I 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6537 
To require the Secretary of Education to annually report on the Federal 
civil rights violations of educational institutions, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 25, 2018 
Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California (for herself, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Mr. 
COHEN, Ms. LEE, Mr. RUSH, Ms. NORTON, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Mr. 
JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. ELLISON, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, 
Ms. BARRAGA´N, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. 
RYAN of Ohio, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. CAPUANO, 
Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, and Mr. BLUMENAUER) in-
troduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Edu-
cation and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To require the Secretary of Education to annually report 
on the Federal civil rights violations of educational insti-
tutions, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Education Department 
Civil Rights Transparency Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. REPORT BY THE SECRETARY OF EDUCATION. 
Section 203(b) of the Department of Education Or-
ganization Act (20 U.S.C. 3413(b)) is amended by adding 
at the end the following: 
‘‘(3) In addition to the requirements under 
paragraph (1), the report required under such para-
graph shall include the following: 
‘‘(A) A list of each of the following: 
‘‘(i) 
Each 
educational 
institution 
against which the Department has re-
ceived, in the preceding year, 1 complaint 
alleging that the institution has violated a 
Federal civil rights law. 
‘‘(ii) 
Each 
educational 
institution 
against which the Department has re-
ceived, in the preceding year, more than 1 
such complaint. 
‘‘(iii) Each educational institution 
against which the Department has re-
ceived, in the preceding 5 years, more than 
3 such complaints. 
‘‘(iv) Each educational institution 
that, during the preceding year, was under 
investigation by the Department for such a 
complaint. 
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‘‘(III) whether the Department 
offered the complainant an oppor-
tunity to correct the procedural or ad-
ministrative error prior to dismissing 
the complaint. 
‘‘(E) Any resolution agreement or letter 
between the Department and an educational in-
stitution against which a complaint described in 
paragraph (1) has been filed, which settled the 
Department’s investigation of such complaint. 
‘‘(F) Any corrective action levied or rem-
edy obtained for the preceding year against an 
educational institution for a violation of Federal 
civil rights law pursuant to a resolution agree-
ment or letter, or other findings document, the 
status of such corrective actions, and whether 
the Department is considering extending such 
corrective actions. 
‘‘(G) With respect to each complaint de-
scribed in subparagraph (A)(vi) which the De-
partment dismissed because the Department 
lacks the administrative responsibility, or sub-
ject matter or personal jurisdiction, for the 
Federal law that the complaint alleges to have 
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been violated or the educational institution 
against which the complaint was filed— 
‘‘(i) a list of each such educational in-
stitution and each such Federal law; and 
‘‘(ii) recommendations on whether 
Federal legislation is necessary for the De-
partment to address the complaints de-
scribed in this paragraph. 
‘‘(H) With respect to each educational in-
stitution against which a complaint described in 
subparagraph (A) has been filed that the De-
partment investigated and found insufficient 
evidence to support a finding of a Federal civil 
rights law violation, a report explaining the 
basis for such decision. 
‘‘(I) With respect to each educational insti-
tution that has had a resolution agreement or 
corrective action that the Department has de-
termined does not need to be extended, a report 
on the basis for the decision and how such in-
stitution improved with respect to compliance 
with Federal civil rights laws. 
‘‘(J) In a case in which a decision by the 
Department to not pursue a complaint or inves-
tigation relating to an alleged violation of a 
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Federal civil rights law was due to the resource 
constraints of the Department for the preceding 
year, a description of which resources the De-
partment needs to fully and expeditiously inves-
tigate each such complaint received by the De-
partment. 
‘‘(K) Any changes made, in the preceding 
year, to the case processing manual of the Of-
fice for Civil Rights of the Department. 
‘‘(4) In paragraph (4): 
‘‘(A) COMPLAINT.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘com-
plaint’ means a written statement to the 
Department alleging that the rights of one 
or more persons have been violated and re-
questing that the Department take action. 
‘‘(ii) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘com-
plaint’ does not include oral allegations 
that are not reduced to writing, anony-
mous correspondence, courtesy copies of 
correspondence or a complaint filed with or 
otherwise submitted to another person or 
other entity, or inquiries that seek advice 
or information but do not seek action or 
intervention from the Department. 
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‘‘(B) EDUCATIONAL
INSTITUTION.—The 
term ‘educational institution’ has the meaning 
given the term in section 901(c) of the Edu-
cation Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 
1681(c)). 
‘‘(C) FEDERAL CIVIL RIGHTS LAW.—The 
term ‘Federal civil rights law’ includes— 
‘‘(i) title IX of the Education Amend-
ments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.); 
‘‘(ii) the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 
U.S.C. 2000a et seq.); 
‘‘(iii) the Age Discrimination Act of 
1975 (42 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.); 
‘‘(iv) the Americans with Disabilities 
Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.); 
‘‘(v) the Boy Scouts of America Equal 
Access Act (20 U.S.C. 7905); 
‘‘(vi) the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 
(29 U.S.C. 701 et seq.); and 
‘‘(vii) any other law for which the Of-
fice for Civil Rights of the Department of 
Education has administrative responsi-
bility.’’. 
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SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of Edu-
cation should protect any personally identifying informa-
tion of an individual named in a complaint or other docu-
ment, which may be subject to public release under para-
graph (3) of section 203(b) of the Department of Edu-
cation Organization Act (20 U.S.C. 3413(b)), as added by 
this Act. 
Æ 
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