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H.R. 523: Prescribe A Book Act

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H.R. 523: Prescribe A Book Act

114th Congress · introduced 2015-01-26 · Education · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2015-01-26 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Rep. McGovern, James P. [D-MA-2] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Prescribe A Book Act

Plain summary

Prescribe A Book Act Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Secretary of Education to award matching grants to nonprofit organizations for the implementation of Pediatric Early Literacy Programs, through which: health care providers encourage parents to read aloud to their children and offer parents developmentally appropriate recommendations and strategies for doing so; health care providers give each visiting child between the ages of six months and five years a new, developmentally appropriate children's book to take home and keep; and health care facilities create literacy-rich environments that include gently used books for waiting room use or volunteer readers to show parents the techniques of reading aloud to young children. Requires that the books provided to children under the programs be obtained at a discount.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Prescribe A Book Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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The strongest published arguments

Arguments for (supporters)

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. McGovern, James P. [D-MA-2] · 22 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Katherine M. Clark (D-MA), Gregory W. Meeks (D-NY), Richard E. Neal (D-MA), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Judy Chu (D-CA), André Carson (D-IN), Mark Pocan (D-WI), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Joaquin Castro (D-TX)

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. McGovern, James P. [D-MA-2] reported raising $1.0 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (2)
Appropriation
Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Authorization
A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong114-hr523 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114