Colleges can't sell your voter data without asking first

What it does

This bill prohibits colleges and universities from selling or disclosing student personal information—including directory data like names and contact details—for voter registration tracking or measurement without explicit written student consent. It also bars the sale of student directory information by postsecondary institutions without prior informed consent. Colleges that violate these rules lose federal funding.

Why we flagged it

The bill's operative mechanism is a straightforward privacy restriction: it prohibits colleges from selling or disclosing student voter and directory data without consent, backed by federal funding loss. This is a consumer-protection measure, not a market intervention or commemorative act.

What the text implies

• The bill references section 99.30 of title 34 CFR (consent standards under FERPA) but does not restate those standards in the bill itself. The actual scope of 'prior, informed, written consent' depends on how that regulation is written and interpreted—a limit of this analysis.
• The funding prohibition applies to 'any applicable program,' which is broad language. The precise programs subject to this restriction depend on how 'applicable program' is defined elsewhere in the General Education Provisions Act—another limit of this analysis.
• Colleges may respond by obtaining blanket consent forms at enrollment, which could satisfy the letter of the law while reducing meaningful student choice if consent is bundled with other institutional requirements.

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

Who it affects

Students gain explicit control over whether their personal information—including voting behavior and directory data—can be sold or used for voter tracking. The funding prohibition creates a strong enforcement mechanism that incentivizes institutional compliance, protecting student privacy without imposing costs on the public.

Named in the bill

postsecondary educational institutions, Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), General Education Provisions Act, Section 444, Title 34 Code of Federal Regulations, Section 99.30, U.S. Department of Education

Where it stands

• Sep 16, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
• Sep 16, 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.