H.R. 4795 · 119th Congress

Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act of 2026

Introduced on Jul 29, 2025 by Virginia Foxx (R-NC-5). One cosponsor. Latest action (Sep 14, 2026): Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Stage
Passed one chamber
Introduced
Jul 29, 2025
Cosponsors
1
1 from the other party
Policy area
Education
Open in the Congress explorerCongress.govAlert me

Progress

The furthest stage the measure reached. Simple and concurrent resolutions do not go to the President.

  1. Introduced
  2. Reported by committee
  3. Passed one chamber
  4. 4Passed both chambers
  5. 5Sent to the President
  6. 6Became law

Official title

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to prohibit an institution that participates in a nonexpressive commercial boycott of Israel from being eligible for certain funds under that Act, to require an institution that participates in certain programs under that Act to certify that students are not unreasonably obstructed from participating in academic programs in Israel, and for other purposes.

Subjects

  • Education programs funding
  • Government information and archives
  • Higher education
  • International exchange and broadcasting
  • Israel
  • Middle East
  • Protest and dissent
  • School administration

Summary

By the Congressional Research Service (Reported to House, Aug 27, 2026). Public domain.

Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act of 2026

This bill prohibits institutions of higher education (IHEs) that participate in federal student aid programs from engaging in boycotts against Israel. Specifically, IHEs may not engage in a commercial action intended to limit commercial relations with Israel, or with an entity licensed by, regulated by, or organized under the laws of Israel, that is not based on a valid business reason.

Further, IHEs receiving, or applying to receive, Title VI funds (federal funding for foreign language and international education programs) must annually certify that (1) students and faculty are allowed to participate in academic programs located in Israel in the same manner and under the same terms and conditions as programs in other foreign countries, and (2) students and faculty at postsecondary institutions located in Israel may participate in such IHE’s academic programs in the same manner and under the same terms and conditions as students and faculty from other foreign countries.

Sponsor and cosponsors

Cosponsors by party as of the day they signed on. Original cosponsors signed on the day of introduction.

Virginia FoxxR-NC-5Sponsor

Democrats · 1

Roll calls

Recorded votes on the measure. Most measures move by voice vote or unanimous consent, which record no individual positions.

  1. On Passage
    Sep 3, 2026· House· Passage· Passed 237–169

History

Every action as published, oldest first. Roll calls link to how each member voted.

  1. Jul 29, 2025Introduced in House
  2. Jul 29, 2025Introduced in House
  3. Jul 29, 2025 · HouseReferred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
  4. Jun 25, 2026 · HouseCommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
  5. Jun 25, 2026 · HouseOrdered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 24 - 9.
  6. Aug 27, 2026Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Education and Workforce. H. Rept. 119-780.
  7. Aug 27, 2026 · HouseReported (Amended) by the Committee on Education and Workforce. H. Rept. 119-780.
  8. Aug 27, 2026 · HousePlaced on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 681.
  9. Aug 31, 2026 · HouseRules Committee Resolution H. Res. 1499 Reported to House. Rule provides for consideration of H.R. 1501, H.R. 9436, H. Res. 1490 and H.R. 4795. The resolution provides for consideration of H.R. 1501, H.R. 9436, H.Res. 1490, and H.R. 4795 under a closed rule with one hour of general debate on each measure. The resolution provides for a motion to recommit on H.R. 1501, H.R. 9436, and H.R. 4795.
  10. Sep 1, 2026 · HouseRule H. Res. 1499 passed House.
  11. Sep 3, 2026 · HouseConsidered under the provisions of rule H. Res. 1499. (consideration: CR H5483-5488)
  12. Sep 3, 2026 · HouseRule provides for consideration of H.R. 1501, H.R. 9436, H. Res. 1490 and H.R. 4795. The resolution provides for consideration of H.R. 1501, H.R. 9436, H.Res. 1490, and H.R. 4795 under a closed rule with one hour of general debate on each measure. The resolution provides for a motion to recommit on H.R. 1501, H.R. 9436, and H.R. 4795.
  13. Sep 3, 2026 · HouseDEBATE - The House proceeded with one hour of debate on H.R. 4795.
  14. Sep 3, 2026 · HouseThe previous question was ordered pursuant to the rule.
  15. Sep 3, 2026Passed/agreed to in House: On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 237 - 169 (Roll no. 295).House · Roll call 295
  16. Sep 3, 2026 · HouseOn passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 237 - 169 (Roll no. 295). (text: CR H5483)House · Roll call 295
  17. Sep 3, 2026 · HouseMotion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  18. Sep 14, 2026 · SenateReceived in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Committees

Committees and subcommittees the measure was referred to.

Agencies in its committees' jurisdiction

Analisa's mapping of committee jurisdiction to federal agencies; the bill may touch others, or none of these.

Who lobbied on it

Organizations whose lobbying reports (LD-2) name this measure. Spending is what they reported for those quarters on all issues, not on this measure alone.

  1. A NEW POLICY INC.3 reports
    $30K reported (all issues)
  2. AMERICAN ISRAEL PUBLIC AFFAIRS COMMITTEE1 report
    $811K reported (all issues)
  3. American Federation of Teachers1 report
    $410K reported (all issues)
  4. J STREET1 report
    $170K reported (all issues)
  5. REPUBLICAN JEWISH COALITION1 report
    $100K reported (all issues)
  6. Wounded Warrior Project1 report
    $20K reported (all issues)

Reports filed in 2025, 2026.

Sources and method

Every figure on this page traces to these records.

  • Bill status: bills and resolutions, sponsors, actions, subjects and CRS summaries (U.S. Government Publishing Office (GovInfo), from Congress.gov (Library of Congress))GovInfo Bill Status bulk data (Congress.gov; summaries by the Congressional Research Service) · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Members of Congress, their terms, committees and identifiers (The @unitedstates project (from the Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, the House and the Senate))unitedstates/congress-legislators: legislators, committees and current committee membership · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: CC0 1.0 (public domain dedication)
  • House roll-call votes (Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives)Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, roll-call vote records · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Senate roll-call votes and DW-NOMINATE scores (Voteview (UCLA Department of Political Science))Lewis, Jeffrey B., Keith Poole, Howard Rosenthal, Adam Boche, Aaron Rudkin, and Luke Sonnet (2026). Voteview: Congressional Roll-Call Votes Database. https://voteview.com/ · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Free to use with the required citation
  • Lobbying disclosures (LD-1 registrations, LD-2 quarterly reports, LD-203 contribution reports) (Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives)Clerk of the House, Lobbying Disclosure Act filings (organizations only; lobbyists' names are not loaded) · data current to Oct 5, 2026 · loaded Oct 5, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Positions are shown only where a roll call recorded them; voice votes and unanimous consent record none.
  • Money and votes are shown side by side; neither explains the other.