I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3408 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to protect victims of sexual 

violence, to improve the adjudication by institutions of higher education 

of allegations related to sexual violence, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 29, 2015 

Mr. SESSIONS (for himself and Mrs. BROOKS of Indiana) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the 

Workforce 

A BILL 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to protect 

victims of sexual violence, to improve the adjudication 

by institutions of higher education of allegations related 

to sexual violence, 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 ‘‘Fair Campus Act of 

5 2015’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION REQUIRE2 MENTS FOR PROTECTING VICTIMS OF SEX3 UAL VIOLENCE AND INVESTIGATING AND AD4 JUDICATING ALLEGATIONS OF SEXUAL VIO5 LENCE. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title I of the Higher Education 

7 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) is amended by add8 ing at the end the following new part: 

9 ‘‘PART F—TREATMENT OF ALLEGATIONS OF 

10 SEXUAL VIOLENCE 

11 ‘‘SEC. 161. APPLICATION; DEFINITION. 

12 ‘‘(a) APPLICATION.—The requirements of this part 

13 shall apply to any institution of higher education receiving 

14 Federal financial assistance under this Act, including fi15 nancial assistance provided to students under title IV, 

16 other than a foreign institution of higher education. 

17 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this part, the following defi18 nitions shall apply: 

19 ‘‘(1) COVERED ALLEGATION.—The term ‘cov20 ered allegation’ means, with respect to an institution 

21 of higher education, an allegation that a student of 

22 the institution committed an act of sexual violence, 

23 or that members of a student organization of the in24 stitution or the organization itself committed or were 

25 involved in creating a hostile environment resulting 

26 in an act of sexual violence. 


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1 ‘‘(2) INSTITUTIONAL DISCIPLINARY PRO2 CEEDING.—The term ‘institutional disciplinary pro3 ceeding’ means the process by which an institution 

4 of higher education investigates and adjudicates a 

5 covered allegation and imposes a sanction with re6 spect to the allegation, in accordance with the insti7 tution’s own code of conduct or similar internal 

8 rules. 

9 ‘‘(3) SEXUAL VIOLENCE.—The term ‘sexual vio10 lence’ means, with respect to an institution of higher 

11 education— 

12 ‘‘(A) aggravated sexual abuse under sec13 tion 2241 of title 18, United States Code; 

14 ‘‘(B) assault resulting in substantial bodily 

15 injury under section 113(a)(7) of title 18, 

16 United States Code; 

17 ‘‘(C) battery, as defined under the applica18 ble criminal law of the jurisdiction in which the 

19 institution is located; 

20 ‘‘(D) rape, as defined under the applicable 

21 criminal law of the jurisdiction in which the in22 stitution is located; 

23 ‘‘(E) sexual abuse under section 2242 of 

24 title 18, United States Code; and 


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1 ‘‘(F) sexual assault, as defined under the 

2 applicable criminal law of the jurisdiction in 

3 which the institution is located. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 162. EDUCATION, REPORTING, AND STUDENT CARE 

5 STRATEGIES FOR PREVENTING SEXUAL VIO6 LENCE. 

7 ‘‘(a) EDUCATION PROGRAMS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each institution of higher 

9 education which is subject to this part is encouraged 

10 to provide education programs designed to address 

11 sexual violence that, at a minimum, provide training 

12 for reporting covered allegations, intervening as a 

13 bystander, and fostering development of healthy re14 lationships. 

15 ‘‘(2) ACCESS TO PROGRAMS.—The institution is 

16 encouraged— 

17 ‘‘(A) to provide access to the programs re18 quired under this subsection for each student 

19 during each academic year; and 

20 ‘‘(B) to ensure new students are made 

21 aware of the programs and can access them as 

22 soon as possible after beginning the course of 

23 study at the institution. 

24 ‘‘(b) SUPPORT SERVICES.—Each institution of higher 

25 education which is subject to this part shall devote approVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:32 Aug 08, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3408.IH H3408

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1 priate resources for the care, support, and guidance for 

2 students affected by sexual violence. 

3 ‘‘(c) ROLE OF VOLUNTEER ADVISORS TO STUDENT

4 ORGANIZATIONS.—An institution of higher education 

5 which is subject to this part— 

6 ‘‘(1) may not designate an adult volunteer advi7 sor to a student organization, or any employee of a 

8 student organization who is not also an employee of 

9 the institution, as a campus security authority under 

10 section 485 or regulations implementing that sec11 tion; and 

12 ‘‘(2) may not deny recognition to a student or13 ganization because an advisor or employee described 

14 in paragraph (1) does not register or serve as a 

15 campus security authority under section 485 or reg16 ulations implementing that section. 

17 ‘‘(d) TRAINING.—Each institution of higher edu18 cation which is subject to this part shall provide appro19 priate annual training to campus security personnel, cam20 pus disciplinary committee members, and other relevant 

21 institutional personnel regarding the requirements of this 

22 part, and shall at a minimum require each student who 

23 serves as a resident advisor in housing facilities which are 

24 owned or supervised by the institution to participate in 

25 this training. 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 163. DUE PROCESS REQUIREMENTS FOR INSTITU2 TIONAL DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDINGS. 

3 ‘‘(a) DUE PROCESS RIGHTS.—Except as provided 

4 with respect to interim sanctions under section 164, each 

5 institution of higher education which is subject to this part 

6 may not impose any sanction on any person, including a 

7 student organization, in response to a covered allegation 

8 which is reported to the institution unless the sanction is 

9 imposed under a formal hearing or similar adjudicatory 

10 proceeding, in accordance with institutional disciplinary 

11 proceedings that meet each of the following requirements: 

12 ‘‘(1) The institution shall provide all parties to 

13 the proceeding with adequate written notice of the 

14 allegation not later than 2 weeks prior to the start 

15 of any formal hearing or similar adjudicatory pro16 ceeding, and shall include in such notice a descrip17 tion of all rights and responsibilities under the pro18 ceeding, a statement of all relevant details of the al19 legation, and a specific statement of the sanctions 

20 which may be imposed. 

21 ‘‘(2) The institution shall provide each person 

22 against whom the allegation is made with a mean23 ingful opportunity to admit or contest the allegation. 

24 ‘‘(3) The institution shall ensure that all parties 

25 to the proceeding have access to all material evi26 dence, including both inculpatory and exculpatory 


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1 evidence, not later than one week prior to the start 

2 of any formal hearing or similar adjudicatory pro3 ceeding. Such evidence may include but is not lim4 ited to complainant statements, third-party witness 

5 statements, electronically stored information, written 

6 communications, social media posts, and demonstra7 tive evidence. 

8 ‘‘(4) The institution shall permit each party to 

9 the proceeding to be represented, at the sole expense 

10 of the party, by an attorney or other advocate for 

11 the duration of the proceeding, including during the 

12 investigation of the allegation and other preliminary 

13 stages prior to a formal hearing or similar adjudica14 tory proceeding, and shall permit the attorney or 

15 other advocate to ask questions in the proceeding, 

16 file relevant papers, examine evidence, and examine 

17 witnesses (subject to paragraph (5)). 

18 ‘‘(5) The institution shall permit each party to 

19 the proceeding to safely confront witnesses, includ20 ing the complainant, in an appropriate manner, in21 cluding by submitting written questions to be asked 

22 by the person serving as the adjudicator in any for23 mal hearing or similar adjudicatory proceeding, ex24 cept that it shall presumptively improper for any 

25 person to make any inquiry about the sexual history 


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1 of the individual reporting the covered allegation 

2 (other than an inquiry made by the individual 

3 against whom the allegation is made, or such indi4 vidual’s counsel or advocate, about the sexual history 

5 between such individual and the individual reporting 

6 the covered allegation). 

7 ‘‘(6) The institution shall ensure that the pro8 ceeding is carried out free from conflicts of interest 

9 by ensuring that there is no commingling of admin10 istrative or adjudicative roles. For purposes of this 

11 paragraph, an institution shall be considered to com12 mingle such roles if any individual carries out more 

13 than one of the following roles with respect to the 

14 proceeding: 

15 ‘‘(A) Victim counselor and victim advocate. 

16 ‘‘(B) Investigator. 

17 ‘‘(C) Prosecutor. 

18 ‘‘(D) Adjudicator. 

19 ‘‘(E) Appellate adjudicator. 

20 ‘‘(b) STANDARD OF PROOF.—An institution of higher 

21 education may establish and apply such standard of proof 

22 as it considers appropriate for purposes of any adjudica23 tion carried out as part of an institutional disciplinary pro24 ceeding under this section. 

25 ‘‘(c) JUDICIAL REVIEW.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.—Any indi2 vidual who is aggrieved by a decision to impose a 

3 sanction under an institutional disciplinary pro4 ceeding under this section may bring a civil action 

5 in an appropriate district court of the United States, 

6 but only if the action is brought not later than 1 

7 year after the date on which the individual received 

8 final notice of the sanction imposed on the individual 

9 under the proceeding. 

10 ‘‘(2) STANDARD FOR REVIEW.—In any action 

11 brought under this subsection, the court may find 

12 for the plaintiff only if the court finds that the im13 position of the sanction was arbitrary, capricious, or 

14 contrary to law. 

15 ‘‘(3) RECORDS.—As soon as practicable after a 

16 civil action is filed under this subsection, the institu17 tion of higher education involved shall forward the 

18 administrative record of the institutional disciplinary 

19 proceeding to the court. 

20 ‘‘(4) DAMAGES AND PREVAILING PARTY

21 FEES.—In any civil action under this subsection, the 

22 court may award the prevailing party (other than 

23 the institution of higher education) compensatory 

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1 cluding expert fees, and any other relief in equity or 

2 law that the court deems appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(d) PUBLICATION IN STUDENT HANDBOOK.—Each 

4 institution of higher education which is subject to this part 

5 shall publish annually in the institution’s Student Hand6 book (or equivalent publication) a statement of the proce7 dures applicable to institutional disciplinary proceedings 

8 under this section, and shall publish such statement in the 

9 form of a contract between the institution and its students 

10 and student organizations. 

11 ‘‘(e) NO RIGHT TO PAID ADVOCATE.—Nothing in 

12 this section shall be construed to create a right for any 

13 individual to be represented by an attorney or other advo14 cate at an institution of higher education’s expense. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 164. SPECIAL RULES FOR IMPOSITION OF INTERIM 

16 SANCTIONS. 

17 ‘‘(a) PERMITTING INSTITUTION TO IMPOSE INTERIM

18 SANCTIONS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 

20 163, an institution may impose interim sanctions 

21 against the subject of the allegation with respect to 

22 the allegation (including temporary suspensions, no 

23 contact orders, adjustments of class schedules, or 

24 changes in housing assignments) and carry out in25 vestigations and adjudications with respect to the 


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1 imposition of such sanctions, but only if the institu2 tion determines that the imposition of such a sanc3 tion is a reasonable measure to promote campus 

4 safety and student well-being. 

5 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULES FOR DURATION OF PERI6 ODS OF TEMPORARY SUSPENSIONS.— 

7 ‘‘(A) STUDENTS.—Subject to paragraph 

8 (3), if the subject of an allegation is a student, 

9 an institution may impose a temporary suspen10 sion for a period of not more than 15 days as 

11 an interim sanction under this subsection, and 

12 may extend the suspension for additional peri13 ods of not more than 30 days per period if, pur14 suant to a hearing held in accordance with the 

15 requirements of section 163 for each such addi16 tional period, the institution finds that exten17 sion is necessary because the student poses an 

18 immediate threat to campus safety and student 

19 well-being. 

20 ‘‘(B) STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS.—If the 

21 subject of an allegation is a student organiza22 tion, an institution may impose a temporary 

23 suspension for a period of not more than 10 

24 days on the operations of the organization as 

25 an interim sanction under this subsection, but 


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1 only if the institution determines that the orga2 nization has engaged in activity that presents a 

3 significant risk to the health and physical safety 

4 of campus community members, and that the 

5 imposition of the suspension is not done merely 

6 for punitive purposes. 

7 ‘‘(3) PERIOD IN WHICH INTERIM SANCTION IS

8 IN EFFECT.—An interim sanction imposed under 

9 this subsection with respect to an allegation shall 

10 terminate no later than the conclusion of the pro11 ceedings carried out in accordance with section 163. 

12 ‘‘(4) PROHIBITING IMPOSITION OF INTERIM

13 SANCTIONS UPON JOINT REQUEST OF ALLEGED VIC14 TIM AND LAW ENFORCEMENT.—An institution may 

15 not impose an interim sanction under this subsection 

16 with respect to a covered allegation during any pe17 riod for which the alleged victim and the law en18 forcement agency which is investigating the allega19 tion submit a joint request to the institution to not 

20 impose such an interim sanction. 

21 ‘‘(b) SAFE HARBORS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) INSTITUTIONS.—No institution of higher 

23 education which is subject to this part shall be con24 sidered to have violated any provision of title IX of 

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


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1 1681 et seq.) or any policy or regulation imple2 menting any such provision on the grounds that the 

3 institution deferred to a law enforcement investiga4 tion at the request of law enforcement personnel, to 

5 the extent that the institution was prohibited under 

6 this section from initiating or carrying out any insti7 tutional disciplinary proceeding with respect to the 

8 allegation. 

9 ‘‘(2) STUDENTS.—An institution of higher edu10 cation which is subject to this part may not impose 

11 a sanction on a student who is a victim of, or a by12 stander witness to, an act of sexual violence on the 

13 grounds that the student engaged in conduct prohib14 ited under the institution’s code of conduct (other 

15 than violent conduct) if the institution learned that 

16 the student engaged in such conduct as part of a re17 port of a covered allegation which was made in good 

18 faith by the student to an agent of the institution. 

19 ‘‘(c) NO EFFECT ON CIVIL REMEDIES.—Nothing in 

20 this section or section 163 may be construed to limit the 

21 authority of any person to seek a civil remedy in a court 

22 of competent jurisdiction with respect to any covered alle23 gation. 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 165. PRESERVATION OF SINGLE-SEX EXEMPTION FOR 

2 STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS. 

3 ‘‘(a) RESTATEMENT OF CONGRESSIONAL POSITION

4 ON TITLE IX AND SINGLE-SEX ORGANIZATIONS.—Con5 gress finds as follows: 

6 ‘‘(1) The enactment of title IX of the Education 

7 Amendments of 1972 (commonly known as ‘title 

8 IX’) continues to be a vital element of ensuring all 

9 Americans have equal access to higher education. 

10 ‘‘(2) The exemption under title IX that allows 

11 single-sex organizations to continue to flourish at in12 stitutions of higher education is still essential to de13 veloping a wide range of enrichment opportunities 

14 for students to learn and grow. 

15 ‘‘(3) While title IX has done much to provide 

16 opportunities for women and men alike, the single17 sex exemption is a part of that tapestry of opportu18 nities, and institutions of higher education may not 

19 take actions that undermine this single-sex exemp20 tion. 

21 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITING INSTITUTIONS FROM REQUIRING

22 SINGLE-SEX STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS TO WAIVE TITLE

23 IX PROTECTIONS.—An institution of higher education 

24 which is subject to this part may not— 

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1 cation Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 

2 1681(a)(6)(A)) to limit its membership to individ3 uals of one sex to admit individuals as members who 

4 do not meet the organization’s membership require5 ments; 

6 ‘‘(2) compel a student organization or the gov7 erning body of a student organization that is itself 

8 comprised of single-sex organizations to accept orga9 nizations or individuals that do not meet the organi10 zation’s or governing body’s membership qualifica11 tions; or 

12 ‘‘(3) require an organization which is covered 

13 by section 901(a)(6)(A) of the Education Amend14 ments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681(a)(6)(A)) to waive 

15 its coverage under such section as a disciplinary or 

16 punitive measure.’’. 

17 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

18 this section shall apply with respect to allegations made 

19 on or after the expiration of the 1-year period that begins 

20 on the date of the enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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