PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
Congressional Research Service
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People & committees
Rep. Wilson, Frederica S. [D-FL-24] · D–FL
Legislative record
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Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Aug 11, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2026-08-03 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
The proposed Heritage Legacy Act would fund tuition scholarships for full-time undergraduate students at historically Black colleges and universities who meet its requirements for descent from someone enslaved in the United States. Scholarships could last up to 12 semesters or the equivalent, with annual awards capped at tuition. The bill would also exclude these scholarships from the student aid index, a calculation used in determining financial aid.
This Act may be cited as the Heritage Legacy Act.
The term qualified student means any undergraduate student that— (A) is enrolled, on a full-time basis, at a Historically Black college or university; and (B) has been determined under subsection (c) to be a descendent of an individual who was enslaved in the United States.
An HBCU receiving a grant under this Act shall provide a direct scholarship to each qualified student— (A) for each academic year that such student is enrolled at the HBCU, which may not exceed 12 semesters or the equivalent; and (B) in an amount which does not exceed an amount equal to the sum of the tuition for the program of study for such year in which such qualified student is enrolled.
In determining the student aid index for a qualified student, computations performed pursuant to part F of this Act shall exclude any scholarship awarded to a qualified student under the Heritage Legacy Act.
Beginning in fiscal year 2027 and continuing each succeeding fiscal year, the Secretary of Education would have to award each eligible historically Black college or university a grant equal to the total annual tuition charged to its qualified students. The formula refers to the academic year beginning July 1 of that fiscal year.
For fiscal year 2027 and each succeeding fiscal year, the Secretary of Education shall award grants to each Historically Black College or University (in this Act referred to as an HBCU) in an amount that equals the sum of the annual tuition charged to all qualified students enrolled at such HBCU for the academic year that begins July 1 of such fiscal year.
Student eligibility would require full-time undergraduate enrollment at a qualifying historically Black college or university and a determination of descent under the bill's verification rules. The bill defines eligible colleges by referring to the existing definition of a “part B institution” in section 322 of the Higher Education Act.
The term qualified student means any undergraduate student that— (A) is enrolled, on a full-time basis, at a Historically Black college or university; and (B) has been determined under subsection (c) to be a descendent of an individual who was enslaved in the United States.
The term Historically Black college or university has the meaning given the term part B institution in section 322 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1061).
Participating colleges would have to provide a direct scholarship to each qualified student for each academic year of enrollment, up to 12 semesters or the equivalent. Each annual scholarship could not exceed tuition for the student's program that year; this provision sets a ceiling rather than requiring an award equal to full tuition.
An HBCU receiving a grant under this Act shall provide a direct scholarship to each qualified student— (A) for each academic year that such student is enrolled at the HBCU, which may not exceed 12 semesters or the equivalent; and (B) in an amount which does not exceed an amount equal to the sum of the tuition for the program of study for such year in which such qualified student is enrolled.
Colleges would pay the scholarships using the same methods and payment periods they use for Federal Pell Grants.
the HBCU shall make payments to qualified students in the same manner, using the same payment periods, as such HBCU makes payments for Federal Pell Grants under section 401 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a).
Before awarding a grant, the Secretary would have to determine the college's number of qualified students. Verification would require documentation demonstrating that at least one-quarter of a student's genes are attributable to an individual enslaved in the United States.
Prior to awarding a grant under this Act to an HBCU, the Secretary shall determine the number of qualified students at such HBCU.
To verify that an individual is a qualified student, such individual shall provide to the Secretary, or, if determined appropriate by the Secretary, to the HBCU that the individual is attending, the documentation described in paragraph (3) demonstrating that at least one-quarter of the genes of such individual are attributable to an individual who was enslaved in the United States.
The documentation rules would accept records showing ancestors listed in a United States census before October 3, 1965, under specified racial or historical classifications, including the catch-all category for African diaspora classifications. Alternatively, students could use another form of proof authorized by the Secretary to verify descent from an enslaved individual.
documentation that verifies that the ancestors of such individual were listed, in any United States census before October 3, 1965, as— (i) African American; (ii) Afro-American; (iii) Black; (iv) Black (Negroid); (v) Black (Negro or Negro descent); (vi) Colored; (vii) Free Colored; (viii) Freedman; (ix) Mullato; (x) Negro; (xi) Negro of African Descent; (xii) Negro of the African Race; (xiii) Octoroon; (xiv) Quadroon; (xv) Slave; or (xvi) any other classification used by the United States Census Bureau or a State for an individual of the African diaspora
any other form of proof as the Secretary may authorize for an individual to verify that such individual is a descendent of an individual who was enslaved in the United States.
Students would submit verification documents to the Secretary, or to their college if the Secretary considered that appropriate. Colleges could express a preference to perform verification, but the text does not give them an unconditional right to do so.
such individual shall provide to the Secretary, or, if determined appropriate by the Secretary, to the HBCU that the individual is attending, the documentation described in paragraph (3)
An HBCU receiving a grant under this Act may indicate to the Secretary whether such HBCU prefers to perform the verification required under this subsection.
The funding clause would both authorize appropriations and directly appropriate Treasury funds for the Secretary to carry out the Act, in addition to other appropriations. However, the clause supplies no dollar amount, leaving the funding quantity unspecified.
There are authorized to be appropriated, and there are appropriated (in addition to any other amounts appropriated to carry out this Act and out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated), for the Secretary of Education to carry out this Act.
The Secretary would have to reserve 5 percent of annual appropriated funds for verification and administration. This reserve would support federal verification, payments to colleges that perform verification, and grants to each participating college for scholarship administration.
Of the funds appropriated under paragraph (1) for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall reserve 5 percent of such funds to— (A) carry out the requirements under subsection (c) for each HBCU receiving a grant under this Act, other than an HBCU described in subparagraph (B); (B) in the case of an HBCU that is performing the verification under subsection (c) for the students attending such HBCU, provide an amount from such funds to the HBCU to perform such verification; and (C) provide grants to each HBCU for administrative costs of carrying out the activities described in subsection (b).
Section 3 would add a provision to the Higher Education Act requiring that Heritage Legacy Act scholarships be excluded when computing qualified students' student aid index. It would use the same student eligibility definition as section 2.
Part F of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 is amended by inserting after section 479C (20 U.S.C. 1087uu–1) the following: 479CC. Students who are descendents of enslaved individuals
In determining the student aid index for a qualified student, computations performed pursuant to part F of this Act shall exclude any scholarship awarded to a qualified student under the Heritage Legacy Act.
The term qualified student has the meaning given such term in section 2 of the Heritage Legacy Act.
The supplied official-actions snapshot, updated August 11, 2026, records introduction in the House and referral to the House Committee on Education and Workforce on August 3, 2026.
Source snapshot updated 2026-08-11T15:43:35Z. 2026-08-03: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce. 2026-08-03: Introduced in House
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2026-08-03. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No unrelated provision or separate policy rider was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish what other versions or accompanying materials contain.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No earmark was identified in the complete supplied introduced text under the distinction between directed awards and general program funding or statutory formulas. This conclusion is limited to that version; formal earmark status cannot be established for absent accompanying materials.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
None identified in the reviewed text
No separate narrow carve-out, special exemption, or preferential exception was identified in the complete supplied introduced text beyond the program's intended beneficiaries and related administration. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish absence in other versions or accompanying materials.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Aug 11, 2026. How PlainBill uses AI