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Education and Workforce Committee
- Referred To
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H.R. 468In committee
Mel’s Law
Introduced: Jan 15, 2025
Latest action date: Jan 15, 2025
Latest development
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
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- Congress
- 119th Congress
- Introduced
- Jan 15, 2025
- Recorded roll calls
- 0
Status detail: The most advanced recorded stage is committee consideration.
Plain-language overview
What this bill does
Mel's Law
This bill requires institutions of higher education (IHEs) that participate in federal student aid programs to establish policies for awarding posthumous degrees.
Specifically, the IHE must certify that it has a policy to award a posthumous degree to a deceased student who (1) was enrolled in a degree program at the IHE; (2) died prior to completing such program; and (3) at the time of death, was in academic standing consistent with the requirements for graduation from such program (as determined by the IHE).
The bill prohibits accrediting agencies from taking into consideration the number of posthumous degrees awarded to deceased students by the IHE. (Under current law, an IHE must be accredited by an accrediting agency to participate in federal student aid programs.)
Official summary from Congress.gov · checked Oct 19, 2026.
Civixly topics
What this legislation is about
Civixly topics make federal and state legislation comparable. They are derived from the official CRS policy area and legislative subjects.
Official CRS policy area
Education
View 3 official legislative subjects
Higher educationSchool administrationStudent records
Committee activity
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Official committee record ↗
Amendments
Proposed changes to this measure, with their latest official outcome or action from Congress.gov.
No amendments are listed for this measure.
Checked against Congress.gov Oct 19, 2026.
Action timeline
Newest action first. Action language comes from the official Congress.gov record.
View full action timeline3 actions
Introduced in House
IntroReferralLibrary of CongressReferred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
IntroReferralHouse floor actionsIntroduced in House
IntroReferralLibrary of Congress
Roll-call votes
Recorded House and Senate votes connected to this bill. Your representatives appear first when available.
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