Federal anti-bullying mandate gives students documented protections and schools accountability.

What it does

This bill creates a federal framework requiring states receiving Title IV education grants to mandate that all local school districts adopt anti-bullying and anti-harassment policies covering conduct based on race, color, national origin, sex (including sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics), disability, religion, and other characteristics. Schools must provide annual notice to students and parents, establish grievance procedures, collect and publicly report incident data, and the federal government will conduct biennial evaluations to measure effectiveness. The bill does not override existing civil rights laws or free speech protections.

Why we flagged it

The bill's core mechanism is establishing a federal mandate for state-level anti-bullying policies, data collection, and evaluation. It is a public-health and educational-accountability measure, not a market intervention or commemorative act.

What the text implies

• Requires public reporting of bullying incident data at school and district level, creating transparency that may expose disparities in bullying rates or school responses across demographic groups.
• Mandates grievance procedures and complaint mechanisms, potentially increasing administrative burden on schools but creating a documented record of bullying incidents and school responses.
• Emphasis on 'evidence-based discipline policies' and 'restorative practices' may shift school discipline away from suspensions/expulsions toward counseling and peer mediation, affecting school safety protocols.
• Definition of bullying includes conduct based on 'sex characteristics (including intersex traits)' and 'gender identity,' which may generate implementation questions in states with different legal frameworks around these categories.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Students gain explicit protections against bullying and harassment with documented grievance procedures and public reporting, enabling parents and advocates to track school performance. Schools are required to adopt evidence-based, trauma-informed discipline practices rather than exclusionary punishment, which benefits both bullied students and perpetrators who need intervention.

Named in the bill

U.S. Department of Education, State educational agencies, Local educational agencies, Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), Title IV, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS)

Where it stands

218 cosponsors: 216 Democrats, 2 Republicans.

• Mar 3, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Mar 3, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Education and Workforce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

3 lobbying clients named this bill on 6 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $571,408 in lobbying spend. A filing names 105 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 61% of bills with at least one filing.

Linda Sánchez, the sponsor, reported $1,249,899 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• Human Rights Campaign — $439,908 on 2 filings
• The Education Trust — $111,500 on 2 filings
• National Council of Jewish Women — $20,000 on 2 filings

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.