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HR 1588 111th Congress House

Common Sense English Act

Official title: To ensure that an employer has the freedom to implement English in the workplace policies.

Introduced: March 18, 2009 See on congress.gov
Labor and Employment Employment discrimination and employee rightsLanguage arts
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This bill died when the 111th Congress ended
It never became law before the 111th Congress (2009–2010) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
May 14, 2009
Referred to the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections.
Mar 18, 2009
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.
Mar 18, 2009
Introduced in House
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 Latest action May 14, 2009

Referred to the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Common Sense English Act - Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to declare that, notwithstanding any other equal employment opportunity provisions of the Act, it is not an unlawful employment practice for an employer to require employees to speak English while engaged in work.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
 Cosponsors 17
All 17 Republican 14
Graves, Tom
· Nov 15, 2010
 R
Capito, Shelley Moore
West Virginia · Oct 8, 2009
Carney, Christopher
· Jul 9, 2009
 R
Aderholt, Robert B.
Alabama · Jun 8, 2009
 R
Wilson, Joe
South Carolina · Jun 8, 2009
 R
Wittman, Robert J.
Virginia · May 18, 2009
 R
Foxx, Virginia
North Carolina · Apr 30, 2009
 R
Calvert, Ken
California · Apr 21, 2009
McCarthy, Kevin
· Apr 2, 2009
 R
Boozman, John
Arkansas · Mar 30, 2009
 R
Bilirakis, Gus M.
Florida · Mar 18, 2009
 R
Blackburn, Marsha
Tennessee · Mar 18, 2009
 R
Jordan, Jim
Ohio · Mar 18, 2009
 R
Latta, Robert E.
Ohio · Mar 18, 2009
 R
Lucas, Frank D.
Oklahoma · Mar 18, 2009
 R
Simpson, Michael K.
Idaho · Mar 18, 2009
 R
Smith, Adrian
Nebraska · Mar 18, 2009
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 1588: Common Sense English Act. 111th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/111-HR-1588/
MLA
"H.R. 1588: Common Sense English Act." 111th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/111-HR-1588/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 1588, 111th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/111-HR-1588/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 1588: Common Sense English Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/111-HR-1588/)
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