I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 6592 
To authorize the Secretary of Education to provide grants to local educational 
agencies to cover the costs of challenges to determinations not to dis-
continue the use of specific instructional materials, or the availability 
of specific school library materials, in public elementary and secondary 
schools, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 5, 2023 
Mr. FROST (for himself, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Ms. ADAMS, 
Mr. AGUILAR, Mr. BERA, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. BOWMAN, Ms. BROWN, 
Mr. CARSON, Mr. CASAR, Mr. CASTEN, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. CAS-
TRO of Texas, Mrs. CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK, Ms. CLARKE of New York, 
Ms. CROCKETT, Ms. LOIS FRANKEL of Florida, Mr. ROBERT GARCIA of 
California, Mr. GOLDMAN of New York, Mr. HORSFORD, Mr. IVEY, Ms. 
JACKSON LEE, Ms. JACOBS, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. 
LEE of California, Ms. LEE of Pennsylvania, Mr. MOSKOWITZ, Ms. NOR-
TON, Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. PETERS, Ms. PETTERSEN, 
Mr. POCAN, Ms. PORTER, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mrs. RAMIREZ, Ms. SCHA-
KOWSKY, Ms. SEWELL, Mr. SOTO, Ms. STANSBURY, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. 
THANEDAR, Ms. TITUS, Ms. TLAIB, Ms. TOKUDA, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Ms. 
WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. WILLIAMS of Geor-
gia, and Mr. MFUME) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To authorize the Secretary of Education to provide grants 
to local educational agencies to cover the costs of chal-
lenges to determinations not to discontinue the use of 
specific instructional materials, or the availability of spe-
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cific school library materials, in public elementary and 
secondary schools, 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 ‘‘Fight Book Bans Act’’. 
SEC. 2. GRANTS TO REIMBURSE CERTAIN COSTS OF CHAL-
LENGES TO CONTINUED USE OF INSTRUC-
TIONAL AND LIBRARY MATERIALS. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 
(1) APPLICABLE PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘appli-
cable program’’ means any program for which the 
Secretary of Education has administrative responsi-
bility as provided by law or by delegation of author-
ity pursuant to law. 
(2) COVERED LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.— 
The term ‘‘covered local educational agency’’ means 
a local educational agency that has the duty and re-
sponsibility under law— 
(A) to select and provide instructional ma-
terials and school library materials for students 
attending public elementary schools or public 
secondary schools under the jurisdiction of the 
agency; 
(B) to provide, or participate in, a proc-
ess— 
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(i) to provide for resolution of an ob-
jection by a parent or other person to— 
(I) the use of a specific instruc-
tional material; or 
(II) the availability of a specific 
school library material; and 
(ii) to discontinue the use of the in-
structional material, or the availability of 
the school library material, for any grade 
level or age group if the local educational 
agency determines that the material is in-
appropriate or unsuitable; and 
(C) to provide, or participate in, a process 
(including any administrative proceeding or 
court case) under which a parent or other per-
son who disagrees with a determination made 
by the covered local educational agency pursu-
ant to subparagraph (B)(ii) to discontinue or 
not to discontinue the use of an instructional 
material, or the availability of a school library 
material, may appeal, or otherwise request re-
consideration of, the determination. 
(3) ESEA TERMS.—The terms ‘‘elementary 
school’’, ‘‘parent’’, ‘‘secondary school’’, and ‘‘Sec-
retary’’ have the meaning given those terms in sec-
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tion 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 
(4) INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL.—The term ‘‘in-
structional material’’ means instructional content 
that is provided to a student, regardless of its for-
mat, including printed or representational materials, 
audio-visual materials, and materials in electronic or 
digital formats (such as materials accessible through 
the Internet). The term does not include academic 
tests or academic assessments. 
(5) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term 
‘‘local educational agency’’ means a public elemen-
tary school, public secondary school, school district, 
or local board of education that is the recipient of 
funds under an applicable program. 
(6) SCHOOL
LIBRARY
MATERIAL.—The term 
‘‘school library material’’ means any material avail-
able to a student via the student’s school library, re-
gardless of its format, including printed or represen-
tational materials, audio-visual materials, and mate-
rials in electronic or digital formats (such as mate-
rials accessible through the Internet). 
(7) STUDENT.—The term ‘‘student’’ means any 
public elementary school or public secondary school 
student. 
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(b) GRANTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Education 
is authorized to make grants to covered local edu-
cational agencies to reimburse such agencies for the 
costs (including costs such as attorneys’ fees and 
court costs) incurred in connection with a process 
described in subsection (a)(2)(C), if— 
(A) such costs are not reimbursed by the 
State or any other person; and 
(B) such process was initiated due to a de-
termination by the covered local educational 
agency not to discontinue the use of an instruc-
tional material or the availability of a school li-
brary material. 
(2) APPLICATION.—A covered local educational 
agency desiring to receive an award under paragraph 
(1) shall submit an application to the Secretary at 
such time and in such manner as the Secretary shall 
require. 
(3) 
MAXIMUM
AMOUNT.—The 
maximum 
amount that a covered local educational agency is el-
igible to receive under this subsection is $100,000 
for each determination described in paragraph 
(1)(B). 
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(4) AWARD
PROCESS.—In awarding grants 
under this subsection, the Secretary shall ensure 
that the award process is based on content-neutral 
and viewpoint-neutral criteria and does not take into 
account the content of the instructional material or 
school library material concerned. 
(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To carry 
out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated 
a total of $15,000,000 for fiscal years 2024 through 2028. 
Æ 
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