# 119-s-1225: Freedom of Association in Higher Education Act of 2025

119-s-1225, Freedom of Association in Higher Education Act of 2025, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Banks, Jim [R-IN] (R-IN); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-06-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1225
- As of: 2026-06-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-1225
- Congress: 119
- Title: Freedom of Association in Higher Education Act of 2025
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2025-04-01
- Sponsor: Sen. Banks, Jim [R-IN] (R-IN)
- Cosponsors: 5
- Policy area: Education
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-06-11

## Summary

**Protects student freedom of association for social organizations, including single-sex groups.** It would add a new section to the Higher Education Act that limits college actions against students and organizations based solely on membership practices. - Students could form or apply to join any recognized or unrecognized social organization and, if selected, would have the right to join and participate in that group. - Colleges and universities that receive federal funds would be barred from coercing waivers of these protections, taking adverse actions solely because of single-sex membership, or imposing recruitment limits unless there is a written, mutual agreement. - Single-sex social organizations are defined to include tax-exempt fraternities and sororities and private single-sex clubs made up mainly of students or alumni, and organizations may set their own membership rules. - The bill specifies examples of prohibited adverse actions when they are based only on membership. Those include expulsion or disciplinary penalties, denial of campus housing, withholding financial assistance or campus employment, withdrawal of official recognition, requiring students to disclose membership, and denial of recommendations or leadership opportunities.

## Cosponsors (5)

- Sen. Gallego, Ruben [D-AZ] (D-AZ), 2025-04-01T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Scott, Rick [R-FL] (R-FL), 2025-06-26T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Moody, Ashley [R-FL] (R-FL), 2026-05-11T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Capito, Shelley Moore [R-WV] (R-WV), 2026-06-09T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Graham, Lindsey [R-SC] (R-SC), 2026-06-09T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Protecting students in single-sex groups: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would let any enrolled student form or apply to join recognized or unrecognized social groups, including single-sex groups. If selected, a student could join and take part. Schools that get federal money under this Act or Title IV generally could not force students to waive the…

## Related bills

- 119-s-1748: Kids Online Safety Act
- 119-s-558: Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2025
- 119-s-1404: Combating Organized Retail Crime Act
- 119-s-1032: Major Richard Star Act
- 119-sres-755: A resolution honoring the life of the Honorable Donald W. Riegle, Jr., former Senator for the State of Michigan.
- 119-sres-739: A resolution honoring the life and legacy of John Seymour, the late Senator for the State of California.

## Sources
- [119-s-1225 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/1225)

## Related
- [119-s-1748: Kids Online Safety Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1748)
- [119-s-558: Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-558)
- [119-s-1404: Combating Organized Retail Crime Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1404)
- [119-s-1032: Major Richard Star Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1032)
- [119-sres-755: A resolution honoring the life of the Honorable Donald W. Riegle, Jr., former S…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-755)
- [119-sres-739: A resolution honoring the life and legacy of John Seymour, the late Senator for…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-739)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1225 (as of 2026-06-11).