Congress funds STEM access for women, minorities, LGBTQ+ students.
H.R. 3124 — Women and Underrepresented Minorities in STEM Booster Act of 2025 · Filed by Marilyn Strickland (D-WA) · 17 cosponsors · Introduced Apr 30, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill authorizes the National Science Foundation to award competitive grants to schools, universities, and organizations to increase participation of women, racial and ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people with disabilities in STEM education and careers. Eligible activities include mentoring programs, internships, K-12 outreach, faculty recruitment, and online workshops. The bill authorizes $15 million per year for five years (2026–2030).
Why we flagged it
The bill's operative mechanism is a straightforward grant program designed to remove barriers to STEM participation for underrepresented groups. It is a public investment in human capital and workforce development, not a tax carve-out, subsidy to industry, or regulatory change.
What the text implies
- By funding retention and mentoring programs, the bill addresses the documented attrition problem (e.g., only 44% of women remain in STEM 10 years after degree), which may increase the long-term supply of diverse STEM professionals and reduce future labor shortages in high-skill sectors.
- Grants to K-12 outreach programs may shift STEM interest earlier in the educational pipeline, potentially reducing the need for remedial recruitment at the undergraduate level.
- The bill's inclusion of LGBTQ+ individuals and people with disabilities as eligible beneficiaries expands the definition of 'underrepresented' beyond traditional racial/ethnic categories, signaling a broader equity framework.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
The bill directly expands educational and career access for groups historically excluded from high-wage STEM fields. Beneficiaries gain mentoring, internships, outreach, and faculty recruitment support—concrete pathways to economic mobility. No restrictions on citizens' rights or remedies are imposed.
Named in the bill
National Science Foundation (NSF), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES), U.S. Census Bureau, American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), American Society for Cell Biology
Where it stands
17 cosponsors: 17 Democrats.
- Apr 30, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Apr 30, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (10,301 characters) on Sep 28, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-10-20.
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