PROTECT Act

Summary: Prevent Retaliation and Open up Transparency to Expand Care for Troops Act of 2016 or the PROTECT Act This bill amends the Uniform Code of Military Justice to establish the offense of retaliation. Retaliation provisions require that any person subject to the code who, with the intent to retaliate against any person for reporting or planning to report a criminal offense, or with the intent to discourage any person from reporting a criminal offense, wrongfully takes or threatens to take an adverse personnel action against any person, or wrongfully withholds or threatens to withhold a favorable personnel action with respect to any person, shall be punished as a court-martial may direct. The Department of Defense (DOD) shall prescribe uniform standards for conduct of each of the following functions at all stages of the military justice system, including pretrial, trial, post-trial, and appellate processes:   collection and analysis of data concerning substantive offenses and procedural matters in a manner that facilitates case management and decision making and enhances the quality of periodic reviews; case processing and management;  timely and accurate production and distribution of trial records; and  facilitation of access to docket information, filings, and records.  Each military department shall ensure that any individual investigating an allegation of retaliation against a person who has made a protected communication must have training in the definition and characteristics of retaliation. If the investigation involves alleged retaliation in response to a communication regarding rape, sexual assault, or other sexual misconduct, the training shall include specific instruction regarding such violations.  It is the sense of Congress that DOD should ensure that its medical and mental health providers are adequately trained to meet the needs of male survivors of military sexual trauma.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Prevent Retaliation and Open up 
Transparency to Expand Care for Troops Act of 2016'' or the ``PROTECT 
Act''.

SEC. 2. RETALIATION.

    (a) Establishment of Offense.--Subchapter X of chapter 47 of title 
10, United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 907 
(article 107 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice) the following new 
section (article):
``Sec. 907a. Art. 107a. Retaliation
    ``Any person subject to this chapter who, with the intent to 
retaliate against any person for reporting or planning to report a 
criminal offense, or with the intent to discourage any person from 
reporting a criminal offense--
            ``(1) wrongfully takes or threatens to take an adverse 
        personnel action against any person; or
            ``(2) wrongfully withholds or threatens to withhold a 
        favorable personnel action with respect to any person;
shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
subchapter X of chapter 47 of title 10, United States Code, is amended 
by inserting after the item relating to section 907 (article 107 of the 
Uniform Code of Military Justice) the following new item:

``907a. 107a. Retaliation.''.

SEC. 3. MILITARY JUSTICE CASE MANAGEMENT; DATA COLLECTION AND 
              ACCESSIBILITY.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter XI of chapter 47 of title 10, United 
States Code (the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is amended by 
adding at the end the following new section (article):
``Sec. 940a. Art. 140a. Case management; data collection and 
              accessibility
    ``The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe uniform standards and 
criteria for conduct of each of the following functions at all stages 
of the military justice system, including pretrial, trial, post-trial, 
and appellate processes, using, insofar as practicable, the best 
practices of Federal and State courts:
            ``(1) Collection and analysis of data concerning 
        substantive offenses and procedural matters in a manner that 
        facilitates case management and decisionmaking within the 
        military justice system, and that enhances the quality of 
        periodic reviews under section 946 of this title (article 146).
            ``(2) Case processing and management.
            ``(3) Timely, efficient, and accurate production and 
        distribution of records of trial within the military justice 
        system.
            ``(4) Facilitation of access to docket information, 
        filings, and records, taking into consideration restrictions 
        appropriate to judicial proceedings and military records.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
subchapter XI of chapter 47 of title 10, United States Code, is amended 
by adding at the end the following item:

``940a. 140a. Case management; data collection and accessibility.''.
    (c) Effective Dates.--
            (1) Implementation.--Not later than two years after the 
        date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense 
        shall carry out section 940a of title 10, United States Code 
        (article 140a of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), as 
        added by subsection (a).
            (2) Deadline for standards and criteria.--Not later than 
        four years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
        standards and criteria under section 940a of title 10, United 
        States Code (article 140a of the Uniform Code of Military 
        Justice), as added by subsection (a), shall take effect.

SEC. 4. IMPROVED INVESTIGATION OF ALLEGATIONS OF PROFESSIONAL 
              RETALIATION.

    Section 1034(c)(4) of title 10, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
    ``(F) The Secretary concerned shall ensure that any individual 
investigating an allegation as described in paragraph (1) must have 
training in the definition and characteristics of retaliation. In 
addition, if the investigation involves alleged retaliation in response 
to a communication regarding a violation of a law or regulation 
prohibiting rape, sexual assault, or other sexual misconduct in 
violation of sections 920 through 920c of this title (articles 120 
through 120c of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), the training 
shall include specific instruction regarding such violations.''.

SEC. 5. ANNUAL REPORT ON INFORMATION RECEIVED BY DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 
              FAMILY ADVOCACY PROGRAMS REGARDING UNWANTED SEXUAL 
              CONTACT BY MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES.

    Not later than January 31, 2017, and each January 31 thereafter 
through January 31, 2021, the Secretary of each military department 
shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the House of 
Representatives and the Senate a report containing information 
regarding each report of unwanted sexual contact committed by a member 
of the Armed Forces against a domestic partner or child of the member 
that was received by a family advocacy program of the Department of 
Defense during the preceding year covered by the report.

SEC. 6. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING PLIGHT OF MALE VICTIMS OF MILITARY 
              SEXUAL TRAUMA.

    (a) Finding.--Congress finds that the plight of male victims of 
military sexual trauma remains in the shadows due a lack of social 
awareness on the issue of male victimization.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the 
Secretary of Defense should--
            (1) enhance victims' access to intensive medical and mental 
        health treatment for military sexual trauma treatment;
            (2) look for opportunities to utilize male survivors of 
        sexual assault as presenters during annual Sexual Assault 
        Preventions and Response training; and
            (3) ensure Department of Defense medical and mental health 
        providers are adequately trained to meet the needs of male 
        survivors of military sexual trauma.