119-hr1351

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1351 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

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119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 1351

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require 
 the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance and the display of the 
 American Flag in certain federally funded elementary and secondary 
 schools, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 February 13, 2025

 Mr. Strong (for himself, Mr. Moore of Alabama, Mr. Rogers of Alabama, 
 Mr. Aderholt, Mr. Palmer, Mrs. Miller of Illinois, Mr. Alford, Mr. 
 LaMalfa, Mr. Harris of Maryland, Mr. Wilson of South Carolina, Mr. 
Babin, Mr. Downing, and Mr. Rose) introduced the following bill; which 
 was referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require 
 the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance and the display of the 
 American Flag in certain federally funded elementary and secondary 
 schools, and for other purposes.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Promoting American Patriotism In Our 
Schools Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

 Congress finds the following:

    (1) The American flag is a symbol of the unity, liberty, 
 and freedom of the United States of America.

    (2) It is important to foster national pride and a shared 
 sense of civic responsibility among the youth of the United 
 States.

    (3) The Pledge of Allegiance is a statement of national 
 commitment and serves as a reminder of the values and 
 principles upon which the nation was founded.

    (4) The inclusion of the American flag and the Pledge of 
 Allegiance in the daily activities of elementary and secondary 
 school students serves to promote a sense of national identity 
 and unity.

    (5) Educating students about the history and significance 
 of the American flag, as well as encouraging a daily expression 
 of patriotism, plays an important role in their development as 
 responsible and engaged citizens.

SEC. 3. RECITATION OF THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE AND DISPLAY OF AMERICAN 
 FLAG IN SCHOOLS.

    (a) In General.--Title VIII of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801 et seq.) is amended by inserting 
after 

section 8524 the following:

``

SEC. 8524A. RECITATION OF PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE AND DISPLAY OF 
 AMERICAN FLAG.

 ``

    (a) In General.--As a condition of receiving funds under this 
Act, a local educational agency shall establish, maintain, and enforce 
a policy that requires the following:
 ``

    (1) Subject to subsection

    (b) , all students, teachers, 
 and staff in covered schools shall recite the Pledge of 
 Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America at the 
 beginning of each school day. The Pledge shall be recited in 
 the exact form and manner set forth in 

section 4 of title 4, 
 United States Code.
 ``

    (2) The flag of the United States of America shall be 
 prominently displayed in each classroom and gymnasium of each 
 covered school. Each such flag shall be displayed in a manner 
 that ensures it is visible to all occupants of the classroom or 
 gymnasium during the school day.
 ``

    (3) Educational materials on the history, significance, 
 and proper display of the flag of the United States of America 
 shall be incorporated into the civics or history curriculum of 
 each grade level taught at each covered school. The materials 
 shall be age appropriate and promote understanding of the 
 values and principles represented by the flag.
 ``

    (b) Exception.--Each policy required under subsection

    (a) shall 
include an exception pursuant to which an individual may refrain from 
reciting the Pledge of Allegiance for religious or personal reasons. No 
individual may be penalized, discriminated against, or subjected to 
retaliatory action for exercising the option to refrain from recitation 
of the Pledge of Allegiance in accordance with such exception.
 ``
            (c) Certification.--On an annual basis not later than October 1 
of each year, each local educational agency subject to the requirements 
of this section shall certify in writing to the State educational 
agency involved that the local educational agency is in compliance with 
such requirements. The State educational agency shall report to the 
Secretary by November 1 of each year a list of those local educational 
agencies that have not filed the certification or against which 
complaints have been made to the State educational agency that the 
local educational agencies are not in compliance with this section.
 ``
            (d) Enforcement.--The Secretary is authorized and directed to 
effectuate this section by issuing, and securing compliance with, rules 
or orders with respect to a local educational agency that fails to 
certify, or is found to have certified in bad faith, that the agency is 
in compliance with the requirements of this section.
 ``

    (e) Covered School Defined.--In this section, the term `covered 
school' means a public elementary or public secondary school that 
receives Federal funds under this Act (whether directly or through a 
subgrant from a State or local educational agency).''.

    (b) Effective Date and Applicability.--The amendments made by 
subsection

    (a) shall take effect 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act and shall apply with respect to school years 
beginning on or after such effective date.
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