H.R. 1230: Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act

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H.R. 1230: Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act

116th Congress · introduced 2019-02-14 · Labor and Employment · Latest: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

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Official title

Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act

Plain summary

Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act (Sec. 2) This bill amends the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 to establish as an unlawful employment practice that age or participation in investigations, proceedings, or litigation under such Act were a motivating factor for any unlawful employment practice, even though other factors also motivated the practice (thereby allowing what are commonly known as mixed motive claims). The bill (1) permits a complaining party to rely on any type or form of admissible evidence, which need only be sufficient for a reasonable trier of fact to find that an unlawful practice occurred; and (2) declares that a complaining party shall not be required to demonstrate that age or retaliation was the sole cause of the employment practice (thereby rejecting the Supreme Court's decision in Gross v. FBL Financial Services, Inc. , which requires a complainant to prove that age was the but-for cause for the employer's decision). The bill authorizes a court to grant declaratory and injunctive relief, but prohibits a court from awarding damages or issuing an order requiring any admission, reinstatement, hiring, promotion, or payment. The bill applies the same standard of proof to other employment discrimination and retaliation claims, including claims under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. (Sec. 5) The Government Accountability Office shall report on how the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) investigates mixed motive age discrimination claims arising under all such Acts amended by this bill. (Sec. 6) The Department of Labor and the EEOC shall jointly conduct a study to determine the number of claims pending or filed, in addition to cases closed, by women who may have been adversely impacted by age discrimination as a motivating factor in workplace discrimination or employment termination. (Sec. 7). The EEOC, for a five-year period, shall submit to Congress a report at one-year intervals on the number of age discrimination in employment claims brought under this bill. (Sec. 8) The EEOC shall report on the status of federal mixed motive age discrimination in employment claims made against federal agencies.

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

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Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Scott, Robert C. "Bobby" [D-VA-3] · 91 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: H.R. 1230, Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act (2019-10-16)

Cosponsors on this site

Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Alma S. Adams (D-NC), Mark Takano (D-CA), Glenn Grothman (R-WI), Pete Stauber (R-MN), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Jefferson Van Drew (R-NJ), Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA), Elise M. Stefanik (R-NY), Brian K. Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Haley M. Stevens (D-MI), Grace Meng (D-NY), Lauren Underwood (D-IL), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Josh Harder (D-CA), Susie Lee (D-NV), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Kathy Castor (D-FL), Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ), Thomas R. Suozzi (D-NY), Lori Trahan (D-MA), Henry Cuellar (D-TX), Danny K. Davis (D-IL), Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY), Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX), Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), Betty McCollum (D-MN), Richard E. Neal (D-MA), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Debbie Dingell (D-MI) and 31 more.

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Scott, Robert C. "Bobby" [D-VA-3] reported raising $882,179 (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

Recorded votes

• House roll call 19 (2020): On Agreeing to the Amendment, HR1230 (2020-01-15): Failed
• House roll call 20 (2020): On Motion to Recommit with Instructions, HR1230 (2020-01-15): Failed
• House roll call 21 (2020): On Passage, HR1230 (2020-01-15): Passed

Sources

• Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House)
• Congress.gov
• Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-116hr1230.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/116/hr>

Record fed-us-cong116-hr1230 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong116 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong116