H.R. 3776: Correcting Hurtful and Alienating Names in Government Expression (CHANGE) Act

116th Congress · introduced 2019-07-16 · Immigration · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2019-07-16 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Castro, Joaquin [D-TX-20] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship. 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

Correcting Hurtful and Alienating Names in Government Expression (CHANGE) Act

Plain summary

Correcting Hurtful and Alienating Names in Government Expression (CHANGE) Act This bill prohibits any executive agency from using the term alien to refer to an individual who is not a U.S. citizen or national, or il legal alien to refer to such an individual who is unlawfully present in the United States or lacks lawful immigration status. This prohibition does not apply when quoting certain texts. The bill (1) establishes a uniform definition for the term foreign national when used in acts of Congress and agencies; (2) replaces alien with foreign national in federal government documents, including statutes and regulations; and (3) replaces illegal alien with undocumented foreign national in such documents. Under the bill, a foreign national is any individual other than an individual (1) who is a citizen of the United States; or (2) though not a citizen of the United States, who owes permanent allegiance to 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

Correcting Hurtful and Alienating Names in Government Expression (CHANGE) Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Castro, Joaquin [D-TX-20] · 23 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Sylvia R. Garcia (D-TX), Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY), Juan Vargas (D-CA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Lori Trahan (D-MA), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), J. Luis Correa (D-CA), Marc A. Veasey (D-TX), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Jesús G. "Chuy" García (D-IL), Darren Soto (D-FL), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Pete Aguilar (D-CA), Janice D. Schakowsky (D-IL), Julia Brownley (D-CA), Veronica Escobar (D-TX), Linda T. Sánchez (D-CA)

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Castro, Joaquin [D-TX-20] reported raising $592,416 (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 (3)

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).
Rulemaking: The process agencies use to write regulations that carry out laws passed by Congress or a legislature. Usually an agency publishes a proposed rule, takes public comments, then publishes a final rule.
Statute: A written law passed by a legislature. A statute can be changed by a later law; changing a constitution needs an amendment.

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-116hr3776.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/116/hr>

Record fed-us-cong116-hr3776 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong116 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong116