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HR 3785 114th Congress House

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

Official title: To prohibit Executive agencies from using the derogatory term "alien" to refer to an individual who is not a citizen or national of the United States, to amend… Show full official titleShow less

Official title: To prohibit Executive agencies from using the derogatory term "alien" to refer to an individual who is not a citizen or national of the United States, to amend chapter 1 of title 1, United States Code, to establish a uniform definition for the term "foreign national", and for other purposes.

Introduced: October 22, 2015 Introduced by: Castro, Joaquin Democratic · Texas See on congress.gov
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This bill died when the 114th Congress ended
It never became law before the 114th Congress (2015–2016) 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
Nov 23, 2015
Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security.
Oct 21, 2015
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Oct 21, 2015
Introduced in House
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 Latest action November 23, 2015

Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

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

This bill prohibits an executive agency from using the following terms in any rule, regulation, interpretation, publication, other document, display, or sign issued by the agency except to the extent that the term is used in quoting or reproducing text written by a source other than an officer or employee of the agency:

  • "alien" when used to refer to an individual who is not a U.S. citizen or national, and
  • "illegal alien" when used to refer to an individual who is unlawfully present in the United States or who lacks a lawful U.S. immigration status.

In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of various U.S. administrative bureaus and agencies, the term "foreign national" in federal law means any individual other than an individual who: (1) is a U.S. citizen; or (2) though not a U.S. citizen, owes permanent allegiance to the United States.

Any reference in any federal statute, rule, regulation, executive order, publication, or other U.S. document to the term:

  • "alien" when used to refer to an individual who is not a U.S. citizen or national is deemed to refer to the term "foreign national," and
  • "illegal alien" when used to refer to an individual who is unlawfully present in the United States or who lacks a lawful U.S. immigration status is deemed to refer to the term "undocumented foreign national."

Conforming amendments are made to specified Acts.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 3
 Cosponsors 56
All 56 Democratic 55
D
Frankel, Lois
Florida · Jan 7, 2016
 D
Chu, Judy
California · Dec 18, 2015
 D
Pallone, Frank
New Jersey · Dec 18, 2015
 D
Duckworth, Tammy
Illinois · Dec 16, 2015
 D
Keating, William R.
Massachusetts · Dec 16, 2015
 D
DeLauro, Rosa L.
Connecticut · Dec 8, 2015
 D
Kaptur, Marcy
Ohio · Dec 8, 2015
 D
Velázquez, Nydia M.
New York · Dec 3, 2015
 D
Foster, Bill
Illinois · Nov 16, 2015
 D
Johnson, Henry C. "Hank"
Georgia · Nov 16, 2015
 D
Clark, Katherine M.
Massachusetts · Nov 5, 2015
 D
Jeffries, Hakeem S.
New York · Nov 5, 2015
 D
Huffman, Jared
California · Nov 2, 2015
 D
Meng, Grace
New York · Nov 2, 2015
 D
Moore, Gwen
Wisconsin · Nov 2, 2015
 D
Scott, Robert C. "Bobby"
Virginia · Nov 2, 2015
 D
Castor, Kathy
Florida · Oct 29, 2015
 D
Clarke, Yvette D.
New York · Oct 29, 2015
 D
Dingell, Debbie
Michigan · Oct 29, 2015
 D
Meeks, Gregory W.
New York · Oct 29, 2015
 D
Wasserman Schultz, Debbie
Florida · Oct 29, 2015
BECERRA, XAVIER
· Oct 27, 2015
 D
DelBene, Suzan K.
Washington · Oct 27, 2015
 D
Doggett, Lloyd
Texas · Oct 27, 2015
 D
Hoyer, Steny H.
Maryland · Oct 27, 2015
 D
Lieu, Ted
California · Oct 27, 2015
 D
Lofgren, Zoe
California · Oct 27, 2015
 D
Tonko, Paul
New York · Oct 27, 2015
 D
Wilson, Frederica S.
Florida · Oct 27, 2015
 D
Bishop, Sanford D.
Georgia · Oct 23, 2015
 D
Cleaver, Emanuel
Missouri · Oct 23, 2015
 D
Cohen, Steve
Tennessee · Oct 23, 2015
 D
Luján, Ben Ray
New Mexico · Oct 23, 2015
 D
McGovern, James P.
Massachusetts · Oct 23, 2015
 D
Norton, Eleanor Holmes
District of Columbia · Oct 23, 2015
 D
Takano, Mark
California · Oct 23, 2015
 D
Torres, Norma J.
California · Oct 23, 2015
 D
Van Hollen, Chris
Maryland · Oct 23, 2015
 D
Aguilar, Pete
California · Oct 22, 2015
 D
Beatty, Joyce
Ohio · Oct 22, 2015
 D
Beyer, Donald S.
Virginia · Oct 22, 2015
 D
Bonamici, Suzanne
Oregon · Oct 22, 2015
 D
Courtney, Joe
Connecticut · Oct 22, 2015
 D
Cuellar, Henry
Texas · Oct 22, 2015
 D
DeSaulnier, Mark
California · Oct 22, 2015
 D
Gallego, Ruben
Arizona · Oct 22, 2015
 D
McCollum, Betty
Minnesota · Oct 22, 2015
 D
Moulton, Seth
Massachusetts · Oct 22, 2015
 D
Peters, Scott H.
California · Oct 22, 2015
 D
Pocan, Mark
Wisconsin · Oct 22, 2015
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APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 3785: Correcting Hurtful and Alienating Names in Government Expression (CHANGE) Act. 114th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-3785/
MLA
"H.R. 3785: Correcting Hurtful and Alienating Names in Government Expression (CHANGE) Act." 114th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-3785/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 3785, 114th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-3785/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 3785: Correcting Hurtful and Alienating Names in Government Expression (CHANGE) Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-3785/)
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