H.R. 7661 would prohibit the use of federal funds awarded under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to provide or promote programs, literature, or other materials to children under the age of 18 that contain sexually oriented content, including gender dysphoria or transgenderism. The bill would exempt certain content that includes science coursework, religious texts, and classic works of art and literature, and instruction intended to help students recognize sexual trafficking.
CBO expects schools and other entities would comply with the requirements in H.R. 7661 and that any federal funds that would have been used for those purposes under current law would be used for other purposes.
Based on the cost of implementing similar prohibitions, CBO estimates that the costs to the Department of Education to implement H.R. 7661 would be insignificant; any related spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Garrett Quenneville. The estimate was reviewed by Chad Chirico, Director of Budget Analysis.
