Renaming a STEM Grant Program to Honor 100 Years of Women in Congress (H.R. 382)

What is H.R. 382?

(Updated May 20, 2018)

This bill would rename a grant program aimed at increasing the participation of women and underrepresented minorities from rural areas in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The name change has been suggested to honor the 100th anniversary of the first woman elected to serve in Congress.

The program would be known as the Jeannette Rankin Women and Minorities in STEM Fields Program Grants in honor of Jeannette Rankin, who became the first woman to hold a high U.S. government office. Rankin was elected to Congress in 1916 as a Republican from Montana and was known as a staunch pacifist — voting against U.S. entry into both World War I and World War II. She graduated from the University of Montana with a biology degree in 1902.

The operations of the grant program would be unchanged if this legislation were enacted, so it would continue to award grants on a competitive basis to support research and projects that look to increase the participation of women and minorities in STEM fields.

Argument in favor

Renaming this grant program is a nice way of honoring the 100th anniversary of the first woman elected to Congress, and will inspire women and minorities from rural areas to achieve great things in STEM fields.

Argument opposed

Renaming an obscure grant program seems like an insufficient way to honor the 100th anniversary of the first woman elected to Congress. Not only that, the grant program itself seems unnecessary.

Impact

Women and minorities from rural areas that would be eligible to receive grants for work in STEM fields; and the grant program.

Cost of H.R. 382

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: This bill was introduced by sponsoring Reps. Grace Meng (D-NY) and Ryan Zinke (R-MT) (who is now the Interior Secretary) to honor the legacy of Congresswoman Jeannette Rankin (R-MT), the first woman elected to Congress. 

In a joint press release, the sponsors noted that Rankin was elected to Congress before many American women had the right to vote. Rep. Meng said that “renaming this critical program after her is the least Congress can do to honor a remarkable individual and the first 100 years of women in Congress.”

The bill’s authors also cited figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showing that while women make up 47 percent of the total U.S. workforce, they are underrepresented in careers involving engineering, chemistry, and environmental science.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) Press Release (Previous Version)
• Great Falls Tribune (Previous Version)