT 

To amend the Department of Agriculture program for research and extension grants to increase participation by 

women and underrepresented minorities in the fields of 

science, technology, engineering, and mathematics to redesignate the program as the ‘‘Jeannette Rankin Women 

and Minorities in STEM Fields Program’’. 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
2 

HR 4570 RFS 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘100 Years of Women 

5 in Congress Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The first woman elected to Congress, Rep9 resentative Jeannette Rankin from Montana, was 

10 elected on November 7, 1916, almost four years 

11 prior to ratification of the 19th Amendment to the 

12 U.S. Constitution giving women the right to vote. 

13 (2) Jeannette Rankin was not only a pioneer in 

14 national electoral politics, she was also a pioneer as 

15 a woman in science, graduating from the University 

16 of Montana in 1902 with a Bachelor of Science de17 gree in biology. 

18 (3) 100 years after the election of Jeannette 

19 Rankin, 108 women serve in the 114th Congress, 

20 more than at any other time in our Nation’s history. 

21 While this improvement is commendable, women 

22 hold only 20 percent of the seats in Congress, far 

23 below their relative share of the American electorate. 

24 (4) According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Sta25 tistics, women make up 47 percent of the total U.S. 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
3 

HR 4570 RFS 

1 workforce. Gains have been made in the science, 

2 technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) 

3 fields over time, but women still comprise only 39 

4 percent of chemists and material scientists, 28 per5 cent of environmental scientists and geoscientists, 16 

6 percent of chemical engineers, and 12 percent of 

7 civil engineers. 

8 (5) More must be done to encourage women to 

9 run for elected office and to enter STEM fields. 

10 SEC. 3. JEANNETTE RANKIN WOMEN AND MINORITIES IN 

11 STEM FIELDS PROGRAM. 

12 Paragraph (7) of section 1672(d) of the Food, Agri13 culture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 

14 5925(d)(7)) is amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(7) JEANNETTE RANKIN WOMEN AND MINORI16 TIES IN STEM FIELDS PROGRAM.—Research and ex17 tension grants may be made under this section to in18 crease participation by women and underrepresented 

19 minorities from rural areas in the fields of science, 

20 technology, engineering, and mathematics, with pri21 ority given to eligible institutions that carry out con22 tinuing programs funded by the Secretary. Any 

23 grant made under this paragraph shall be known 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
4 

HR 4570 RFS 

1 and designated as a ‘Jeannette Rankin Women and 

2 Minorities in STEM Fields Program Grant’.’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives April 18, 2016. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS