Schools must print suicide hotline numbers on student IDs
S. 4061 — RAYS Act · Filed by Jim Banks (R-IN) · 9 cosponsors · Introduced Mar 11, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill requires public schools that receive federal education funding to include mental health crisis hotline numbers (988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, Crisis Text Line, and state/local hotlines) on student ID cards, or if they don't issue ID cards, to post this information prominently on school websites and student portals. Schools can print the numbers directly on cards, use stickers, or other methods. The Secretary of Education can designate alternative services if existing hotlines become unavailable.
Why we flagged it
The bill's operative mechanism is a straightforward requirement that schools disseminate suicide prevention hotline information to students via ID cards or digital platforms. It is a public health measure, not a regulatory carve-out, subsidy, or commemorative provision.
What the text implies
- Schools may face minor administrative burden in updating ID card production processes or website content, though the bill allows flexible implementation methods and provides a one-year phase-in period.
- The bill's effectiveness depends on student awareness and willingness to use hotlines; simply printing numbers does not guarantee uptake or improved outcomes.
- Secretary of Education authority to designate alternative services creates a potential pathway for future administrative changes to the specific resources promoted, though the mechanism is transparent.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
The bill places no restrictions on students' rights or remedies and creates a low-cost mechanism to increase awareness of suicide prevention resources among teenagers, a population at elevated risk. Schools retain flexibility in implementation, and the requirement applies only to schools already receiving federal funds.
Named in the bill
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, Crisis Text Line, Secretary of Education, Secretary of Health and Human Services, Local Educational Agencies, Secondary Schools
Where it stands
9 cosponsors: 7 Democrats, 2 Republicans.
- Mar 11, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
- Mar 11, 2026 — Referred to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Money around this bill
1 lobbying clients named this bill on 1 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $29,067 in lobbying spend. A filing names 91 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 0% of bills with at least one filing.
Jim Banks, the sponsor, reported $559,626 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.
- National League for Nursing — $29,067 on 1 filing
Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 22, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (3,991 characters) on Aug 18, 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.
Money — Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act filings whose specific-issue field names this bill for quarters ending Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. A filing's amount is reported whole beside the median number of bills a filing names; it is never divided across them. PAC receipts are FEC-reported contributions to the sponsor's candidate committee in the 2026 cycle.
As of — lobbying records through Jul 22, 2026 · page rendered 2026-10-20.
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