119-hr2585

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2585 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 2585

To direct the Librarian of Congress to carry out activities to support 
 Armenian Genocide education programs, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 April 1, 2025

 Ms. Titus (for herself, Mr. Bilirakis, Mr. Lieu, and Mr. Valadao) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
 House Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

To direct the Librarian of Congress to carry out activities to support 
 Armenian Genocide education programs, 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 ``Armenian Genocide Education Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

 Congress finds the following:

    (1) The United States has demonstrated a commitment to 
 remembrance and education about the Armenian Genocide of 1915-
 1923 through the United States Government's May 28, 1951, 
 written statement to the International Court of Justice 
 regarding the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of 
 the Crime of Genocide; through President Ronald Reagan's 
 Proclamation No. 4838 on April 22, 1981; by H.J. Res 148, 
 adopted on April 8, 1975; H.J. Res 247, adopted on September 
 10, 1984; H. Res. 296, adopted on October 29, 2019; S. Res. 
 150, adopted on December 12, 2019; and President Joe Biden's 
 April 24, 2021, statement recognizing the Armenian Genocide.

    (2) H. Res. 296 and S. Res. 150 cite the Ottoman Empire's 
 ``campaign of genocide against Armenian, Greek, Assyrian, 
 Chaldean, Syriac, Aramean, Maronite and other Christians'', and 
 call on the United States to--
        (A) ``reject efforts to enlist, engage, or 
 otherwise associate the United States Government with 
 denial of the Armenian Genocide or any other 
 genocide''; and
        (B) ``encourage education and public understanding 
 of the facts of the Armenian Genocide, including the 
 United States role in the humanitarian relief effort, 
 and the relevance of the Armenian Genocide to modern-
 day crimes against humanity''.

    (3) Today, those who deny that the Ottoman Empire 
 systematically planned, organized, and implemented a campaign 
 of genocide against Armenian, Greek, Assyrian, Chaldean, 
 Syriac, Aramean, Maronite, and other Christians or who seek to 
 distort the true nature of these crimes continue to find 
 forums, especially online. This denial and distortion dishonors 
 those who were persecuted, murdered, dispossessed, and exiled, 
 making it even more of a national imperative to educate 
 students in the United States so that they may explore the 
 lessons that these crimes provide for all people, sensitize 
 communities to the circumstances that gave rise to these 
 crimes, and help youth be less susceptible to the falsehood of 
 genocide denial and distortion and to the destructive messages 
 of hate that arise from denial and distortion.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

 In this Act:

    (1) Armenian genocide.--The term ``Armenian Genocide'' 
 means Ottoman Turkey's systematic and deliberate state-
 sponsored mass murder, national dispossession, cultural 
 erasure, and exile of millions of Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians, 
 Chaldeans, Syriacs, Arameans, Maronites, and other Christians, 
 between 1915 and 1923.

    (2) Armenian genocide education program.--The term 
 ``Armenian Genocide education program'' means a program that 
 has as its specific and primary purpose the improvement of 
 awareness and understanding of the history, lessons, 
 consequences, and ongoing costs of the Armenian Genocide, and 
 which will serve as a means of promoting justice and preventing 
 genocide, hate, and bigotry against any group of people.

    (3) Denial.--The term ``denial'' refers to discourse and 
 propaganda that claims that the Armenian Genocide did not take 
 place.

    (4) Distortion.--The term ``distortion'' refers 
 specifically to any attempt to excuse or minimize, in its 
 entirety or in its principal elements, the Armenian Genocide, 
 including efforts to blame the victims for causing their own 
 genocide, or to portray the Armenian Genocide as a positive 
 historical event.

    (5) Local educational agency.--The term ``local educational 
 agency'' has the meaning given such term in 

section 8101 of the 
 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 21 
 7801).

SEC. 4. PROGRAM DESCRIBED.

    (a) Establishment and Operation of Program.--The Librarian of 
Congress shall establish and carry out a program to support Armenian 
Genocide education programs by--

    (1) carrying out the activities described in subsection

    (b) ;

    (2) entering into agreements with program participants 
 under 

section 5; and

    (3) providing online resources under 

section 6.

    (b) Activities.--The activities described in this subsection are as 
follows:

    (1) The development and national dissemination of accurate, 
 relevant, and accessible resources to promote understanding 
 about how and why the Armenian Genocide happened, which shall 
 include digital resources and may include other types of 
 resources, such as print resources and traveling exhibitions.

    (2) The development, national dissemination, and 
 implementation of principles of sound pedagogy for teaching 
 about the Armenian Genocide.

    (3) The provision of professional development services for 
 entities participating in the program under an agreement 
 entered into under 

section 5, such as through--
        (A) local, regional, and national workshops and 
 teacher trainings in conjunction with genocide 
 education centers and other appropriate partners;
        (B) engagement with local educational agencies and 
 high schools and schools that include one of the middle 
 grades that are independent of any local educational 
 agency; and
            (C) the operation and expansion of a teacher 
 fellowship program to cultivate and support leaders in 
 Armenian Genocide education.

    (4) Engagement with State and local education leaders to 
 encourage the adoption of the resources developed and supported 
 under the program established by this Act into curricula across 
 diverse disciplines.

    (5) Evaluation and research to assess the effectiveness and 
 impact of the Armenian Genocide education programs and the 
 other activities carried out under the program established by 
 this Act, which may include the preparation and use of material 
 for the annual report required under 

section 8.

SEC. 5. ENGAGEMENT OF ELIGIBLE PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS.

    (a) Agreements With Program Participants.--The Librarian of 
Congress may enter into agreements with eligible entities under which 
such entities may serve as program participants in the program 
established by this Act.

    (b) Contents of Agreements.--An agreement entered into under this 
section between the Librarian and an eligible entity shall include the 
following elements:

    (1) A description of the services and assistance provided 
 to the entity by the Librarian.

    (2) A description of the activities to be carried out by 
 the entity with such services and assistance.

    (3) The length of the period in which the agreement shall 
 be in effect.

    (4) Such other elements as may be agreed to by the 
 Librarian and the entity, consistent with the program 
 established by this Act.
            (c) Eligibility.--An entity is eligible to serve as a program 
participant in the program established by this Act if--

    (1) the entity is a local educational agency, a school that 
 is independent of any local educational agency, or an entity 
 that works with or for a local educational agency or a school 
 that is independent of any local educational agency; and

    (2) the entity submits to the Librarian, at such time and 
 in such form as the Librarian may require, an application 
 containing such information and assurances as the Librarian may 
 require.
            (d) Priority.--In selecting among eligible entities for 
participating in the program established under this Act, the Librarian 
shall give priority to applications from entities who are local 
educational agencies, schools that are independent of any local 
educational agency, or entities that work with or for a local 
educational agency or a school that is independent of any local 
educational agency, that do not, at the time application is made, offer 
any Armenian Genocide education program.

SEC. 6. ONLINE EDUCATION RESOURCES.

    (a) Website.--The Librarian of Congress shall maintain on the 
website of the Library of Congress a publicly available special section 
designated for Armenian Genocide education resources to improve 
awareness and understanding of this Genocide and educate individuals on 
the lessons of the Armenian Genocide as a means to raise awareness 
about the importance of preventing genocide, hate, and bigotry against 
any group of people.

    (b) Information Distribution.--The Librarian shall distribute 
information about the activities funded under this Act through the 
website of the Library of Congress, and shall respond to inquiries for 
supplementary information concerning such activities.
            (c) Best Practices.--The information distributed by the Librarian 
under this section shall include best practices for educators on how to 
teach about the Armenian Genocide.

SEC. 7. PRIVATE SUPPORT.

    (a) Acceptance of Donations.--The Librarian of Congress may 
solicit, accept, hold, administer, invest, and use donated funds and 
gifts, bequests, and devises of property, both real and personal, to 
support the activities carried out under this Act, subject to 
subsection
            (c) .

    (b) Establishment of Separate Gift Account.--There is established 
in the Treasury (among the accounts of the Library of Congress) a gift 
account for the activities carried out under this Act.
            (c) Dedication of Funds.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
law--

    (1) any funds donated to the Librarian to carry out 
 activities under this Act shall be deposited entirely into the 
 gift account established under subsection

    (b) ;

    (2) the funds contained in such account shall be used 
 solely to carry out activities under this Act; and

    (3) the Librarian may not deposit into such account any 
 funds donated to the Librarian which are not donated for the 
 exclusive purpose of carrying out activities under this Act.

SEC. 8. ANNUAL REPORT.

 Not later than February 1 of each year (beginning with 2026), the 
Librarian of Congress shall submit to the Congress a report describing 
the activities carried out under this Act.

SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act 
$2,000,000 for fiscal year 2026 and each of the 4 succeeding fiscal 
years.
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