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H.R. 2944: To Offer Refugees College Help (TORCH) Act

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H.R. 2944: To Offer Refugees College Help (TORCH) Act

115th Congress · introduced 2017-06-20 · Education · Latest: Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2017-06-20 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Rep. Huffman, Jared [D-CA-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 House Committee on Education and the Workforce. 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

To Offer Refugees College Help (TORCH) Act

Plain summary

To Offer Refugees College Help (TORCH) Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require states to charge in-state tuition rates to refugees, asylees, and special immigrant visa holders if they are lawfully in the United States. This requirement only applies to the first state where the individual lives after being admitted into the United States.

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

To Offer Refugees College Help (TORCH) Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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The strongest published arguments

Arguments for (supporters)

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Arguments against (opponents)

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Alternatives

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

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Huffman, Jared [D-CA-2] · 63 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Nanette Diaz Barragán (D-CA), Julia Brownley (D-CA), André Carson (D-IN), Judy Chu (D-CA), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA), Dwight Evans (D-PA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Al Green (D-TX), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Hakeem S. Jeffries (D-NY), Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. (D-GA), John B. Larson (D-CT), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Doris O. Matsui (D-CA), James P. McGovern (D-MA), Gregory W. Meeks (D-NY), Seth Moulton (D-MA), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Mark Pocan (D-WI), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Janice D. Schakowsky (D-IL), Adam B. Schiff (D-CA), Adam Smith (D-WA), Mark Takano (D-CA), Mike Thompson (D-CA), Juan Vargas (D-CA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Norma J. Torres (D-CA), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Betty McCollum (D-MN), Scott H. Peters (D-CA), Kathy Castor (D-FL), Salud O. Carbajal (D-CA) and 3 more.

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Huffman, Jared [D-CA-2] reported raising $1.2 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 (1)
Bill
A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong115-hr2944 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong115 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong115