IB 
Union Calendar No. 161 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1423 
[Report No. 116–204] 
To amend title 9 of the United States Code with respect to arbitration. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 28, 2019 
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia (for himself, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Ms. BASS, Mr. BEYER, 
Mr. BLUMENAUER, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsyl-
vania, Mr. BRINDISI, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, Ms. BROWNLEY of Cali-
fornia, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Mr. 
CARTWRIGHT, Mr. CASTEN of Illinois, Mr. CICILLINE, Mr. CISNEROS, 
Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. COHEN, 
Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. COURTNEY, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. CUNNINGHAM, Mr. 
DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. DEGETTE, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. 
DELBENE, Mr. DELGADO, Mr. DEUTCH, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. MICHAEL 
F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. ENGEL, Ms. ESCOBAR, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. 
ESPAILLAT, Mr. EVANS, Ms. FRANKEL, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. GARCI´A of 
Illinois, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. GOLDEN, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. GONZALEZ 
of Texas, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. HAALAND, Mr. 
HARDER of California, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Ms. 
HILL of California, Ms. KENDRA S. HORN of Oklahoma, Mr. HORSFORD, 
Mr. HUFFMAN, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. JEFFRIES, Ms. 
JOHNSON of Texas, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. KIM, 
Mrs. KIRKPATRICK, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Ms. KUSTER of New Hamp-
shire, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Ms. LEE of California, Mrs. LEE 
of Nevada, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Mr. LEVIN of California, Mr. TED 
LIEU of California, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mr. LOEBSACK, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. 
LOWENTHAL, Mr. LUJA´N, Mrs. LURIA, Mr. LYNCH, Mrs. CAROLYN B. 
MALONEY
of New York, Mrs. MCBATH, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. 
MCEACHIN, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. MCNERNEY, Ms. MENG, Ms. MOORE, 
Ms. MUCARSEL-POWELL, Mr. NADLER, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. NEGUSE, 
Ms. NORTON, Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Ms. OMAR, Mr. PANETTA, Mr. 
PAPPAS, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. POCAN, 
Ms. PORTER, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. RASKIN, 
Miss RICE of New York, Mr. RICHMOND, Mr. ROSE of New York, Mr. 
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ROUDA, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. RUSH, Mr. RYAN, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. 
SARBANES, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. SERRANO, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. 
SHERMAN, Mr. SIRES, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mr. SOTO, Ms. 
SPEIER, Mr. SWALWELL of California, Mr. TAKANO, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. 
TONKO, Mrs. TRAHAN, Mr. VAN DREW, Mr. VELA, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. 
VISCLOSKY, Ms. WATERS, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mrs. WATSON 
COLEMAN, Mr. WELCH, Ms. WILD, Mr. PALLONE, Ms. FINKENAUER, Ms. 
FUDGE, Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Mrs. DEMINGS, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. 
SABLAN, Mr. LEWIS, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. DEAN, Mrs. HAYES, Ms. WILSON 
of Florida, and Mr. DOGGETT) introduced the following bill; which was 
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
SEPTEMBER 13, 2019 
Additional sponsors: Mrs. TORRES of California, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Ms. 
CRAIG, Mr. AGUILAR, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, Ms. SLOTKIN, Mr. 
BISHOP
of Georgia, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. CROW, Mr. MEEKS, Mr. 
GALLEGO, Mrs. AXNE, Mr. HECK, Mr. RUPPERSBERGER, Mr. ALLRED, 
Ms. ADAMS, Mr. YARMUTH, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York, 
Ms. SCANLON, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. MALINOWSKI, Mr. CLAY, Ms. 
BLUNT ROCHESTER, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. FOSTER, Ms. 
KELLY of Illinois, Mr. KILMER, Mr. NORCROSS, Mr. RUIZ, Mr. SCHIFF, 
Ms. SHALALA, Ms. SPANBERGER, Mr. SUOZZI, Ms. TITUS, Ms. WEXTON, 
Mrs. LOWEY, Ms. SHERRILL, Mr. HIMES, Mr. SCHNEIDER, Ms. SCHRIER, 
Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. PETERS, Mr. BUTTERFIELD, 
Mr. CLYBURN, Mrs. FLETCHER, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr. LAR-
SON of Connecticut, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. O’HAL-
LERAN, Mr. CRIST, Mr. PHILLIPS, Mr. TRONE, Mr. MORELLE, Mr. 
MOULTON, Mr. STANTON, Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas, Mr. KIND, Mr. LAMB, 
Ms. HOULAHAN, Mr. NEAL, Mr. KEATING, Mr. SCHRADER, Ms. UNDER-
WOOD, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Ms. STEVENS, Mr. GAETZ, Ms. 
TORRES
SMALL
of New Mexico, Mr. COSTA, Mrs. BUSTOS, Mr. 
GOTTHEIMER, Ms. GABBARD, and Mr. VARGAS 
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SEPTEMBER 13, 2019 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[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 February 28, 2019] 
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A BILL 
To amend title 9 of the United States Code with respect 
to arbitration. 
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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 ‘‘Forced Arbitration In-
justice Repeal Act’’ or the ‘‘FAIR Act’’. 
SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 
The purposes of this Act are to— 
(1) prohibit predispute arbitration agreements 
that force arbitration of future employment, con-
sumer, antitrust, or civil rights disputes, and 
(2) prohibit agreements and practices that inter-
fere with the right of individuals, workers, and small 
businesses to participate in a joint, class, or collective 
action related to an employment, consumer, antitrust, 
or civil rights dispute. 
SEC. 3. ARBITRATION OF EMPLOYMENT, CONSUMER, ANTI-
TRUST, AND CIVIL RIGHTS DISPUTES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title 9 of the United States Code 
is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘CHAPTER 4—ARBITRATION OF EMPLOY-
MENT, CONSUMER, ANTITRUST, AND 
CIVIL RIGHTS DISPUTES 
‘‘401. Definitions. 
‘‘402. No validity or enforceability. 
‘‘§ 401. Definitions 
‘‘In this chapter— 
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‘‘(1) the term ‘antitrust dispute’ means a dis-
pute— 
‘‘(A) arising from an alleged violation of 
the antitrust laws (as defined in subsection (a) 
of the first section of the Clayton Act) or State 
antitrust laws; and 
‘‘(B) in which the plaintiffs seek certifi-
cation as a class under rule 23 of the Federal 
Rules of Civil Procedure or a comparable rule or 
provision of State law; 
‘‘(2) the term ‘civil rights dispute’ means a dis-
pute— 
‘‘(A) arising from an alleged violation of— 
‘‘(i) the Constitution of the United 
States or the constitution of a State; 
‘‘(ii) any Federal, State, or local law 
that prohibits discrimination on the basis of 
race, sex, age, gender identity, sexual ori-
entation, disability, religion, national ori-
gin, or any legally protected status in edu-
cation, employment, credit, housing, public 
accommodations and facilities, voting, vet-
erans or servicemembers, health care, or a 
program funded or conducted by the Federal 
Government or State government, including 
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any law referred to or described in section 
62(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 
including parts of such law not explicitly 
referenced in such section but that relate to 
protecting individuals on any such basis; 
and 
‘‘(B) in which at least 1 party alleging a 
violation described in subparagraph (A) is one 
or more individuals (or their authorized rep-
resentative), including one or more individuals 
seeking certification as a class under rule 23 of 
the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or a com-
parable rule or provision of State law; 
‘‘(3) the term ‘consumer dispute’ means a dis-
pute between— 
‘‘(A) one or more individuals who seek or 
acquire real or personal property, services (in-
cluding services related to digital technology), se-
curities or other investments, money, or credit 
for personal, family, or household purposes in-
cluding an individual or individuals who seek 
certification as a class under rule 23 of the Fed-
eral Rules of Civil Procedure or a comparable 
rule or provision of State law; and 
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‘‘(B)(i) the seller or provider of such prop-
erty, services, securities or other investments, 
money, or credit; or 
‘‘(ii) a third party involved in the selling, 
providing of, payment for, receipt or use of in-
formation about, or other relationship to any 
such property, services, securities or other invest-
ments, money, or credit; 
‘‘(4) the term ‘employment dispute’ means a dis-
pute between one or more individuals (or their au-
thorized representative) and a person arising out of 
or related to the work relationship or prospective 
work relationship between them, including a dispute 
regarding the terms of or payment for, advertising of, 
recruiting for, referring of, arranging for, or dis-
cipline or discharge in connection with, such work, 
regardless of whether the individual is or would be 
classified as an employee or an independent con-
tractor with respect to such work, and including a 
dispute arising under any law referred to or described 
in section 62(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 
including parts of such law not explicitly referenced 
in such section but that relate to protecting individ-
uals on any such basis, and including a dispute in 
which an individual or individuals seek certification 
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as a class under rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil 
Procedure or as a collective action under section 16(b) 
of the Fair Labor Standards Act, or a comparable 
rule or provision of State law; 
‘‘(5) the term ‘predispute arbitration agreement’ 
means an agreement to arbitrate a dispute that has 
not yet arisen at the time of the making of the agree-
ment; and 
‘‘(6) the term ‘predispute joint-action waiver’ 
means an agreement, whether or not part of a 
predispute arbitration agreement, that would pro-
hibit, or waive the right of, one of the parties to the 
agreement to participate in a joint, class, or collective 
action in a judicial, arbitral, administrative, or other 
forum, concerning a dispute that has not yet arisen 
at the time of the making of the agreement. 
‘‘§ 402. No validity or enforceability 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi-
sion of this title, no predispute arbitration agreement or 
predispute joint-action waiver shall be valid or enforceable 
with respect to an employment dispute, consumer dispute, 
antitrust dispute, or civil rights dispute. 
‘‘(b) APPLICABILITY.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An issue as to whether this 
chapter applies with respect to a dispute shall be de-
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termined under Federal law. The applicability of this 
chapter to an agreement to arbitrate and the validity 
and enforceability of an agreement to which this 
chapter applies shall be determined by a court, rather 
than an arbitrator, irrespective of whether the party 
resisting arbitration challenges the arbitration agree-
ment specifically or in conjunction with other terms 
of the contract containing such agreement, and irre-
spective of whether the agreement purports to delegate 
such determinations to an arbitrator. 
‘‘(2) COLLECTIVE
BARGAINING
AGREEMENTS.— 
Nothing in this chapter shall apply to any arbitra-
tion provision in a contract between an employer and 
a labor organization or between labor organizations, 
except that no such arbitration provision shall have 
the effect of waiving the right of a worker to seek judi-
cial enforcement of a right arising under a provision 
of the Constitution of the United States, a State con-
stitution, or a Federal or State statute, or public pol-
icy arising therefrom.’’. 
(b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Title 9 of the United States 
Code is amended— 
(A) in section 1 by striking ‘‘of seamen,’’ 
and all that follows through ‘‘interstate com-
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merce,’’ and inserting in its place ‘‘of individ-
uals, regardless of whether such individuals are 
designated as employees or independent contrac-
tors for other purposes’’, 
(B) in section 2 by inserting ‘‘or as other-
wise provided in chapter 4’’ before the period at 
the end, 
(C) in section 208— 
(i) in the section heading by striking 
‘‘CHAPTER 1; RESIDUAL APPLICATION’’ 
and inserting ‘‘APPLICATION’’, and 
(ii) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘This chapter applies to the extent that this 
chapter is not in conflict with chapter 4.’’, 
and 
(D) in section 307— 
(i) in the section heading by striking 
‘‘CHAPTER 1; RESIDUAL APPLICATION’’ 
and inserting ‘‘APPLICATION’’, and 
(ii) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘This chapter applies to the extent that this 
chapter is not in conflict with chapter 4.’’. 
(2) TABLE OF SECTIONS.— 
(A) CHAPTER 2.—The table of sections of 
chapter 2 of title 9, United States Code, is 
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