H.Res. 257: Condemning hate crime and any other form of racism, religious or ethnic bias, discrimination, incitement to violence, or animus targeting a minority in the United States.

115th Congress · introduced 2017-04-06 · Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues · Latest: Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2017-04-06 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Comstock, Barbara [R-VA-10] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
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

Condemning hate crime and any other form of racism, religious or ethnic bias, discrimination, incitement to violence, or animus targeting a minority in the United States.

Plain summary

Condemns hate crimes and any other form of racism, religious or ethnic bias, discrimination, incitement to violence, or animus targeting a minority in the United States. Affirms that the United States stands united in condemning hate and evil in all forms. Rejects hate-motivated crime as an attack on the fabric of society and the ideals of pluralism and respect. Calls on federal law enforcement officials, working with state and local officials, to: (1) expeditiously investigate all credible reports of hate crimes and incidents and threats against minorities in the United States, and (2) bring the perpetrators to justice. Encourages: (1) the Department of Justice and other federal agencies to work to improve the reporting of hate crimes and to emphasize the importance of the agencies' collection and reporting of data pursuant to federal law, and (2) the development of an interagency task force to collaborate on the development of effective strategies and efforts to detect and deter hate crime in order to protect minority communities. Calls on the executive branch to: (1) offer federal assistance that may be available for victims of hate crimes; and (2) enhance security measures and improve preparedness for religious institutions, places of worship, and other institutions that have been targeted because of their affiliation with any particular religious, racial, or ethnic minority in the United States.

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

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

A Yea supports adopting this resolution.

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

Condemning hate crime and any other form of racism, religious or ethnic bias, discrimination, incitement to violence, or animus targeting a minority in the United States.

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Comstock, Barbara [R-VA-10] · 66 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Gregory W. Meeks (D-NY), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), William R. Keating (D-MA), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Dwight Evans (D-PA), Ami Bera (D-CA), Donald S. Beyer, Jr. (D-VA), John H. Rutherford (R-FL), Judy Chu (D-CA), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Brian J. Mast (R-FL), Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), Brian K. Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Terri A. Sewell (D-AL), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), J. Luis Correa (D-CA), André Carson (D-IN), Frederica S. Wilson (D-FL), Bill Foster (D-IL) and 6 more.

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 (3)

Resolution: A formal statement or decision by a legislative body. Simple resolutions often only express an opinion or set rules for one chamber; they do not become law.
Roll-call vote: A vote where each member's position is recorded by name, so the public can see how every member voted. "Yea" means yes, "Nay" means no, "Present" means the member was there but did not take a side.
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-115hres257.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/115/hres>

Record fed-us-cong115-hres257 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong115 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong115