# 119-hr-3265: Protecting our Students in Schools Act of 2025 119-hr-3265, Protecting our Students in Schools Act of 2025, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Bonamici, Suzanne [D-OR-1] (D-OR); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-15). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3265 - As of: 2026-10-15 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: 119-hr-3265 - Congress: 119 - Title: Protecting our Students in Schools Act of 2025 - Status: introduced - Introduced: 2025-05-08 - Sponsor: Rep. Bonamici, Suzanne [D-OR-1] (D-OR) - Cosponsors: 21 - Policy area: Education - Touches household money: yes - Last recorded action: 2026-10-15 ## Summary **Ban on corporal punishment**: This bill would ban corporal punishment in any program that receives Federal financial assistance. It would push schools toward restorative justice, trauma‑informed care, and positive behavioral interventions while funding grants, enforcement, and reporting to reduce exclusionary and aversive discipline. - Students and families: Would create a private right of action so a student or parent can sue a program that uses corporal punishment and affirms nondiscrimination protections across sex, gender identity, race, disability, and other categories. - State and local schools: Would require State and local education agencies to develop and implement PBIS and related evidence‑based models, collect and report disaggregated discipline data, and be eligible for three‑year grants to fund restorative, trauma‑informed, and implicit bias training. - Federal enforcement and scope: Would direct the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights to lead enforcement and allow the Attorney General to bring civil suits, require regulations within 180 days and an OCR referral timeline of 90 days, and apply to DoDEA and Department of the Interior schools while leaving private non‑federally funded schools and homeschools unaffected. ## Cosponsors (21) - Rep. McBath, Lucy [D-GA-6] (D-GA), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Moore, Gwen [D-WI-4] (D-WI), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Pingree, Chellie [D-ME-1] (D-ME), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Beyer, Donald S. [D-VA-8] (D-VA), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Davis, Danny K. [D-IL-7] (D-IL), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Takano, Mark [D-CA-39] (D-CA), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Soto, Darren [D-FL-9] (D-FL), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. McClellan, Jennifer L. [D-VA-4] (D-VA), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick, Sheila [D-FL-20] (D-FL), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. DeSaulnier, Mark [D-CA-10] (D-CA), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Hayes, Jahana [D-CT-5] (D-CT), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Keating, William R. [D-MA-9] (D-MA), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Courtney, Joe [D-CT-2] (D-CT), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Lynch, Stephen F. [D-MA-8] (D-MA), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Scanlon, Mary Gay [D-PA-5] (D-PA), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Pocan, Mark [D-WI-2] (D-WI), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Watson Coleman, Bonnie [D-NJ-12] (D-NJ), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Jayapal, Pramila [D-WA-7] (D-WA), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Tokuda, Jill N. [D-HI-2] (D-HI), 2025-05-08T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Chu, Judy [D-CA-28] (D-CA), 2025-05-13T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Omar, Ilhan [D-MN-5] (D-MN), 2025-05-15T00:00:00.000Z ## Provisions PRIA read - Ban on hitting students in federally funded schools: benefit, medium. This bill would ban corporal punishment in any school program that gets federal money. It would cover public school districts, Head Start, vocational systems, and some private schools that enroll students who receive special education services. Teachers, staff, assigned police, and security guards… - Families can sue; Justice Department can act: benefit, medium. If a student is hit, the student or a parent would be able to sue in state or federal court. They could seek a court order to stop it, money for harm, and payment of attorney and expert fees. If parents file a signed complaint and the Justice Department finds it has merit, the Department could sue… - Fast notice to parents after incidents: benefit, medium. If a student is physically punished, the school would have to notify the parent, the state education agency, and local police in writing within 24 hours. If the student has a disability, the school would also have to notify the state protection and advocacy system within 24 hours and provide any in… - Grants to improve school climate: benefit, medium. The bill would allow grants to states starting in fiscal year 2025 to reduce suspensions and improve school climate. States could fund districts to train staff and use positive behavior supports, restorative practices, trauma‑informed care, and de‑escalation. Grants would last three years and favor… - Federal rules, complaints, and penalties: benefit, medium. The Education Department would have to set up a complaint intake within 90 days and send complaints to the Office for Civil Rights. The Secretary would need to issue implementing rules within 180 days using negotiated rulemaking. If a program or state fails to comply, the Secretary could stop feder… - States must notify and report: benefit, low. States that get federal education money would need to give written assurances and file school climate reports. States without a prior ban would have to tell schools, train staff, notify parents, and post the notice online. Reports would be due within one year after enactment, then yearly for three… ## Related bills - 119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act - 119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026 - 119-hr-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act - 119-hr-20: Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2025 - 119-hr-5390: FAMILY Act - 119-hr-15: Equality Act ## Sources - [119-hr-3265 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/3265) ## Related - [119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7973) - [119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9877) - [119-hr-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-51) - [119-hr-20: Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-20) - [119-hr-5390: FAMILY Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-5390) - [119-hr-15: Equality Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-15) - [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3265 (as of 2026-10-15).