Civics Secures Democracy Act Re-introduced
I’m thrilled to report that a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators today re-introduced the landmark Civics Secures Democracy Act, which would authorize an historic investment to support K–12 civic education and American history.
The reintroduction is the result of strong support by members of both parties over a months-long process to ensure that the bill affords the opportunity for each and every K–12 student in this country to have access to the kind of civic education needed to become informed stewards of U.S. constitutional democracy.
The Civics Secures Democracy Act is the first bipartisan initiative to support states and local school districts in offering the civic education needed to equip youth in the United States with the civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions to become informed and engaged members of society.
This comprehensive piece of legislation would provide a $1 billion annual investment in civic education at the local level, specifically in students, teachers, schools, and districts, as well as an investment in research and data and diversifying the teacher pool.
The bill’s dramatic increase in support for civics and American history is an exercise in federalism in and of itself. With 85 percent of funds directed to states to in turn be passed down to districts, all curricular decisions under the Civics Secures Democracy Act would remain matters of state and local control.The updated bill clarifies the role that the federal government would play in allocating funding and is deficit neutral.
First introduced in 2020 in both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives by Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and John Cornyn (R-TX) and Representatives Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Tom Cole (R-OK), and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), the Civics Secures Democracy Act now has 4 new original cosponsors in the Senate—Senators Angus King (I-ME), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), and Bill Cassidy (R-LA).
Reintroduction in the Senate is a major achievement, but final passage is dependent on the continued good and hard work of CivxNow Coalition members making the case for the urgency at this moment for a generational investment in K–12 civics. Our next goal is reintroduction in the House this summer with a bipartisan cohort of Representatives. Constituent outreach was key to winning the support of Senators from across the political spectrum, and similar email and phone calls to House offices will have the same effect.
Use our online advocacy tools to look up your House member, send an email or make a phone call, or spread the word on social media with sample messages and graphics. The CivxNow policy team is also here to assist you with scheduling a constituent meeting with the member’s office. Our window to act before the August recess is narrow, so engage with our tools and team today!
Our ultimate goal to pass the Civics Secures Democracy Act with strong bipartisan support in the 117th Congress remains very much alive. Thanks for all that you have done—and all that you will do—to make this once lofty aspiration a reality to the benefit of a generation of students and the future of our constitutional democracy.
Yours in civics,
Shawn Healy
Senior Director of Policy and Advocacy, iCivics
Support CSD Today!
• Urge your Senators to support the bill/thank the bill cosponsors
• Call/email your Representative to urge reintroduction in the House
Share support on social media, tagging #CivxNow #CivicsSecuresDemocracyAct
Resource Quick Links
• Bill text
• Bill summary
• Dear Colleague letter from lead House cosponsors)
• List of organizational endorsers
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