A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide that any reduction in the amount appropriated for fiscal year 1980 pursuant to section 101(a) of such Act from the amount so appropriated for fiscal year 1979 shall be borne equally by all the States.
Public Law 96-96 · H.R. 5386 · 96th Congress · began in the House
Signed by Jimmy Carter (D) on Oct 31, 1979 · Education
Sponsor: Rep. Jim Jeffords (R-VT)
Cosponsors: None
Passage votes
- HouseMethod not stated
- SenateMethod not stated
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to promulgate formulas by which any reduction in the 1980 appropriations for community service and continuing education programs will be borne equally by all States.
Prohibits fiscal year 1979 funds from being withheld from a State student incentive grant program because of a failure of such State to meet a requirement that all nonprofit institutions of higher education in such State be eligible to participate in such program.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 14 actions.
- Oct 31, 1979Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- PresidentPresident · Public Law 96-96.
- Oct 23, 1979PresidentPresident · Measure presented to President.
- PresidentPresident · Measure enrolled in Senate.
- PresidentPresident · Measure enrolled in House.
- Oct 19, 1979Resolving differencesResolving differences · House agreed to Senate amendment.
- Oct 18, 1979FloorFloor · Measure passed Senate, amended.
- FloorFloor · Measure called up by unanimous consent in Senate.
- Oct 16, 1979CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee
- Oct 15, 1979FloorFloor · Measure passed House.
- FloorFloor · Measure called up under motion to suspend rules and pass in House.
- Oct 4, 1979CommitteeCommittee · Reported by House Education and Workforce Committee
- Sep 25, 1979CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Education and Workforce Committee
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the House
Data notes
Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.
Official record
The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.