II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 976 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 and the Jeanne Clery Disclosure 

of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act to combat 

campus sexual assault, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 1, 2019 

Mrs. GILLIBRAND (for herself, Mr. GRASSLEY, Ms. ERNST, Mr. RUBIO, Mrs. 

CAPITO, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Ms. HASSAN, Mr. REED, Mr. WARNER, and 

Mrs. SHAHEEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 and the Jeanne 

Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus 

Crime Statistics Act to combat campus sexual assault, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Campus Accountability 

5 and Safety Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO THE CLERY ACT. 

2 Section 485(f) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

3 (20 U.S.C. 1092(f)) (known as the Jeanne Clery Disclo4 sure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statis5 tics Act) is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

7 (A) by inserting ‘‘which shall include, at a 

8 minimum, publication in an easily accessible 

9 manner on the website of the institution,’’ after 

10 ‘‘through appropriate publications or mail11 ings,’’; 

12 (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

13 clause (ii) and inserting the following: 

14 ‘‘(ii) the memorandum of understanding 

15 between the institution and law enforcement 

16 pursuant to section 124 (or, if such require17 ment has been waived, a description of the 

18 working relationship between the institution, 

19 campus security personnel, or campus law en20 forcement and State or local law enforcement 

21 agencies); and’’; 

22 (C) in subparagraph (F)— 

23 (i) in clause (i)— 

24 (I) by redesignating subclauses 

25 (III) through (IX) as subclauses (VI) 

26 through (XII); and 


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1 (II) by striking subclause (II) 

2 and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(II) rape; 

4 ‘‘(III) fondling; 

5 ‘‘(IV) incest; 

6 ‘‘(V) statutory rape;’’; and 

7 (ii) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘sub8 clauses (I) through (VIII) of clause (i)’’ 

9 and inserting ‘‘subclauses (I) through (XI) 

10 of clause (i)’’; and 

11 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(K)(i) With respect to the criminal activ13 ity described in subclauses (II) and (III) of sub14 paragraph (F)(i), the eligible institution shall 

15 prepare for the annual security report that is 

16 due following 1 year after the date of enact17 ment of the Campus Accountability and Safety 

18 Act, and annually thereafter, the following addi19 tions: 

20 ‘‘(I) The number of such incidents 

21 where the accused individual is a student 

22 at the institution. 

23 ‘‘(II) Of the incidents described in 

24 subclause (I), the number of such incidents 

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1 nator (as defined in section 125(a)) or 

2 other higher education responsible em3 ployee (as defined in section 125(a)) of the 

4 institution. 

5 ‘‘(III) Of the incidents described in 

6 subclause (II), the number of victims who 

7 sought campus disciplinary action at the 

8 institution. 

9 ‘‘(IV) Of the victims described in sub10 clause (III), the number of cases processed 

11 through the student disciplinary process of 

12 the institution. 

13 ‘‘(V) Of the cases described in sub14 clause (IV), the number of accused individ15 uals who were found responsible through 

16 the student disciplinary process of the in17 stitution. 

18 ‘‘(VI) Of the cases described in sub19 clause (IV), the number of accused individ20 uals who were found not responsible 

21 through the student disciplinary process of 

22 the institution. 

23 ‘‘(VII) A description of the final sanc24 tions imposed by the institution for each 

25 incident for which an accused individual 


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1 was found responsible through the student 

2 disciplinary process of the institution, if 

3 such description will not reveal personally 

4 identifiable information about an individual 

5 student. 

6 ‘‘(VIII) The number of student dis7 ciplinary proceedings at the institution 

8 that have closed without resolution since 

9 the previous annual security report due to 

10 withdrawal from the institution of higher 

11 education by the accused student pending 

12 resolution of the student disciplinary pro13 ceeding. 

14 ‘‘(ii) The Secretary shall provide technical 

15 assistance to eligible institutions to assist such 

16 institutions in meeting the requirements of this 

17 subparagraph.’’; 

18 (2) by striking paragraph (7) and inserting the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(7) The statistics described in clauses (i) and (ii) 

21 of paragraph (1)(F)— 

22 ‘‘(A) shall not identify victims of crimes or per23 sons accused of crimes; and 

24 ‘‘(B) shall be compiled in accordance with the 

25 following definitions: 


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1 ‘‘(i) For the offenses of domestic violence, 

2 dating violence, and stalking, such statistics 

3 shall be compiled in accordance with the defini4 tions used in section 40002(a) of the Violence 

5 Against Women Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 

6 13925(a)). 

7 ‘‘(ii) For the offense of rape, such statis8 tics shall be compiled in accordance with the 

9 definition used in the Summary Reporting Sys10 tem of the Uniform Crime Reporting Program 

11 of the Department of Justice, Federal Bureau 

12 of Investigation. 

13 ‘‘(iii) For the offenses of fondling, incest, 

14 and statutory rape, such statistics shall be com15 piled in accordance with the definition used in 

16 the National Incident Based Reporting System. 

17 ‘‘(iv) For offenses not described in clause 

18 (i), (ii), or (iii), such statistics shall be compiled 

19 in accordance with the Uniform Crime Report20 ing Program of the Department of Justice, 

21 Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the modi22 fications to such definitions as implemented 

23 pursuant to the Hate Crime Statistics Act (28 

24 U.S.C. 534 note).’’; 

25 (3) in paragraph (8)(B)— 


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1 (A) in clause (i)— 

2 (i) in the matter preceding subclause 

3 (I), by inserting ‘‘, developed in consulta4 tion with local, State, or national sexual 

5 assault, dating violence, domestic violence, 

6 and stalking victim advocacy, victim serv7 ices, or prevention organizations, and local 

8 law enforcement,’’ after ‘‘Education pro9 grams’’; and 

10 (ii) in subclause (I)(aa), by inserting 

11 ‘‘, including the fact that these are crimes 

12 for the purposes of this subsection and re13 porting under this subsection, and the in14 stitution of higher education will, based on 

15 the victim’s wishes, cooperate with local 

16 law enforcement with respect to any al17 leged criminal offenses involving students 

18 or employees of the institution of higher 

19 education’’ after ‘‘stalking’’; and 

20 (B) in clause (iv)— 

21 (i) by redesignating subclauses (II) 

22 and (III) as subclauses (III) and (IV), re23 spectively; 

24 (ii) by inserting after subclause (I) 

25 the following: 


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1 ‘‘(II) the institution will comply 

2 with the requirements of section 

3 125(b), and shall include a description 

4 of such requirements;’’; and 

5 (iii) in subclause (IV), as redesignated 

6 by clause (i)— 

7 (I) in item (aa), by inserting ‘‘, 

8 within 5 days of such determination’’ 

9 after ‘‘sexual assault, or stalking’’; 

10 (II) in item (bb), by inserting 

11 ‘‘simultaneously with the notification 

12 of the outcome described in item 

13 (aa),’’ before ‘‘the institution’s’’; 

14 (III) in item (cc), by inserting 

15 ‘‘within 5 days of such change’’ after 

16 ‘‘results become final’’; and 

17 (IV) in item (dd), by inserting 

18 ‘‘within 5 days of such determination’’ 

19 after ‘‘results become final’’; 

20 (4) by redesignating paragraph (18) as para21 graph (22); and 

22 (5) by inserting after paragraph (17) the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(18) Each individual at an institution of high25 er education who is designated as a higher education 


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1 responsible employee (as defined in section 125(a)) 

2 shall be considered a campus security authority, as 

3 defined in section 668.46(a) of title 34, Code of 

4 Federal Regulations. 

5 ‘‘(19)(A) The Secretary shall, in consultation 

6 with the Attorney General, develop, design, and 

7 make available through a secure online portal, a 

8 standardized online survey tool regarding student ex9 periences with domestic violence, dating violence, 

10 sexual assault, and stalking. The Secretary shall de11 velop such survey tool using best practices from 

12 peer-reviewed research measuring domestic violence, 

13 dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. The 

14 Secretary shall consult with the higher education 

15 community and experts in survey research related to 

16 domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, 

17 and stalking regarding the development and design 

18 of such survey tool and the methodology for admin19 istration of such survey tool. The survey shall be fair 

20 and unbiased, scientifically valid and reliable, and 

21 meet the highest standards of survey research. Sur22 vey questions shall be designed to gather informa23 tion on student experiences with domestic violence, 

24 dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, includ25 ing the experiences of victims of such incidents, and 


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1 shall therefore use trauma-informed language to pre2 vent retraumatization. 

3 ‘‘(B) Each institution shall administer the sur4 vey described in subparagraph (A) every 2 years. In 

5 addition to the standardized questions developed by 

6 the Secretary, institutions may request additional in7 formation from students that would increase the in8 stitutions’ understanding of school climate factors 

9 unique to their campuses. 

10 ‘‘(C) The Secretary, in consultation with the 

11 Attorney General, shall develop a mechanism by 

12 which institutions of higher education may admin13 ister the survey described in subparagraph (A) 

14 through a Federal source. 

15 ‘‘(D) The Secretary shall require each institu16 tion participating in any program under this title to 

17 ensure that an adequate, random, and representative 

18 sample size of students (as determined by the Sec19 retary) enrolled at the institution complete the sur20 vey described in subparagraph (A) in accordance 

21 with this paragraph and beginning not later than 1 

22 year after the date of enactment of the Campus Ac23 countability and Safety Act. 

24 ‘‘(E) Responses to the survey shall be sub25 mitted confidentially and shall not be included in 


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1 crime statistics reported under this subsection. Re2 porting of survey data shall not include personally 

3 identifiable information. 

4 ‘‘(F) The survey described in subparagraph (A) 

5 shall include the following: 

6 ‘‘(i) Questions designed to determine the 

7 incidence and prevalence of domestic violence, 

8 dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. 

9 ‘‘(ii) Questions regarding whether students 

10 know about institutional policies and procedures 

11 related to domestic violence, dating violence, 

12 sexual assault, and stalking. 

13 ‘‘(iii) Questions designed to determine, if 

14 victims reported domestic violence, dating vio15 lence, sexual assault, or stalking— 

16 ‘‘(I) to whom the incident was re17 ported and what response the victim may 

18 have received; and 

19 ‘‘(II) whether the victim was informed 

20 of, or referred to, national, State, local, or 

21 on-campus resources. 

22 ‘‘(iv) Questions regarding contextual fac23 tors, such as whether force, incapacitation, or 

24 coercion was involved. 


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1 ‘‘(v) Questions to determine whether an ac2 cused individual was a student at the institu3 tion. 

4 ‘‘(vi) Questions to determine whether a vic5 tim reported an incident to State, local, or cam6 pus law enforcement. 

7 ‘‘(vii) Questions to determine why the vic8 tim chose to report or not report an incident to 

9 State, local, or campus law enforcement. 

10 ‘‘(viii) Other questions as determined by 

11 the Secretary. 

12 ‘‘(G) Beginning not later than 2 years after the 

13 date of enactment of the Campus Accountability and 

14 Safety Act, the Secretary shall prepare a biennial re15 port on the information gained from the survey 

16 under this paragraph and publish such report on the 

17 website of the Department and submit such report 

18 to Congress. The report shall include campus-level 

19 data for each school and attributed by name of each 

20 campus in a manner that permits comparisons 

21 across schools and campuses. 

22 ‘‘(H) Each institution subject to this subsection 

23 shall publish the campus-level results of the survey 

24 under this paragraph on the website of the institu25 tion and in the annual security report required 


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1 under this subsection for the campuses affiliated 

2 with the institution. 

3 ‘‘(20) Notwithstanding any other provision of 

4 this Act, upon determination, after reasonable notice 

5 and opportunity for a hearing, that an eligible insti6 tution has violated or failed to carry out any provi7 sion of this subsection, or agreement made to resolve 

8 a compliance review under this subsection, or any 

9 regulation prescribed under this subsection, the Sec10 retary may impose a civil penalty upon such institu11 tion not to exceed $150,000, which shall be adjusted 

12 for inflation annually, for each violation or misrepre13 sentation, or per month a survey is not completed at 

14 the standard required. The Secretary shall use any 

15 such civil penalty funds to carry out the grant pro16 gram established under section 8 of the Campus Ac17 countability and Safety Act.’’. 

18 SEC. 3. COORDINATION WITH LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part B of title I of the Higher 

20 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1011 et seq.) is amend21 ed by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 124. COORDINATION WITH LOCAL LAW ENFORCE23 MENT. 

24 ‘‘(a) MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING.—Each in25 stitution of higher education that receives funds under this 


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1 Act, shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with 

2 each law enforcement agency that has jurisdiction to re3 port as a first responder to a campus of the institution, 

4 noncampus building or property, or public property (as 

5 these terms are defined under section 485(f)) (excluding 

6 a campus, noncampus building or property, or public prop7 erty located outside the United States) to clearly delineate 

8 responsibilities and share information, in accordance with 

9 applicable Federal confidentiality laws, about domestic vi10 olence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking occur11 ring against students of the institution or against other 

12 individuals on the campus of the institution. 

13 ‘‘(b) REVIEW.—Each institution of higher education 

14 shall review the memorandum of understanding under this 

15 section with each law enforcement agency that has entered 

16 into such a memorandum of understanding every 2 years. 

17 As part of the review process, the institution shall contact 

18 each law enforcement agency that has entered into a 

19 memorandum of understanding to discuss how changes in 

20 policies or procedures at either the institution of higher 

21 education or the law enforcement agency may impact the 

22 provisions of the memorandum of understanding. If 

23 changes in policies or procedures are identified that im24 pact the provisions of the memorandum of understanding, 

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1 ment agency shall update the memorandum of under2 standing as necessary. 

3 ‘‘(c) CONTENTS.—Each memorandum of under4 standing described under this section shall include— 

5 ‘‘(1) delineation and sharing protocols of inves6 tigative responsibilities; 

7 ‘‘(2) protocols for investigations, including 

8 standards for notification and communication and 

9 measures to promote evidence preservation; 

10 ‘‘(3) coordinated training and requirements on 

11 issues related to domestic violence, dating violence, 

12 sexual assault, and stalking; and 

13 ‘‘(4) a method of sharing information about 

14 specific crimes, which may include a mechanism for 

15 sharing information anonymously, that— 

16 ‘‘(A) requires that the victim authorized or 

17 requested that such information be shared and 

18 is fully and accurately informed about what 

19 procedures shall occur if the information is 

20 shared; and 

21 ‘‘(B) is carried out in a manner that is 

22 consistent with section 444 of the General Edu23 cation Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g) (com24 monly referred to as the ‘Family Educational 

25 Rights and Privacy Act of 1974’). 


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1 ‘‘(d) PENALTY.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary— 

3 ‘‘(A) may impose a civil penalty of not 

4 more than 1 percent of an institution’s oper5 ating budget, as defined by the Secretary, each 

6 year that the institution of higher education 

7 fails to carry out the requirements of this sec8 tion, by the date that is 1 year after the date 

9 of enactment of the Campus Accountability and 

10 Safety Act; and 

11 ‘‘(B) if the conditions described in para12 graph (3) have been met, shall waive the pen13 alty pursuant to such paragraph. 

14 ‘‘(2) DISTRIBUTION.—Any civil monetary pen15 alty or monetary settlement collected under this sub16 section shall be used to carry out the grant program 

17 established under section 304 of the Violence 

18 Against Women and Department of Justice Reau19 thorization Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 14045b). 

20 ‘‘(3) WAIVER.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a local law enforce22 ment agency refuses to enter into a memo23 randum of understanding under this section, or 

24 will only commit to entering into a memo25 randum of understanding that, if followed, 


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1 would cause the institution of higher education 

2 to be in violation of Federal or State law, the 

3 Secretary shall waive the penalty if the Sec4 retary determines that the following conditions 

5 have been met— 

6 ‘‘(i) the institution has explained why 

7 the institution was unable to obtain an 

8 agreement; 

9 ‘‘(ii) the institution has demonstrated 

10 that the institution acted in good faith; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(iii) the institution has submitted to 

13 the Secretary a copy of the institution’s 

14 final proposed memorandum of under15 standing that was submitted to a law en16 forcement agency that was ultimately re17 jected. 

18 ‘‘(B) REFERRAL TO DEPARTMENT OF JUS19 TICE.—The Secretary shall refer to the Attor20 ney General a copy of each waiver granted 

21 under subparagraph (A) and the reason (as de22 termined by the Secretary) for why local law 

23 enforcement refuses to enter into a memo24 randum of understanding. 


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1 ‘‘(C) ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW.—If the 

2 Secretary does not grant a waiver under sub3 paragraph (A), the institution may submit addi4 tional information to receive such waiver. If, 

5 after submitting additional information, the 

6 Secretary still does not grant a waiver, the deci7 sion of the Secretary shall be subject to review 

8 pursuant to section 706(2)(A) of title 5, United 

9 States Code. 

10 ‘‘(4) VOLUNTARY RESOLUTION.—Nothing in 

11 this subsection shall prevent the Secretary from en12 tering into a voluntary resolution with an institution 

13 of higher education that fails to carry out the re14 quirements of this section, by the date that is 1 year 

15 after the date of enactment of the Campus Account16 ability and Safety Act. 

17 ‘‘(5) ADJUSTMENT TO PENALTIES.—Any civil 

18 penalty under this subsection may be reduced by the 

19 Secretary. In determining the amount of such pen20 alty, or the amount agreed upon in compromise, the 

21 Secretary shall consider the appropriateness of the 

22 penalty to the size of the operating budget of the 

23 educational institution subject to the determination, 

24 the gravity of the violation or failure, and whether 


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1 the institution committed the violation or failure in2 tentionally, negligently, or otherwise.’’. 

3 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

4 subsection (a) shall take effect on the date that is 1 year 

5 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

6 (c) NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING.—The Secretary of 

7 Education shall establish regulations to carry out the pro8 visions of this section and the amendment made by this 

9 section in accordance with the requirements described 

10 under section 492 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

11 (20 U.S.C. 1098a). 

12 SEC. 4. UNIVERSITY SUPPORT FOR SURVIVORS OF DOMES13 TIC VIOLENCE, DATING VIOLENCE, SEXUAL 

14 ASSAULT, AND STALKING. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part B of title I of the Higher 

16 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1011 et seq.) is further 

17 amended by adding after section 124 (as added by section 

18 3), the following: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 125. UNIVERSITY SUPPORT FOR SURVIVORS OF DO20 MESTIC VIOLENCE, DATING VIOLENCE, SEX21 UAL ASSAULT, AND STALKING. 

22 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.— 

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1 cation responsible employee’ means an employee of 

2 an institution of higher education who— 

3 ‘‘(A) has the authority to take action to re4 dress sexual harassment; or 

5 ‘‘(B) has the duty to report sexual harass6 ment or any other misconduct by students or 

7 employees to appropriate school officials. 

8 ‘‘(2) TITLE IX COORDINATOR.—In this sub9 section, the term ‘title IX coordinator’ has the 

10 meaning given to the individual designated as a re11 sponsible employee in section 106.8(a) of title 34, 

12 Code of Federal Regulations, as such section is in 

13 effect on the date of enactment of the Campus Ac14 countability and Safety Act. 

15 ‘‘(3) VICTIM-CENTERED, TRAUMA-INFORMED

16 INTERVIEW TECHNIQUES.—In this section, the term 

17 ‘victim-centered, trauma-informed interview tech18 niques’ means asking questions of an individual who 

19 reports that the individual has been a victim of do20 mestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or 

21 stalking, in a manner that is focused on the experi22 ence of the victim, that does not judge or blame the 

23 victim for the alleged assault, and that is informed 

24 by evidence-based research on the neurobiology of 

25 trauma. 


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1 ‘‘(b) CAMPUS SECURITY POLICY.—Each institution 

2 of higher education that receives funds under this Act, 

3 shall establish a campus security policy that includes the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(1) SEXUAL ASSAULT RESPONSE COORDINA6 TORS.—The designation of one or more sexual as7 sault response coordinators at the institution to 

8 whom student victims of domestic violence, dating 

9 violence, sexual assault, or stalking can report, in10 cluding anonymously, which shall be part of a policy 

11 that complies with the following: 

12 ‘‘(A) The sexual assault response coordi13 nator— 

14 ‘‘(i) shall not be an undergraduate 

15 student, a full-time graduate student, an 

16 employee designated as a higher education 

17 responsible employee, or the title IX coor18 dinator; 

19 ‘‘(ii) may have other roles at the insti20 tution; 

21 ‘‘(iii) shall be appointed based on ex22 perience and a demonstrated ability of the 

23 individual to effectively provide victim serv24 ices related to domestic violence, dating vi25 olence, sexual assault, and stalking; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) shall report to an individual out2 side the body responsible for investigating 

3 and adjudicating complaints at the institu4 tion related to domestic violence, dating vi5 olence, sexual assault, or stalking; and 

6 ‘‘(v) shall not serve as an advisor 

7 under section 485(f)(8)(B)(iv)(III). 

8 ‘‘(B) The Secretary shall designate cat9 egories of employees that may serve as sexual 

10 assault response coordinators, such as health 

11 care staff, clergy, staff of a women’s center, or 

12 other such categories. Such designation shall 

13 not preclude the institution from designating 

14 other employees or partnering with national, 

15 State, or local victim services organizations to 

16 serve as sexual assault response coordinators or 

17 to serve in other confidential roles. 

18 ‘‘(C) The sexual assault response coordi19 nator shall complete the training requirements 

20 described in paragraph (5) and subparagraph 

21 (D) within a reasonable time after being des22 ignated as a sexual assault response coordi23 nator. 

24 ‘‘(D) The Secretary shall develop online 

25 training materials, in addition to the training 


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1 required under paragraph (5), not later than 1 

2 year after the date of enactment of the Campus 

3 Accountability and Safety Act, for the training 

4 of sexual assault response coordinators. 

5 ‘‘(E) The sexual assault response coordi6 nator shall inform the victim, including in a 

7 written format— 

8 ‘‘(i) of the victim’s rights under Fed9 eral and State law; 

10 ‘‘(ii) of the victim’s rights and options 

11 pursuant to the policy that the institution 

12 of higher education has developed pursuant 

13 to clauses (ii) through (vii) of section 

14 485(f)(8)(B); 

15 ‘‘(iii) of the victim’s reporting options, 

16 including the option to notify a higher edu17 cation responsible employee, the option to 

18 notify local law enforcement, and any other 

19 reporting options; 

20 ‘‘(iv) a description of the process of 

21 investigation and any disciplinary pro22 ceeding of the institution that may follow 

23 notification of a higher education respon24 sible employee; 


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1 ‘‘(v) a description of the process of in2 vestigation and adjudication of the crimi3 nal justice system that may follow notifica4 tion of law enforcement; 

5 ‘‘(vi) a description of the jurisdiction, 

6 scope, and possible sanctions of the stu7 dent disciplinary process of the institution 

8 of higher education and of the criminal 

9 justice process; 

10 ‘‘(vii) that the student disciplinary 

11 process of the institution of higher edu12 cation in not equivalent to, and should not 

13 be considered a substitute for, the criminal 

14 justice process; and 

15 ‘‘(viii) any limitations on the ability of 

16 the sexual assault response coordinator to 

17 provide privacy or confidentiality to the 

18 victim under the policies of the institution 

19 of higher education, Federal law, or State 

20 law. 

21 ‘‘(F) The sexual assault response coordi22 nator may, as appropriate— 

23 ‘‘(i) serve as a liaison between a vic24 tim and a higher education responsible em25 ployee or law enforcement, when directed 


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1 to do so by a victim who has been fully 

2 and accurately informed about what proce3 dures shall occur if information is shared; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(ii) assist a victim in contacting and 

6 reporting to a higher education responsible 

7 employee or law enforcement. 

8 ‘‘(G) The sexual assault response coordi9 nator shall be authorized by the institution to 

10 liaise with appropriate staff at the institution to 

11 arrange reasonable accommodations through 

12 the institution to allow the victim to change liv13 ing arrangements or class schedules, obtain ac14 cessibility services, or arrange other accom15 modations for the victim. 

16 ‘‘(H) The sexual assault response coordi17 nator shall not be obligated to report crimes to 

18 the institution or law enforcement in a way that 

19 identifies a victim or an accused individual, un20 less otherwise required to do so by State law. 

21 The sexual assault response coordinator shall, 

22 to the extent authorized under State law, pro23 vide confidential services. Any requests for ac24 commodations, as described in subparagraph 

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1 nator shall not trigger an investigation by the 

2 institution, even if the sexual assault response 

3 coordinator deals only with matters relating to 

4 domestic violence, dating violence, sexual as5 sault, and stalking. 

6 ‘‘(I) The institution shall designate as a 

7 sexual assault response coordinator an indi8 vidual who has protection under State law to 

9 provide privileged communication. The institu10 tion may partner through a formal arrangement 

11 with an outside organization with the experi12 ence described in subparagraph (A)(iii), such as 

13 a community-based rape crisis center or other 

14 community-based sexual assault service pro15 vider, to provide the services described in this 

16 paragraph. 

17 ‘‘(J) The sexual assault response coordi18 nator shall collect and report statistics in ac19 cordance with the requirements of section 

20 485(f). The sexual assault response coordinator 

21 shall not include identifying information or 

22 jeopardize the confidentiality of a victim or an 

23 accused individual when reporting such statis24 tics. 


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1 ‘‘(K) The institution shall appoint an ade2 quate number of sexual assault response coordi3 nators not later than the earlier of— 

4 ‘‘(i) 1 year after the Secretary deter5 mines through a negotiated rulemaking 

6 process what an adequate number of sex7 ual assault response coordinators is for an 

8 institution based on its size; or 

9 ‘‘(ii) 3 years after the date of enact10 ment of the Campus Accountability and 

11 Safety Act. 

12 ‘‘(L) Each institution that enrolls fewer 

13 than 1,000 students may partner with another 

14 institution of higher education in their region or 

15 State to provide the services described in this 

16 paragraph. 

17 ‘‘(M) The institution shall not discipline, 

18 penalize, or otherwise retaliate against an indi19 vidual who reports, in good faith, domestic vio20 lence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalk21 ing to the sexual assault response coordinator. 

22 ‘‘(N) Each employee of an institution who 

23 receives a report of domestic violence, dating vi24 olence, sexual assault, or stalking shall notify 

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1 tact information for, and services provided by 

2 sexual assault response coordinator of the insti3 tution. 

4 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION ON THE INSTITUTION’S

5 WEBSITE.—The institution shall list on its website— 

6 ‘‘(A) the name and contact information for 

7 the sexual assault response coordinator; 

8 ‘‘(B) reporting options, including confiden9 tial options, for victims of domestic violence, 

10 dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking; 

11 ‘‘(C) the process of investigation and dis12 ciplinary proceedings of the institution; 

13 ‘‘(D) the process of investigation and adju14 dication of the criminal justice system; 

15 ‘‘(E) potential reasonable accommodations 

16 that the institution may provide to a victim, as 

17 described in paragraph (1)(G); 

18 ‘‘(F) the telephone number and website ad19 dress for a local, State, or national hotline pro20 viding information to domestic violence, dating 

21 violence, sexual assault, and stalking victims 

22 (which shall be clearly communicated on the 

23 website and shall be updated on a timely basis); 

24 and 


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1 ‘‘(G) the name and location of the nearest 

2 medical facility where an individual may have a 

3 medical forensic examination administered by a 

4 trained sexual assault forensic nurse, including 

5 information on transportation options and 

6 available reimbursement for a visit to such fa7 cility. 

8 ‘‘(3) ONLINE REPORTING.—The institution may 

9 provide an online reporting system to collect anony10 mous disclosures of crimes and track patterns of 

11 crime on campus. An individual may submit an 

12 anonymous report about a specific crime to the insti13 tution using the online reporting system, but the in14 stitution is only obligated to investigate a specific 

15 crime if an individual decides to report the crime to 

16 a higher education responsible employee or law en17 forcement. If the institution uses an online reporting 

18 system, the online system shall also include informa19 tion about how to report a crime to a higher edu20 cation responsible employee and to law enforcement 

21 and how to contact a sexual assault response coordi22 nator. 

23 ‘‘(4) AMNESTY POLICY.—The institution shall 

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1 lence, sexual assault, or stalking to an institution of2 ficial, such that the reporting student will not be 

3 sanctioned by the institution for a student conduct 

4 violation related to alcohol use or drug use that is 

5 revealed in the course of such a report and that oc6 curred at or near the time of the commission of the 

7 domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or 

8 stalking. This provision shall not preempt the ability 

9 of an institution of higher education to establish an 

10 amnesty policy for student conduct violations not 

11 mentioned in this provision. The institution shall 

12 provide information about the amnesty policy of the 

13 institution on the website of the institution. 

14 ‘‘(5) TRAINING.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

16 after the date of enactment of the Campus Ac17 countability and Safety Act, the Secretary, in 

18 coordination with the Attorney General and in 

19 consultation with national, State, or local victim 

20 services organizations and institutions of higher 

21 education, shall develop a training program, 

22 which may include online training modules, for 

23 training— 

24 ‘‘(i) each individual who is involved in 

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1 cation’s student grievance procedures, in2 cluding each individual who is responsible 

3 for resolving complaints of reported domes4 tic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, 

5 stalking, or sexual misconduct policy viola6 tions; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) each employee of an institution 

8 of higher education who has responsibility 

9 for conducting an interview with a victim 

10 of domestic violence, dating violence, sex11 ual assault, stalking, or sexual misconduct 

12 policy violations. 

13 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Such training shall in14 clude— 

15 ‘‘(i) information on working with and 

16 interviewing persons subjected to domestic 

17 violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or 

18 stalking; 

19 ‘‘(ii) information on particular types 

20 of conduct that would constitute domestic 

21 violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or 

22 stalking, regardless of gender, including 

23 same-sex incidents of domestic violence, 

24 dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) information on consent and the 

2 affect that drugs or alcohol may have on 

3 an individual’s ability to consent; 

4 ‘‘(iv) the effects of trauma, including 

5 the neurobiology of trauma; 

6 ‘‘(v) training regarding the use of vic7 tim-centered, trauma-informed interview 

8 techniques; 

9 ‘‘(vi) cultural awareness training re10 garding how domestic violence, dating vio11 lence, sexual assault, or stalking may im12 pact students differently depending on 

13 their cultural background; and 

14 ‘‘(vii) information on sexual assault 

15 dynamics, sexual assault perpetrator be16 havior, and barriers to reporting. 

17 ‘‘(C) INSTITUTIONAL TRAINING.—Each in18 stitution of higher education shall ensure that 

19 the individuals and employees described in sub20 paragraph (A) receive the training described in 

21 this paragraph not later than the July 15 that 

22 is one year after the date that the training pro23 gram has been developed by the Secretary in 

24 accordance with subparagraph (A). 


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1 ‘‘(6) UNIFORM CAMPUS-WIDE PROCESS FOR

2 STUDENT DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDING RELATING TO

3 CLAIM OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, DATING VIOLENCE, 

4 SEXUAL ASSAULT, STALKING, OR A SEXUAL MIS5 CONDUCT POLICY VIOLATION.—Each institution of 

6 higher education that receives funds under this 

7 Act— 

8 ‘‘(A) shall establish and carry out a uni9 form process (for each campus of the institu10 tion) for student disciplinary proceedings relat11 ing to any claims of domestic violence, dating 

12 violence, sexual assault, stalking or a sexual 

13 misconduct policy violation against a student 

14 who attends the institution; and 

15 ‘‘(B) shall not carry out a different dis16 ciplinary process on the same campus for a 

17 matter of domestic violence, dating violence, 

18 sexual assault, stalking, or a sexual misconduct 

19 policy violation, or alter the uniform process de20 scribed in subparagraph (A), based on the sta21 tus or characteristics of a student who will be 

22 involved in that disciplinary proceeding, includ23 ing characteristics such as a student’s member24 ship on an athletic team, academic major, or 

25 any other characteristic or status of a student. 


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1 ‘‘(7) INFORMATION ABOUT THE TITLE IX COOR2 DINATOR.—The institution shall submit, annually, to 

3 the Office for Civil Rights of the Department of 

4 Education and the Civil Rights Division of the De5 partment of Justice, the name and contact informa6 tion for the title IX coordinator, including a brief 

7 description of the coordinator’s role and the roles of 

8 other officials who may be contacted to discuss or 

9 report sexual harassment, and documentation of 

10 training received by the title IX coordinator. The 

11 educational institution shall provide updated infor12 mation to the Office for Civil Rights of the Depart13 ment of Education and the Civil Rights Division of 

14 the Department of Justice not later than 30 days 

15 after the date of any change. 

16 ‘‘(8) WRITTEN NOTICE OF INSTITUTIONAL DIS17 CIPLINARY PROCESS.—The institution shall provide 

18 both the accuser and the accused student with writ19 ten notice of the institution’s decision to proceed 

20 with an institutional disciplinary process regarding 

21 an allegation of sexual misconduct within 24 hours 

22 of such decision, and sufficiently in advance of a dis23 ciplinary hearing to provide both the accuser and the 

24 accused student with the opportunity to meaning25 fully exercise their rights to a proceeding that is 


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1 prompt, fair, and impartial, which shall include the 

2 opportunity for both parties to present witnesses and 

3 other evidence, and any other due process rights af4 forded to them under institutional policy. The writ5 ten notice shall include the following: 

6 ‘‘(A) The existence of a complaint, the na7 ture of the conduct upon which the complaint 

8 is based, and the date on which the alleged inci9 dent occurred. 

10 ‘‘(B) A description of the process for the 

11 disciplinary proceeding, including the estimated 

12 timeline from initiation to final disposition. 

13 ‘‘(C) A description of the rights and pro14 tections available to the accuser and the ac15 cused student, including those described in sec16 tion 485(f)(8)(B)(iv) and any other rights or 

17 protections that the accuser or the accused stu18 dent may have under the institution’s policies. 

19 ‘‘(D) A copy of the institution’s applicable 

20 policies, and, if available, related published in21 formational materials. 

22 ‘‘(E) Name and contact information for an 

23 individual at the institution, who is independent 

24 of the disciplinary process, to whom the accuser 

25 and the accused student can submit questions 


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1 about any of the information described in the 

2 written notice of the institutional disciplinary 

3 process. 

4 ‘‘(c) PENALTIES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) PENALTY RELATING TO SEXUAL ASSAULT

6 RESPONSE COORDINATORS.—The Secretary may im7 pose a civil penalty of not more than 1 percent of 

8 an institution’s operating budget, as defined by the 

9 Secretary, for each year that the institution fails to 

10 carry out the requirements of such paragraph fol11 lowing the effective date described in section 4(b)(1) 

12 of the Campus Accountability and Safety Act. 

13 ‘‘(2) OTHER PROVISIONS.—The Secretary may 

14 impose a civil penalty of not more than 1 percent of 

15 an institution’s operating budget, as defined by the 

16 Secretary, for each year that the institution fails to 

17 carry out the requirements of such paragraphs fol18 lowing the effective date described in section 4(b)(2) 

19 of the Campus Accountability and Safety Act. 

20 ‘‘(3) VOLUNTARY RESOLUTION.—Notwithstand21 ing any other provision of this section, the Secretary 

22 may enter into a voluntary resolution with an insti23 tution of higher education that is subject to a pen24 alty under this subsection. 


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1 ‘‘(4) ADJUSTMENT TO PENALTIES.—Any civil 

2 penalty under this subsection may be reduced by the 

3 Secretary. In determining the amount of such pen4 alty, or the amount agreed upon in compromise, the 

5 Secretary of Education shall consider the appro6 priateness of the penalty to the size of the operating 

7 budget of the educational institution subject to the 

8 determination, the gravity of the violation or failure, 

9 and whether the violation or failure was committed 

10 intentionally, negligently, or otherwise.’’. 

11 (b) EFFECTIVE DATES.— 

12 (1) SEXUAL ASSAULT RESPONSE COORDI13 NATOR.—Paragraph (1) of section 125(b) of the 

14 Higher Education Act of 1965, as added by sub15 section (a), shall take effect on the date that is the 

16 earlier of— 

17 (A) 1 year after the Secretary of Edu18 cation determines through a negotiated rule19 making process what an adequate number of 

20 sexual assault response coordinators is for an 

21 institution based on an institution’s size; or 

22 (B) 3 years after the date of enactment of 

23 this Act. 

24 (2) OTHER PROVISIONS.—Paragraphs (2) 

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1 cation Act of 1965, as added by subsection (a), shall 

2 take effect on the date that is 1 year after the date 

3 of enactment of this Act. 

4 (c) NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING.—The Secretary of 

5 Education shall establish regulations to carry out the pro6 visions of this section, and the amendment made by this 

7 section, in accordance with the requirements described 

8 under section 492 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

9 (20 U.S.C. 1098a). 

10 SEC. 5. TRANSPARENCY. 

11 Part B of title I of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

12 (20 U.S.C. 1011 et seq.) is further amended by adding 

13 after section 125 (as added by section 4), the following: 

14 ‘‘SEC. 126. TRANSPARENCY. 

15 ‘‘The Secretary shall establish a publicly available, 

16 searchable, and user-friendly campus safety website that 

17 includes the following: 

18 ‘‘(1) The name and contact information for the 

19 title IX coordinator for each institution of higher 

20 education receiving funds under this Act, and a brief 

21 description of the title IX coordinator’s role and the 

22 roles of other officials who may be contacted to dis23 cuss or report sexual harassment. 

24 ‘‘(2) The Department’s pending investigations, 

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1 tions, and voluntary resolution agreements for all 

2 complaints and compliance reviews under section 

3 485(f) and under title IX of the Education Amend4 ments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681) related to sexual 

5 harassment. The Secretary shall indicate whether 

6 the investigation, action, letter, resolution, or agree7 ment is based on a complaint or compliance review. 

8 The Secretary shall make the information under this 

9 subsection available regarding a complaint once the 

10 Department receives a written complaint, and con11 ducts an initial evaluation, and has determined that 

12 the complaint should be opened for investigation of 

13 an allegation that, if substantiated, would constitute 

14 a violation of such title IX or section 485(f). In car15 rying out this subsection, the Secretary shall ensure 

16 that personally identifiable information is not re17 ported and shall comply with section 444 of the Gen18 eral Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g), 

19 commonly known as the ‘Family Educational Rights 

20 and Privacy Act of 1974’. 

21 ‘‘(3) A comprehensive campus safety and secu22 rity data analysis tool that allows for the review and 

23 download of data that institutions of higher edu24 cation subject to section 485(f) are required to re25 port under this Act. 


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1 ‘‘(4) Information regarding how to file com2 plaints with the Department related to alleged viola3 tions of title IX of the Education Amendments of 

4 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681) and of section 485(f). 

5 ‘‘(5) Information regarding the Department’s 

6 policies for reviewing complaints, initiating compli7 ance reviews, and conducting and resolving inves8 tigations related to alleged violations of title IX of 

9 the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 

10 1681) and of section 485(f). This information shall 

11 include— 

12 ‘‘(A) the contact information for at least 

13 one individual at the Department who can an14 swer questions from institutions of higher edu15 cation, complainants, and other interested par16 ties about such policies; 

17 ‘‘(B) potential outcomes of an investiga18 tion; and 

19 ‘‘(C) the expected timeframe for resolution 

20 of an investigation and any circumstance that 

21 may change such timeframe.’’. 

22 SEC. 6. PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AGREEMENTS. 

23 Section 487(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

24 (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)) is amended by striking paragraph 

25 (12) and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(12) The institution certifies that— 

2 ‘‘(A) the institution is in compliance with 

3 the requirements of section 124 regarding co4 ordination with local law enforcement; 

5 ‘‘(B) the institution has established a cam6 pus security policy that meets the requirements 

7 of section 125; and 

8 ‘‘(C) the institution has complied with the 

9 disclosure requirements of section 485(f).’’. 

10 SEC. 7. TRAINING FOR CAMPUS PERSONNEL ON VICTIM11 CENTERED TRAUMA-INFORMED INTERVIEW 

12 TECHNIQUES. 

13 Section 304 of the Violence Against Women and De14 partment of Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005 (42 

15 U.S.C. 14045b) is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ‘‘$300,000’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘$500,000’’; 

18 (2) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(11) To train campus personnel in how to use 

21 victim-centered, trauma-informed interview tech22 niques.’’; and 

23 (3) in subsection (g)— 

24 (A) by striking ‘‘In this section’’ and in25 serting ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—’’; and 


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1 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(2) VICTIM-CENTERED, TRAUMA-INFORMED

3 INTERVIEW TECHNIQUES.—In this section, the term 

4 ‘victim-centered, trauma-informed interview tech5 niques’ means asking questions of an individual who 

6 reports that the individual has been a victim of do7 mestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or 

8 stalking, in a manner that is focused on the experi9 ence of the victim, that does not judge or blame the 

10 victim for the alleged assault, and that is informed 

11 by evidence-based research on the neurobiology of 

12 trauma.’’. 

13 SEC. 8. GRANTS TO IMPROVE PREVENTION AND RESPONSE 

14 TO SEXUAL HARASSMENT, SEXUAL ASSAULT, 

15 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, DATING VIOLENCE, 

16 AND STALKING, ON CAMPUS. 

17 Title VIII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

18 U.S.C. 1161a) is amended by adding at the end the fol19 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘PART BB—GRANTS FOR INSTITUTIONS TO AD2 DRESS SEXUAL HARASSMENT, SEXUAL AS3 SAULT, AND OTHER VIOLENCE AND HARASS4 MENT ON CAMPUS 

5 ‘‘SEC. 899. GRANTS FOR INSTITUTIONS TO ADDRESS SEX6 UAL HARASSMENT, SEXUAL ASSAULT, AND 

7 OTHER VIOLENCE AND HARASSMENT ON 

8 CAMPUS. 

9 ‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

11 to award grants to institutions of higher education, 

12 on a competitive basis as described in paragraph (2), 

13 to enhance the ability of such institutions to address 

14 sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic violence, 

15 dating violence, and stalking, on campus. 

16 ‘‘(2) AWARD BASIS.—The Secretary shall award 

17 grants under this section, on a competitive basis, as 

18 funds become available through the payment of pen19 alties by institutions of higher education under sec20 tion 485(f)(20) of this Act and sections 3 and 4 of 

21 the Campus Accountability and Safety Act. 

22 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITION; INELIGIBLE INSTITU23 TIONS.— 

24 ‘‘(A) NO RESERVATION FOR ADMINISTRA25 TIVE EXPENSES.—Funds awarded under this 


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1 section shall not be reserved for administrative 

2 expenses. 

3 ‘‘(B) INELIGIBLE INSTITUTIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(i) VIOLATIONS.—An institution of 

5 higher education shall not be eligible to re6 ceive a grant under this section if the insti7 tution is found by the Department of Edu8 cation, at the time of application for a 

9 grant under this section, to be in violation 

10 of— 

11 ‘‘(I) title IX of the Education 

12 Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 

13 1681); or 

14 ‘‘(II) section 485(f). 

15 ‘‘(ii) MULTIPLE GRANTS.—An institu16 tion of higher education that has received 

17 a grant award under section 304 of the Vi18 olence Against Women and Department of 

19 Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005 (42 

20 U.S.C. 14045b) in any of the previous 3 

21 grant funding cycles shall not be eligible 

22 for a grant award under this section. 

23 ‘‘(4) PREFERENCE.—In awarding grants under 

24 this section, the Secretary shall give preference to 

25 those institutions of higher education— 


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1 ‘‘(A) with the smallest endowments or the 

2 lowest tuition rates, as compared to all institu3 tions receiving funds under this Act; and 

4 ‘‘(B) that have demonstrated a strong 

5 commitment to prioritizing tackling the problem 

6 of campus sexual assault on their campuses, 

7 which may be demonstrated by providing docu8 mentation of actions by the administration of 

9 such institution such as— 

10 ‘‘(i) establishing a working group on 

11 campus that includes the participation of 

12 administration officials and students to 

13 analyze and strategize improvements to the 

14 way the institution prevents and responds 

15 to sexual harassment, sexual assault, do16 mestic violence, dating violence, and stalk17 ing, on campus; 

18 ‘‘(ii) organizing a series of listening 

19 sessions on campus to gather feedback and 

20 ideas from the campus community on how 

21 to improve the way the institution prevents 

22 and responds to sexual harassment, sexual 

23 assault, domestic violence, dating violence, 

24 and stalking, on campus; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) hosting a conference that brings 

2 together academic researchers to present 

3 and share ideas and research regarding 

4 sexual harassment, sexual assault, domes5 tic violence, dating violence, and stalking, 

6 on campus; or 

7 ‘‘(iv) other documented efforts beyond 

8 the requirements of Federal or State law 

9 that the administration of the institution 

10 of higher education has initiated in order 

11 to better understand the prevalence of sex12 ual harassment, sexual assault, domestic 

13 violence, dating violence, and stalking, on 

14 campus and analyze and improve how the 

15 institution of higher education responds to 

16 such incidents. 

17 ‘‘(5) AMOUNT OF GRANTS.—The Secretary, 

18 through the Assistant Secretary of the Office for 

19 Civil Rights, shall award the grants under this sec20 tion in an amount of not more than $500,000 for 

21 each institution of higher education. 

22 ‘‘(6) EQUITABLE PARTICIPATION.—The Sec23 retary shall make every effort to ensure— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the equitable participation of private 

2 and public institutions of higher education in 

3 the activities assisted under this section; 

4 ‘‘(B) the equitable geographic distribution 

5 of grants under this section among the various 

6 regions of the United States; and 

7 ‘‘(C) the equitable distribution of grants 

8 under this section to Tribal Colleges or Univer9 sities (as defined under section 316(b)) and his10 torically Black colleges or universities. 

11 ‘‘(7) DURATION.—The Secretary shall award 

12 each grant under this Act for a period of not more 

13 than 5 years. 

14 ‘‘(b) USE OF GRANT FUNDS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) Grant funds awarded under this section 

16 shall be used to research best practices for pre17 venting and responding to sexual harassment, sexual 

18 assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalk19 ing, on campus and to disseminate such research to 

20 peer institutions and the Department. Such research 

21 may include a focus on one or more of the following 

22 purposes: 

23 ‘‘(A) Strengthening strategies to combat 

24 sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic vio25 lence, dating violence, and stalking, on campus. 


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1 ‘‘(B) Strengthening victim services for inci2 dents involving sexual harassment, sexual as3 sault, domestic violence, dating violence, or 

4 stalking, on campus, which may involve part5 nerships with community-based victim services 

6 agencies. 

7 ‘‘(C) Strengthening prevention education 

8 and awareness programs on campus regarding 

9 sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic vio10 lence, dating violence, and stalking. 

11 ‘‘(2) Grant funds awarded under this section 

12 may be used for one or more of the following pur13 poses: 

14 ‘‘(A) Evaluating and determining the effec15 tiveness of victim services and education pro16 grams in reaching all populations that may be 

17 subject to sexual harassment, sexual assault, 

18 domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking, 

19 on campus. 

20 ‘‘(B) Training campus administrators, 

21 campus security personnel, and personnel serv22 ing on campus disciplinary boards on campus 

23 policies, protocols, and services to respond to 

24 sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic vio25 lence, dating violence, and stalking, on campus, 


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1 which shall include instruction on victim-cen2 tered, trauma-informed interview techniques 

3 and information on the neurobiological effects 

4 of trauma and stress on memory. 

5 ‘‘(C) Developing, expanding, or strength6 ening victim services programs and population 

7 specific services on the campus of the institu8 tion, including programs providing legal, med9 ical, or psychological counseling for victims of 

10 sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic vio11 lence, dating violence, and stalking, and to im12 prove delivery of victim assistance on campus, 

13 including through the services of the sexual as14 sault response coordinator (as defined in section 

15 125(a)). 

16 ‘‘(D) Developing or adapting and providing 

17 developmentally and culturally appropriate and 

18 linguistically accessible print or electronic mate19 rials regarding campus policies, protocols, and 

20 services related to the prevention of and re21 sponse to sexual harassment, sexual assault, do22 mestic violence, dating violence, and stalking, 

23 on campus. 

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1 pus regarding sexual harassment, sexual as2 sault, domestic violence, dating violence, and 

3 stalking. 

4 ‘‘(c) APPLICATIONS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In order to be eligible for 

6 a grant under this section for any fiscal year, an in7 stitution of higher education shall submit an applica8 tion to the Secretary at such time and in such man9 ner as the Secretary shall prescribe. 

10 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each application submitted 

11 under paragraph (1) shall— 

12 ‘‘(A) describe the need for grant funds and 

13 the plan for implementation for any of the ac14 tivities described in subsection (b); 

15 ‘‘(B) describe the characteristics of the 

16 population being served, including type of cam17 pus, demographics of the population, and num18 ber of students; 

19 ‘‘(C) describe how underserved populations 

20 in the campus community will be adequately 

21 served, including the provision of relevant popu22 lation specific services; 

23 ‘‘(D) provide measurable goals and ex24 pected results from the use of the grant funds; 


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1 ‘‘(E) provide assurances that the Federal 

2 funds made available under this section shall be 

3 used to supplement and, to the extent practical, 

4 increase the level of funds that would, in the 

5 absence of Federal funds, be made available by 

6 the institution or organization for the activities 

7 described in subsection (b); and 

8 ‘‘(F) include such other information and 

9 assurances as the Secretary reasonably deter10 mines to be necessary. 

11 ‘‘(d) REPORTS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) GRANTEE REPORTING.— 

13 ‘‘(A) ANNUAL REPORT.—Each institution 

14 of higher education receiving a grant under this 

15 section shall submit a performance report to the 

16 Secretary beginning 1 year after receiving the 

17 grant and annually thereafter. The Secretary 

18 shall suspend funding under this section for an 

19 institution of higher education if the institution 

20 fails to submit such a report. 

21 ‘‘(B) FINAL REPORT.—Upon completion of 

22 the grant period under this section, the grantee 

23 institution shall file a final performance report 

24 with the Secretary explaining the activities car25 ried out under this section together with an asVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Apr 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00051 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S976.IS S976

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1 sessment of the effectiveness of the activities 

2 described in subsection (b). 

3 ‘‘(2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 

4 180 days after the end of the grant period under 

5 this section, the Secretary shall submit to Congress 

6 a report that includes— 

7 ‘‘(A) the number of grants, and the 

8 amount of funds, distributed under this section; 

9 ‘‘(B) a summary of the activities carried 

10 out using grant funds and an evaluation of the 

11 progress made under the grant; and 

12 ‘‘(C) an evaluation of the effectiveness of 

13 programs funded under this section.’’. 

14 SEC. 9. GAO REPORTS. 

15 (a) GAO REPORTS.— 

16 (1) REPORT UNDER SECTION 304 OF THE VIO17 LENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND DEPARTMENT OF JUS18 TICE REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2005.—The Comp19 troller General of the United States shall— 

20 (A) conduct a study on the effectiveness 

21 and efficiency of the grant program under sec22 tion 304 of the Violence Against Women and 

23 Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 

24 2005 (42 U.S.C. 14045b); and 


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1 (B) submit a report, not later than 2 years 

2 after the date of enactment of this Act, on the 

3 study described in paragraph (1), to the Com4 mittee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pen5 sions and the Committee on the Judiciary of 

6 the Senate and the Committee on Education 

7 and Labor and the Committee on the Judiciary 

8 of the House of Representatives. 

9 (2) REPORT UNDER SECTION 899 OF THE HIGH10 ER EDUCATION ACT OF 1965.—The Comptroller Gen11 eral of the United States shall— 

12 (A) conduct a study on the effectiveness 

13 and efficiency of the grants to improve preven14 tion and response to sexual harassment, sexual 

15 assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and 

16 stalking, on campus under section 899 of the 

17 Higher Education Act of 1965, as added by 

18 section 8 of this Act; and 

19 (B) submit a report, not later than 2 years 

20 after the date of enactment of this Act, on the 

21 study described in paragraph (1), to the Com22 mittee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pen23 sions of the Senate and the Committee on EduVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:10 Apr 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00053 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S976.IS S976

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1 cation and Labor of the House of Representa2 tives. 

Æ 


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