I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 7354 

To establish an Interagency Task Force to examine the conditions and experiences of Black women and girls in education, economic development, 

healthcare, labor and employment, housing, justice and civil rights, to 

promote community-based methods for mitigating and addressing harm 

and ensuring accountability, and to study societal effects on Black women 

and girls, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 14, 2024 

Ms. KELLY of Illinois (for herself, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mrs. WATSON

COLEMAN, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mrs. BEATTY, Ms. SEWELL, Ms. BLUNT

ROCHESTER, Ms. NORTON, Ms. ADAMS, Mrs. FOUSHEE, Ms. WATERS, 

Ms. MCCLELLAN, Ms. CROCKETT, Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia, Ms. LEE

of California, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Ms. KAMLAGER-DOVE, Ms. 

BROWN, Mrs. CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK, Ms. LEE of Pennsylvania, Mrs. 

MCBATH, Mrs. HAYES, Ms. STRICKLAND, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mrs. SYKES, 

Mr. THANEDAR, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Ms. PLASKETT, and Ms. JACKSON LEE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Education 

and the Workforce, Energy and Commerce, and Financial Services, for 

a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To establish an Interagency Task Force to examine the conditions and experiences of Black women and girls in 

education, economic development, healthcare, labor and 

employment, housing, justice and civil rights, to promote 

community-based methods for mitigating and addressing 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 7354 IH

harm and ensuring accountability, and to study societal 

effects on Black women and girls, and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Protect Black Women 

5 and Girls Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds as follows: 

8 (1) The United States Commission on Civil 

9 Rights (USCCR) advises Congress, as well as the 

10 President and the American public, on ‘‘discrimina11 tion or denials of equal protection of the laws under 

12 the Constitution of the United States because of 

13 color, race, religion, sex, age, disability, or national 

14 origin, or in the administration of justice’’. 

15 (2) The USCCR routinely has difficulties col16 lecting information from Federal agencies despite 

17 having the power to take depositions, issue interrog18 atories and subpoenas, and broad authority language 

19 for the collection of information from Federal agen20 cies. 

21 (3) The activities mandated herein for the 

22 USCCR are explicitly authorized by section 3 of the 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 7354 IH

1 Civil Rights Commission Act of 1983 (42 U.S.C. 

2 1975a). 

3 (4) An interagency task force is a task force or4 ganized in collaboration with two or more Federal 

5 agencies, using government-wide resources, and ex6 pertise to— 

7 (A) examine a particular problem, issue, or 

8 event; 

9 (B) discuss strategies as a collective group 

10 to address such problem, issue, or event; 

11 (C) identify programs, policies, and fund12 ing; and 

13 (D) make recommendations for changes in 

14 public policy. 

15 (5) Black women and girls are individuals who 

16 identify as a woman, female, or femme. 

17 (6) Implicit bias on the basis of race is experi18 enced by all Black people, and demonstrated more 

19 clearly, in the troubling conditions for Black women 

20 and girls in our school discipline policies and the 

21 connections to the school-to-prison pipeline for chil22 dren of color with disabilities. 

23 (7) Black girls are suspended and expelled from 

24 school at rates that exceed other girls and all other 

25 boys except Black boys. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (8) 40 percent of all suspected human traf2 ficking victims in the U.S. are Black, and Black 

3 children account for nearly 51 percent of all juvenile 

4 prostitution arrests. 

5 (9) In studying the conditions of confinement 

6 for women in prison, Black women are admitted to 

7 prison at 3.9 times the rate of White women. 

8 SEC. 3. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE ON BLACK WOMEN AND 

9 GIRLS. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

11 the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General, 

12 in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human 

13 Services, shall establish an Interagency Task Force on 

14 Black women and girls (referred to in this Act as the 

15 ‘‘Task Force’’) to carry out the purposes and duties de16 scribed in subsections (d) and (e), in compliance with re17 quirements and restrictions under law, as applicable, in18 cluding those prohibiting discrimination on the basis of 

19 race and sex. 

20 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Task Force shall consist of 

21 members appointed as follows: 

22 (1) The head of each of the following agencies 

23 shall appoint at least one officer or employee, but no 

24 more than two, from a relevant office of the fol25 lowing: 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (A) The Department of Health and 

2 Human Services. 

3 (B) The Department of Education. 

4 (C) The Department of Labor. 

5 (D) The National Institutes of Health. 

6 (E) The Department of Justice. 

7 (F) The Department of Housing and 

8 Urban Development. 

9 (2) The Attorney General shall appoint the fol10 lowing: 

11 (A) One officer or employee of a defender 

12 organization described in section 3006A(g)(2) 

13 of title 18, United States Code. 

14 (B) Two representatives of community15 based organizations that have expertise working 

16 on culturally specific issues unique to the needs 

17 of Black women and girls. 

18 (c) TERMS.—The term of a member of the Task 

19 Force shall be 4 years, and the member shall be eligible 

20 for consecutive reappointment by the head of their respec21 tive agency or the Attorney General. 

22 (d) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Task Force is to 

23 examine the conditions and experiences of Black women 

24 and girls, to identify and assess the efficacy of policies 

25 and programs of Federal, State, and local governments deVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:55 Feb 21, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7354.IH H7354

ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 7354 IH

1 signed to improve outcomes for Black women and girls, 

2 and to make recommendations to improve such policies 

3 and programs. 

4 (e) DUTIES.—The duties of the Task Force are as 

5 follows: 

6 (1) EDUCATION.—The Task Force shall iden7 tify and recommend programs, policies, and incen8 tives for adoption by Federal, State, or local govern9 ments with respect to the following: 

10 (A) Community-led educational and sup11 port programs for Black girls in kindergarten 

12 through grade 12, which shall include the fol13 lowing: 

14 (i) Social and emotional learning pro15 grams, including those that employ 

16 facilitators trained in identity-based dia17 logue. 

18 (ii) Support for girls who have a par19 ent or guardian who is incarcerated or has 

20 a substance use disorder. 

21 (iii) Support for a college scholarship 

22 fund and programs to increase access to 

23 post-secondary education for Black chil24 dren of incarcerated parents. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (iv) Classroom and after school em2 powerment programs for Black girls. 

3 (v) Community-led civic engagement 

4 and community organizing education. 

5 (vi) Classroom and community-led art, 

6 theater, and STEM learning centers. 

7 (vii) School-based and community8 based programs to eliminate the detention 

9 and incarceration of school-aged children 

10 that employ trained de-escalation profes11 sionals. 

12 (viii) Household access to school-based 

13 communication technologies. 

14 (ix) School-based or community-based 

15 restorative justice programs instead of ex16 pulsion of girls from school. 

17 (x) Curriculum, tutoring, and activi18 ties support for homeschooling and virtual 

19 learning families. 

20 (xi) School-based or community-based 

21 programs on comprehensive, age-appro22 priate, sexual health education, which 

23 teaches about consent and healthy relation24 ships across the spectrum. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (B) Community-led educational programs 

2 for Black women, including— 

3 (i) providing household access to in4 formation and communication technologies 

5 to narrow the digital divide and enhance 

6 access to higher education; 

7 (ii) emotional support training for 

8 Black mothers, parents, or other guardians 

9 on child development and behavioral and 

10 discipline management; and 

11 (iii) educational programs to support 

12 immigrant women, including English learn13 ing courses, citizenship preparation 

14 courses, and GED courses. 

15 (C) School-based and community-based re16 storative and transformative justice curriculums 

17 and spaces. 

18 (D) Policies that prohibit religious dis19 crimination against Black Muslim girls in kin20 dergarten through grade 12, which may include 

21 the following: 

22 (i) Allowing girls to always wear all 

23 cultural and religious garments. 

24 (ii) Excusing absences for Muslim 

25 girls during religious holidays. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (iii) Avoiding scheduling exams during 

2 Muslim holidays that require such girls to 

3 fast. 

4 (E) Educational programs for Black girls 

5 in kindergarten through grade 12 with learning, 

6 developmental, and emotional disabilities that 

7 may pose an obstacle to learning and excelling 

8 in academics, and support groups for parents of 

9 such children. 

10 (F) Programs and support groups for 

11 mothers, parents, or guardians of a child with 

12 disabilities. 

13 (2) ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.—The Task 

14 Force shall identify and recommend programs, poli15 cies, and incentives for adoption by Federal, State, 

16 or local governments with respect to the following: 

17 (A) Pre-apprenticeship, nontraditional, and 

18 career exploration programs for careers in the 

19 skilled trades and transportation. 

20 (B) Programs that give priority to black 

21 women-owned businesses, which qualify as dis22 advantaged business enterprises, when award23 ing yearly and multi-year contract dollars. 

24 (C) Entrepreneurship and cooperative busi25 ness training for Black women. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (D) Support for low-income Black women 

2 workers. 

3 (E) Career mentorship for Black women. 

4 (F) Support for Black women workers over 

5 the age of 50 to enter the workforce. 

6 (G) Support for Black women who leave 

7 the workforce to care for a dependent (such as 

8 an elderly relative or child) to re-enter the 

9 workforce after a significant absence. 

10 (H) Increase in sustainable employment 

11 for women headed households. 

12 (I) Limitation of barriers to occupational 

13 licensure for Black women. 

14 (J) Establishment of vocational training 

15 and career technical education. 

16 (K) Job placement and career assistance 

17 programs for Black youth experiencing home18 lessness or discrimination. 

19 (L) Support for Black women and girls 

20 with disabilities entering the workforce in part21 nership with local businesses. 

22 (3) HEALTHCARE.—The Task Force shall iden23 tify and recommend programs, policies, and incen24 tives for adoption by Federal, State, or local govern25 ments with respect to the following: 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (A) Developing a study of the health, in2 cluding the mental health, of Black women and 

3 girls. 

4 (B) Programs to improve maternal health 

5 from the prenatal to postpartum period and in6 fant mortality outcomes for Black mothers and 

7 children. 

8 (C) Community-based, on demand mental 

9 health and trauma services. 

10 (D) Gender and culturally responsive do11 mestic violence (including violence against an 

12 intimate partner) and interpersonal violence re13 sponders. 

14 (E) Local neighborhood safe houses. 

15 (F) Long-term, on demand, substance use 

16 disorder treatment. 

17 (G) Community-based emergency response 

18 teams for women and girls. 

19 (H) Access to comprehensive well-women 

20 care for Black women and girls, including local 

21 testing for mammograms, papsmears, sexually 

22 transmitted infections, other medical testing, 

23 and general health screenings. 

24 (I) Local neighborhood COVID–19 testing. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (J) Programs to assist Black mothers, par2 ents, or guardians of children with disabilities 

3 and Black women with disabilities with obtain4 ing affordable health insurance. 

5 (4) JUSTICE AND CIVIL RIGHTS.—The Task 

6 Force shall identify and recommend programs, poli7 cies, and incentives for adoption by Federal, State, 

8 or local governments with respect to the following: 

9 (A) Reentry assistance and reunification 

10 planning and community-based programming 

11 for women victims of sexual, domestic, or inti12 mate partner violence, or the war on drugs or 

13 women experiencing mental illness or substance 

14 abuse. 

15 (B) Programs for Black women and girls 

16 that promote the treatment of underlying prob17 lems instead of incarceration, including the ex18 pansion of the use of parole and diversion pro19 grams and preventing the incarceration of 

20 mothers who are primary caretakers of minor 

21 children. 

22 (C) Access to legal assistance provided by 

23 the Office on Violence Against Women of the 

24 Department of Justice for child custody and pa25 rental termination proceedings. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (D) Funding that enables communities to 

2 reimagine community-based programming. 

3 (E) Support for formerly incarcerated 

4 Black women, in collaboration with community5 led organizations. 

6 (F) Permitting formerly incarcerated and 

7 convicted women (not including incarceration or 

8 convictions for violent offenses, human traf9 ficking, or sex offenses) to be eligible to serve 

10 as a foster parent. 

11 (G) Judicial discretion in sentencing and 

12 procedures for resentencing. 

13 (H) Examination of policies to reform and 

14 limit laws requiring mandatory minimum sen15 tences. 

16 (I) Examination of vacatur and 

17 expungement laws for criminal offenses com18 mitted by victims of human and sex trafficking. 

19 (J) Promoting access for Black women 

20 with disabilities to be sheltered, or held in men21 tal healthcare facilities rather than imprisoned, 

22 especially for nonviolent crimes. 

23 (5) HOUSING.—The Task Force shall identify 

24 and recommend programs, policies, and incentives 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
14 

•HR 7354 IH

1 for adoption by Federal, State, or local governments 

2 with respect to the following: 

3 (A) Increasing access to the following: 

4 (i) Permanent and transitional hous5 ing for women with children, formerly in6 carcerated women, women with disabilities, 

7 and elderly women. 

8 (ii) Legal representation for women 

9 with children and women 60 years of age 

10 and older facing eviction. 

11 (iii) Homeownership assistance funds 

12 for Black women. 

13 (B) Increasing accessibility and availability 

14 of long-term neighborhood transitional and per15 manent supportive housing for Black women re16 entering the community following incarceration. 

17 (f) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 1 year 

18 after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually 

19 thereafter, the Task Force shall submit to Congress a re20 port on— 

21 (1) the activities conducted under this section; 

22 and 

23 (2) the activities conducted under this section 

24 that are ongoing or are in continuation of existing 

25 Federal programs, including information on addiVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:55 Feb 21, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7354.IH H7354

ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
15 

•HR 7354 IH

1 tional work undertaken in response to duties of the 

2 Task Force under subsection (e). 

3 (g) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not later than 2 years 

4 after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually 

5 thereafter, the Task Force shall submit to Congress, the 

6 President, and to each chief executive of a State rec7 ommendations on policies, practices, programs, and incen8 tives that may be adopted to improve outcomes for Black 

9 women and girls. 

10 SEC. 4. UNITED STATES COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS RE11 PORT ON ISSUES IMPACTING BLACK WOMEN 

12 AND GIRLS. 

13 (a) DUTIES.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

14 of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the 

15 United States Commission on Civil Rights shall conduct 

16 a comprehensive study and collect data with respect to the 

17 effects on Black women and girls of the following: 

18 (1) The lack of contract opportunities with the 

19 Federal Government for Black women. 

20 (2) The wage gap and pay equity for Black 

21 women in comparison to other individuals. 

22 (3) The high maternal mortality rate and the 

23 steps needed to reduce such rate. 

24 (4) The high infant mortality rate of Black 

25 girls. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
16 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (5) The impact of screening for breast cancer 

2 at an earlier age than 40 years of age for Black 

3 women. 

4 (6) The school-to-prison pipeline and its impact 

5 on Black women and girls, including Black women 

6 and girls with disabilities. 

7 (7) Housing stability, homelessness, and access 

8 to affordable rental housing and home loans for 

9 Black women. 

10 (8) The prevalence and rate of violence, includ11 ing intimate partner violence and homicide, against 

12 Black women and girls, including Black transgender 

13 women and girls, and the effect of prevention strate14 gies and barriers to service for such women and 

15 girls. 

16 (9) Excessive use of force by law enforcement, 

17 including when death results, against Black women 

18 and girls, including Black transgender women and 

19 girls. 

20 (10) The over-incarceration of Black women 

21 and girls, including Black transgender women and 

22 girls, in the juvenile and adult justice system. 

23 (11) Establishing a moratorium on building 

24 new women’s prisons or jails. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
17 

•HR 7354 IH

1 (12) Repealing of the Adoption Safe Families 

2 Act of 1997 (Public Law 105–89; 111 Stat. 2115). 

3 (13) Repealing any policy or law that creates 

4 barriers to housing or precludes formerly incarcer5 ated people from living with family members in pub6 lic or private housing. 

7 (14) Neighborhood family reunification support. 

8 (15) The high rate of sex trafficking of Black 

9 women and girls, and the impact of State vacatur 

10 and expungement laws for victims of human and sex 

11 trafficking. 

12 (16) Any additional items described in section 

13 2(e) that the Commission determines appropriate. 

14 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

15 of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the 

16 United States Commission on Civil Rights shall submit to 

17 Congress, the President, and make publicly available on18 line, a report outlining the Commission’s activities and 

19 findings under subsection (a). 

20 (c) INFORMATION SHARING.—All relevant entities of 

21 the United States Government, including the Department 

22 of Justice, the Department of Health and Human Serv23 ices, the Department of Education, the Department of 

24 Labor, and the National Institutes of Health, shall provide 

25 information to the United States Commission on Civil 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
18 

•HR 7354 IH

1 Rights in order for the Commission to carry out its duties 

2 under this section. 

Æ 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS