The following is a comprehensive list of national high school (policy) debate topics from 1927 to the present.
Topics were originally chosen by the National University Extension Association and its Committee on Discussion and Debate. Each year, the NUEA created a slate of three topics and held a vote to choose the winner. State and national associations participated in the voting process. Topic selection remains similar today, but it is now administered by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS).
When available, the years below are linked to the Library of Congress’s guide to that year’s topic. By statute, the LOC has been producing these guides since 1968. Many are still only available on microfiche at university libraries, but some older ones have recently been digitized. All guides from 1990 to today are now available. They provide interesting insights into the issues that students were debating each year.
The 1920s
1927-1928 — Resolved: That a federal department of education should be created with a secretary in the president’s cabinet.
1928-1929 — Resolved: That the English cabinet method of legislation is more efficient than the committee system is in the United States.
1929-1930 — Resolved: That installment buying of personal property as now practiced in the United States is both socially and economically desirable.
The 1930s
1930-1931 — Resolved: That chain stores are detrimental to the best interests of the American public.
1931-1932 — Resolved: That the several states should enact legislation providing for compulsory unemployment insurance.
1932-1933 — Resolved: That at least one half of all state and local revenues should be derived from sources other than tangible property.
1933-1934 — Resolved: That the United States should adopt the essential features of the British system of radio control and operation.
1934-1935 — Resolved: That the federal government should adopt the policy of equalizing educational opportunity throughout the nation by means of annual grants to the several states for public elementary and secondary education.
1935-1936 — Resolved: That the several states should enact legislation providing for a system of complete medical service available to all citizens at public expense.
1936-1937 — Resolved: That all electric utilities should be governmentally owned and operated.
1937-1938 — Resolved: That the several states should adopt a unicameral system of legislation.
1938-1939 — Resolved: That the United States should establish an alliance with Great Britain.
1939-1940 — Resolved: That the federal government should own and operate the railroads.
The 1940s
1940-1941 — Resolved: That the power of the federal government should be increased.
1941-1942 — Resolved: That every able-bodied male citizen in the United States should be required to have one year of full-time military training before attaining the present draft age.
1942-1943 — Resolved: That a federal world government should be established.
1943-1944 — Resolved: That the United States should join in reconstituting the League of Nations.
1944-1945 — Resolved: That the legal voting age should be reduced to eighteen years.
1945-1946 — Resolved: That every able-bodied male citizen of the United States should have one year of full-time military training before attaining age 24.
1946-1947 — Resolved: That the federal government should provide a system of complete medical care available to all citizens at public expense.
1947-1948 — Resolved: That the federal government should require arbitration of labor disputes in all basic American industries.
1948-1949 — Resolved: That the United States now be revised into a Federal World Government.
1949-1950 — Resolved: That the president of the United States should be elected by the direct vote of the people.
The 1950s
1950-1951 — Resolved: That the American people should reject the welfare state.
1951-1952 — Resolved: That all American citizens should be subject to conscription for essential service in time of war.
1952-1953 — Resolved: That the Atlantic Pact nations should form a federal union.
1953-1954 — Resolved: That the President of the United States should be elected by the direct vote of the people.
1954-1955 — Resolved: That the federal government should initiate a policy of free trade among nations friendly to the United States.
1955-1956 — Resolved: That governmental subsidies should be granted according to need to high school graduates who qualify for additional training.
1956-1957 — Resolved: That the federal government should sustain the prices of major agricultural products at not less than 90% of parity.
1957-1958 — Resolved: That United States foreign aid should be substantially increased.
1958-1959 — Resolved: That the United States should adopt the essential features of the British system of education.
1959-1960 — Resolved: That the federal government should substantially increase its regulation of labor unions.
The 1960s
1960-1961 — Resolved: That the United Nations should be significantly strengthened.
1961-1962 — Resolved: That the federal government should equalize educational opportunity by means of grants to the states for public elementary and secondary education.
1962-1963 — Resolved: That the United States should promote a Common Market for the western hemisphere.
1963-1964 — Resolved: That Social Security benefits should be extended to include complete medical care.
1964-1965 — Resolved: That nuclear weapons should be controlled by an international organization.
1965-1966 — Resolved: That the federal government should adopt a program of compulsory arbitration in labor-management disputes in basic industries.
1966-1967 — Resolved: That the foreign aid program of the United States should be limited to non- military assistance.
1967-1968 — Resolved: That Congress should establish uniform regulations to control criminal investigation procedures.
1968-1969 — Resolved: That the United States should establish a system of compulsory service by all citizens.
1969-1970 — Resolved: That Congress should prohibit unilateral United States military intervention in foreign countries.
The 1970s
1970-1971 — Resolved: That the federal government should establish, finance, and administer programs to control air and/or water pollution in the United States.
1971-1972 — Resolved: That the jury system in the United States should be significantly changed.
1972-1973 — Resolved: That governmental financial support for all public and secondary education in the United States be provided exclusively by the federal government.
1973-1974 — Resolved: That the federal government should guarantee a minimum annual income to each family unit.
1974-1975 — Resolved: That the United States should significantly change the method of selecting presidential and vice-presidential candidates.
1975-1976 — Resolved: That the development and allocation of scarce world resources should be controlled by an international organization.
1976-1977 — Resolved: That a comprehensive program of penal reform should be adopted throughout the United States.
1977-1978 — Resolved: That the federal government should establish a comprehensive program to regulate the health care system in the United States.
1978-1979 — Resolved: That the federal government should establish a comprehensive program to significantly increase the energy independence of the United States.
1979-1980 — Resolved: That the United States should significantly change its foreign trade policies.
The 1980s
1980-1981 — Resolved: That the federal government should initiate and enforce safety guarantees on consumer goods.
1981-1982 — Resolved: That the federal government should establish minimum educational standards for elementary and secondary schools in the United States.
1982-1983 — Resolved: That the United States should significantly curtail its arms sales to other countries.
1983-1984 — Resolved: That the United States should establish uniform rules governing the procedure of all criminal courts in the nation.
1984-1985 — Resolved: That the federal government should provide employment for all employable United States citizens living in poverty.
1985-1986 — Resolved: That the federal government should establish a comprehensive national policy to protect the quality of water in the United States.
1986-1987 — Resolved: That the federal government should implement a comprehensive long-term agricultural policy in the United States.
1987-1988 — Resolved: That the United States government should adopt a policy to increase political stability in Latin America.
1988-1989 — Resolved: That the federal government should implement a comprehensive program to guarantee retirement security for United States citizens over age 65.
1989-1990 — Resolved: That the federal government should adopt a nationwide policy to decrease overcrowding in prisons and jails in the United States.
The 1990s
1990-1991 — Resolved: That the United States government should significantly increase space exploration beyond the Earth’s mesosphere.
1991-1992 — Resolved: That the federal government should significantly increase social services to homeless individuals in the United States.
1992-1993 — Resolved: That the United States government should reduce worldwide pollution through its trade and/or aid policies.
1993-1994 — Resolved: That the federal government should guarantee comprehensive national health insurance to all United States citizens.
1994-1995 — Resolved: That the United States government should substantially strengthen regulation of immigration to the United States.
1995-1996 — Resolved: That the United States government should substantially change its foreign policy toward the People’s Republic of China.
1996-1997 — Resolved: That the federal government should establish a program to substantially reduce juvenile crime in the United States.
1997-1998 — Resolved: That the federal government should establish a policy to substantially increase renewable energy use in the United States.
1998-1999 — Resolved: That the United States should substantially change its foreign policy toward Russia.
1999-2000 — Resolved: That the federal government should establish an education policy to significantly increase academic achievement in secondary schools in the United States.
The 2000s
2000-2001 — Resolved: That the United States federal government should significantly increase protection of privacy in the United States in one or more of the following areas: employment, medical records, consumer information, search and seizure.
2001-2002 — Resolved: That the United States federal government should establish a foreign policy significantly limiting the use of weapons of mass destruction.
2002-2003 — Resolved: That the United States federal government should substantially increase public health services for mental health care in the United States.
2003-2004 — Resolved: That the United States federal government should establish an ocean policy substantially increasing protection of marine natural resources.
2004-2005 — Resolved: That the United States federal government should establish a foreign policy substantially increasing its support of United Nations peacekeeping operations.
2005-2006 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially decrease its authority either to detain without charge or to search without probable cause.
2006-2007 — Resolved: The United States federal government should establish a policy substantially increasing the number of persons serving in one or more of the following national service programs: AmeriCorps, Citizen Corps, Senior Corps, Peace Corps, Learn and Serve America, Armed Forces.
2007-2008 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its public health assistance to Sub- Saharan Africa.
2008-2009 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase alternative energy incentives in the United States.
2009-2010 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase social services for persons living in poverty in the United States.
The 2010s
2010-2011 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially reduce its military and/or police presence in one or more of the following: South Korea, Japan, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Iraq, Turkey.
2011-2012 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its exploration and/or development of space beyond the Earth’s mesosphere.
2012-2013 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its transportation infrastructure investment in the United States.
2013-2014 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its economic engagement toward Cuba, Mexico or Venezuela.
2014-2015 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its non-military exploration and/or development of the Earth’s oceans.
2015-2016 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially curtail its domestic surveillance.
2016-2017 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its economic and/or diplomatic engagement with the People’s Republic of China.
2017-2018 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its funding and/or regulation of elementary and/or secondary education in the United States.
2018-2019 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially reduce its restrictions on legal immigration to the United States.
2019-2020 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially reduce Direct Commercial Sales and/or Foreign Military Sales of arms from the United States.
The 2020s
2020-2021 — Resolved: The United States federal government should enact substantial criminal justice reform in the United States in one or more of the following: forensic science, policing, sentencing.
2021-2022 — Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially increase its protection of water resources in the United States.