H.R. 9436 – To amend the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 to extend the time period for which certain regulation concerning the North Atlantic right whale are effective. [Northeast Lobsterman Protection Act of 2026]; H.R. 4795 – Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act of 2026; H.R. 1501 – Protecting Domestic Mining Act of 2025; H. Res. 1490 – Providing for the condemnation and denouncement of socialism in all its forms, and for other purposes.
31 August 2026
Contents updated on 2 Sept 2026
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House Rules U.S. House of Representatives
Follow its sittings03:46 - 12:37
Speaker 1
Good afternoon, the committee will come to order. Without objection, the chair is authorized to declare recess at any time. Today, the Rules Committee is convening to consider four measures: H.R. 4795, H.R. 1501, H.R. 9436, and H. Res. 1490. H.R. 4795, the bipartisan Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act of 2025, would prohibit colleges and universities from receiving federal student aid if they engage in commercial and academic boycotts dictated by those in the boycott, sanction, divest (BDS) movement. This bipartisan legislation requires colleges and universities to certify annually that the institution is not engaged in a non-expressive commercial boycott of Israel or forgo ability to receive federal financial student aid.
H.R. 4795 also requires colleges and universities who are recipients of Title VI funding to not allow academic boycotts, but instead engage in academic exchange reciprocity. Let's be clear, these heinous acts weren't just a matter for last Congress or yesteryear. They are ongoing and reaching new heights of unapologetic boldness. In a shocking exposition over the summer, a tenured professor at Stony Brook University filmed himself accosting patrons at a local restaurant with antisemitic harassment. We've seen it through the repeated antisemitic tropes coming from internet personalities like Hasan Piker and others.
The prescription to this issue is legislation that has teeth, legislation that makes clear that these concrete campaigns of antisemitism in the form of BDS boycotts have no place in any facet of civil society and works to extirpate it entirely. Let's be clear about the facts with respect to this legislation. Israel has been designated as a "major strategic partner" of the United States, which is a unique designation in the 2014 United States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act signed by President Obama and introduced by former Senator Barbara Boxer. Safeguarding taxpayer funds from campaigns to strategically boycott our major strategic partner is a logical next step given the volume and intensity of boycott campaigns. And despite what opponents may assert, these BDS campaigns are not illusionary.
During the '23-'24 academic year, at least 86 BDS resolutions were considered across undergraduate, graduate, and professional student organizations and faculty unions. 77 passed and 9 were voted down. Faculty members and Northwestern's provost were willing to appease encampment organizers in their efforts to demand university boycott Sabra Hummus because of the brand's perceived association with Israel. The Evergreen State College in Washington reached an agreement to address divestment from companies that profit from the "occupation of Palestinian territories." And a myriad of academic boycotts of Israel have taken root across the United States, including a concession by UC Riverside to end its business school study abroad program in Israel after demands by activists.
One leading professor at Georgetown's Title VI-supported National Resource Center, NRC, has actively pursued a full academic boycott of Israel. In 2014, six taxpayer-supported NRC directors signed a letter endorsing an academic boycott of Israel. These boycotts are real, prolific, and not non-events. They are discriminating against Israel, Israeli students, and Israelis. The bipartisan legislation before us today that I'm proud to author is one such prescription I believe will make a positive impact in the fight against antisemitism.
In addition, I thank the co-author of this legislation, Representative Josh Gottheimer, for his leadership in advancing this critical legislation. I also thank Chairman Walberg for advancing this bill through committee and for Ranking Member Scott's vote to advance the bill. H.R. 1501, the Protecting Domestic Mining Act of 2025, would permanently include broader mining projects and mineral processing activities as "covered projects" eligible for the FAST-41 process, which allows them to be considered for streamlined permits. The result: stronger operating capacities for domestic mining operations, renewed supply chain resilience, and broader energy security for the United States. Further, H.R. 1501 prohibits future administrations from implementing rules that would narrow the scope of "covered projects," which would severely impede domestic mineral investment and resource independence.
H.R. 9436 would amend the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 to extend the period for which certain regulations concerning the North Atlantic right whale are effective. Extending the regulatory pause of protections for the North Atlantic right whale, which is one of the most endangered marine mammals in the world, is ultimately in the best interest of both whales and fishermen. The pause on these regulations isn't about choosing fishermen over whales; rather, this bill takes a proactive approach by allowing scientists, fishermen, and government agencies the necessary time to study and refine protections rather than rushing to an inadequate solution. This bill doesn't abandon conservation; it simply allows for a more thorough review of measures that can reduce whale entanglements in fishing gear, providing time for solutions that protect both whales and fishermen. Finally, we'll turn to H. Res. 1490, a resolution that condemns and denounces socialism in all its forms.
Here's the indisputable fact: there's a resurgence of socialism across America, which poses a threat to the constitutional and societal order that has always thrived within our nation. Those who carry the banner for socialism are wildly ignorant of history. They don't live in reality. They believe that life under socialism is some sort of utopia where everyone can thrive and the sun is always shining.
In reality, where everyone else operates, we understand that life under socialism is a hellscape. There will be socialists elected to Congress next year, we know this to be true. And there are crackpot political organizations like the so-called Democratic Socialists of America that want Congress to be overrun with people who want to see America and its institutions burned to the ground. Among many other principles that are fundamentally anti-American, the Democratic Socialists of America believe in extending full voting rights to people with criminal convictions and non-citizens. This resolution gives every member a chance to be on record.
Do you stand for non-citizen voting in our federal elections, including foreign agents? Or do you believe that voting is a privilege and right reserved for those who have pledged allegiance to the United States? We want safe, secure, and reliable elections in our nation, and we should do everything we can to ensure that, everything. With that, I now yield to the ranking member for any comments that he wishes to make, and I wish a belated happy birthday to Congresswoman Scanlon.