II 

Calendar No. 597 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3196 

To enhance the policies, procedures, and training for midshipmen at the 

United States Merchant Marine Academy, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 4, 2021 

Mr. WICKER (for himself, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. MORAN, Mr. 

PETERS, and Mr. CARDIN) introduced the following bill; which was read 

twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

DECEMBER 7, 2022 

Reported by Ms. CANTWELL, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To enhance the policies, procedures, and training for midshipmen at the United States Merchant Marine Academy, 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 ‘‘Improving Protections 

5 for Midshipmen Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. SUSPENSION OR REVOCATION OF MERCHANT MAR2 INER CREDENTIALS FOR PERPETRATORS OF 

3 SEXUAL HARASSMENT OR SEXUAL ASSAULT. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 77 of title 46, United 

5 States Code, is amended— 

6 (1) in section 7701(b), by striking ‘‘section 

7 7703’’ and inserting ‘‘section 7703, 7704, or 

8 7704a,’’; and 

9 (2) by inserting after section 7704 the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘§ 7704a. Sexual harassment or sexual assault as 

12 grounds for suspension or revocation 

13 ‘‘If it is shown at a hearing under this chapter that 

14 a holder of a license, certificate of registry, or merchant 

15 mariner’s document issued under this part, within 10 

16 years before the beginning of the proceedings, is the sub17 ject of a claim, that is— 

18 ‘‘(1) a claim of— 

19 ‘‘(A) sexual harassment as defined in sec20 tion 1561(e)(1) of title 10; or 

21 ‘‘(B) sexual assault as described by section 

22 920 of title 10 (article 120 of the Uniform Code 

23 of Military Justice); and 

24 ‘‘(2) substantiated, meaning that either— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the employer of the accused deter2 mines that it is more likely than not that the 

3 harassment or assault has taken place; or 

4 ‘‘(B) a finding by any Federal, State, local, 

5 or Tribal administrative or legal proceeding 

6 that the harassment or assault has taken place, 

7 the license, certificate, or document shall be sus8 pended or revoked.’’. 

9 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

10 of chapter 77 of title 46, United States Code, is amended 

11 by inserting after the item relating to section 7704 the 

12 following: 

‘‘7704a. Sexual harassment or sexual assault as grounds for suspension or revocation.’’. 

13 SEC. 3. SUPPORTING THE UNITED STATES MERCHANT MA14 RINE ACADEMY. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 513 of title 46, United 

16 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘§ 51323. Sexual assault and sexual harassment pre19 vention information management system 

20 ‘‘(a) INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM.—Not 

21 later than January 1, 2023, the Maritime Administrator 

22 shall establish an information management system— 

23 ‘‘(1) to track and maintain— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the overall number of sexual assault 

2 or sexual harassment incidents per fiscal year 

3 at the United States Merchant Marine Acad4 emy; 

5 ‘‘(B) the location of each such incident; 

6 ‘‘(C) the names and ranks of the individ7 uals involved in each such incident; 

8 ‘‘(D) the general nature of each such inci9 dent; 

10 ‘‘(E) the type of inquiry made into each 

11 such incident; 

12 ‘‘(F) a determination as to whether each 

13 such incident is substantiated; and 

14 ‘‘(G) any accountability taken for mis15 conduct related to the incident; and 

16 ‘‘(2) that is maintained in a secure fashion and 

17 ensures the protection of privacy for any individuals 

18 involved in such incidents. 

19 ‘‘(b) SEA YEAR PROGRAM.—The Maritime Adminis20 trator shall provide for the establishment of in-person and 

21 virtual confidential exit interviews for midshipmen from 

22 the Academy upon completion of Sea Year and following 

23 completion by the midshipmen of the survey under section 

24 51322(d). 


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1 ‘‘§ 51324. Sexual assault advisory council 

2 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Transpor3 tation shall establish a Sexual Assault Advisory Council 

4 (in this section referred to as the ‘Council’). 

5 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Council shall be composed 

6 of not fewer than eight and not more than 14 individuals 

7 selected by the President who are alumni or current mid8 shipmen of the United States Merchant Marine Academy 

9 (including midshipmen or alumni who were victims of sex10 ual assault and midshipmen or alumni who were not vic11 tims of sexual assault) and governmental and nongovern12 mental experts and professionals in the sexual assault 

13 field. At least one member shall be licensed in the field 

14 of mental health and have prior experience working as a 

15 counselor or therapist providing mental health care to sur16 vivors of sexual assault in a victim services agency or orga17 nization. No employee of the Department of Transpor18 tation shall be a member of the Council. The number of 

19 governmental experts appointed to the Council shall not 

20 exceed the number of nongovernmental experts. 

21 ‘‘(c) FUNCTIONS; MEETINGS.—The Council shall 

22 meet not less often than annually to review the policy on 

23 sexual harassment, dating violence, domestic violence, sex24 ual assault, and stalking under section 51318, and such 

25 other matters related to sexual assault and sexual harass26 ment the Council views as appropriate, to ensure that such 


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1 policy and such matters conform to the extent practicable 

2 to best practices in the sexual assault field. To carry out 

3 this subsection, the Council may conduct case reviews and 

4 have access, including through interviews, to current and 

5 former midshipmen of the United States Merchant Marine 

6 Academy (to the extent that such midshipmen provide the 

7 Department of Transportation express consent to be inter8 viewed by the Council), to Sea Year surveys under section 

9 51323(b), to all data collected from restricted reporting, 

10 and to any other information necessary to conduct such 

11 case reviews, except that the Council may not have access 

12 to any personally identifying information associated with 

13 such interviews, surveys, data, or information. 

14 ‘‘(d) REPORTS.—On an annual basis for each of the 

15 5 years after the date of enactment of this section, and 

16 at the discretion of the Council thereafter, the Council 

17 shall submit, to the President and the Committee on Com18 merce, Science, and Transportation and the Committee on 

19 Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on 

20 Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee on 

21 Appropriations of the House of Representatives, a report 

22 on its findings based on the reviews conducted pursuant 

23 to subsection (c). 

24 ‘‘(e) EMPLOYEE STATUS.—Members of the Council 

25 shall not be considered employees of the United States 


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1 Government for any purpose and shall not receive com2 pensation other than reimbursement of travel expenses 

3 and per diem allowance in accordance with section 5703 

4 of title 5. 

5 ‘‘(f) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Federal 

6 Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply 

7 to the Council. 

8 ‘‘(g) SUNSET.—This section shall cease to be effective 

9 on the date that is 10 years after the date of enactment 

10 of this section. 

11 ‘‘§ 51325. Diversity and inclusion action plan 

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 1, 2023, 

13 the Maritime Administrator shall promulgate a Diversity 

14 and Inclusion Action Plan for the United States Merchant 

15 Marine Academy (referred to in this section as the ‘Plan’). 

16 The Plan shall— 

17 ‘‘(1) increase recruiting efforts in historically 

18 underrepresented communities, including through 

19 partnerships with historically black colleges and uni20 versities and maritime centers of excellence des21 ignated under section 51706; 

22 ‘‘(2) promulgate and make available a set of re23 sources to— 


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1 ‘‘(A) establish responsibilities for mid2 shipmen, faculty, and staff of the Academy with 

3 respect to diversity and inclusion; 

4 ‘‘(B) create standards of— 

5 ‘‘(i) training that require inter6 personal dialogue on diversity and inclu7 sion; 

8 ‘‘(ii) setting behavioral boundaries 

9 with others; and 

10 ‘‘(iii) specific processes for the report11 ing and documentation of misconduct re12 lated to hazing, bullying, hate, and harass13 ment; 

14 ‘‘(C) hold leaders and other individuals at 

15 the Academy accountable for violations of such 

16 standards; 

17 ‘‘(D) equip midshipmen, faculty, and staff 

18 of the Academy with the resources and mate19 rials to promote a diverse and inclusive working 

20 environment; and 

21 ‘‘(E) address how concepts of diversity and 

22 inclusion can be integrated into the curriculum 

23 and training of the Academy; 

24 ‘‘(3) require a biannual survey of midshipmen, 

25 faculty, and staff of the Academy assessing— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the inclusiveness of the environment 

2 of the Academy; and 

3 ‘‘(B) the effectiveness of the Plan; and 

4 ‘‘(4) require an annual survey of faculty and 

5 staff of the Academy assessing the inclusiveness of 

6 the environment of the Sea Year program. 

7 ‘‘(b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 30 days 

8 after the date of enactment of this section, the Maritime 

9 Administrator shall provide Congress with a report on the 

10 resources necessary to properly implement this section.’’. 

11 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—The chapter anal12 ysis for chapter 513 of title 46, United States Code, is 

13 amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘51323. Sexual assault and sexual harassment prevention information management system 

‘‘51324. Sexual assault advisory council 

‘‘51325. Diversity and inclusion action plan’’. 

14 (c) UNITED STATES MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY

15 STUDENT SUPPORT PLAN.— 

16 (1) STUDENT SUPPORT PLAN.—Not later than 

17 January 1, 2023, the Maritime Administrator shall 

18 promulgate a Student Support Plan for the United 

19 States Merchant Marine Academy. Such plan 

20 shall— 

21 (A) address the mental health resources 

22 available to midshipmen, both on-campus and 

23 during Sea Year; 


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1 (B) establish a tracking system for suicidal 

2 ideations and suicide attempts; 

3 (C) create an option for midshipmen to ob4 tain assistance from a professional care pro5 vider virtually; and 

6 (D) require an annual survey of faculty 

7 and staff assessing the adequacy of mental 

8 health resources for midshipmen of the Acad9 emy, both on campus and during Sea Year. 

10 (2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 30 

11 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

12 Maritime Administrator shall provide Congress with 

13 a report on the resources necessary to properly im14 plement this subsection. 

15 SEC. 4. SPECIAL VICTIMS COUNSEL. 

16 Section 51319 of title 46, United States Code, is 

17 amended— 

18 (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub19 section (d); 

20 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(c) SPECIAL VICTIMS COUNSEL.—The Secretary 

23 shall designate legal counsel (to be known as ‘Special Vic24 tims’ Counsel’) for the purpose of providing legal assist25 ance to any cadet of the Academy who is the victim of 


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1 an alleged sex-related offense, regardless of whether the 

2 report of that offense is restricted or unrestricted.’’; and 

3 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(e) UNFILLED VACANCIES.—In the event of an un5 filled vacancy for any position under this section, the Sec6 retary may appoint, without regard to the provisions of 

7 subchapter I of chapter 33 of title 5, other than sections 

8 3303 and 3328 of that title, a qualified candidate for the 

9 purposes of filling such position.’’. 

10 SEC. 5. CATCH A SERIAL OFFENDER ASSESSMENT. 

11 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

12 of this Act, the Commandant of the Coast Guard, in con13 sultation with the Maritime Administrator, shall conduct 

14 an assessment of the feasibility and process necessary to 

15 implement a program for the United States Merchant Ma16 rine Academy and United States Merchant Marine mod17 eled off of the Catch a Serial Offender program of the 

18 Department of Defense using the information manage19 ment system required under subsection (a) of section 

20 51323 of title 46, United States Code, and the exit inter21 views under subsection (b) of such section. 

22 SEC. 6. SHIPBOARD TRAINING. 

23 Section 51322(a) of title 46, United States Code, is 

24 amended by adding at the end the following: 

25 ‘‘(3) TRAINING.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As part of training 

2 provided to all midshipmen of the Academy, the 

3 Maritime Administrator shall develop and im4 plement comprehensive in-person sexual assault 

5 risk-reduction and response training that, to 

6 the extent practicable, conforms to best prac7 tices in the sexual assault field and includes ap8 propriate scenario-based training. 

9 ‘‘(B) DEVELOPMENT AND CONSULTATION

10 WITH EXPERTS.—In developing the sexual as11 sault risk-reduction and response training 

12 under subparagraph (A), the Maritime Admin13 istrator shall consult with and incorporate, as 

14 appropriate, the recommendations and views of 

15 experts in the sexual assault field.’’. 

16 SEC. 7. UNITED STATES MARITIME TRANSPORTATION SYS17 TEM WORKFORCE DIVERSITY AND INCLU18 SION TASK FORCE. 

19 Section 55501 of title 46, United States Code, is 

20 amended by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(g) MARITIME TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM DIVER22 SITY AND INCLUSION TASK FORCE.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days 

24 after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 

25 Secretary of Transportation shall establish within 


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1 the Committee a task force to provide an inter2 agency forum for the identification, discussion, and 

3 sharing of tools and practices that promote diversity 

4 and inclusiveness within the maritime transportation 

5 system workforce. 

6 ‘‘(2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The task force estab7 lished under this subsection shall share best prac8 tices with the Committee toward enhancing rep9 resentation in the maritime transportation system 

10 workforce. 

11 ‘‘(3) DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION ACTION

12 PLAN.—Not later than January 1, 2023, the Sec13 retary of Transportation shall promulgate a Diver14 sity and Inclusion Action Plan for the maritime 

15 transportation system workforce. Such plan shall es16 tablish measurable parameters to assess recruiting, 

17 retention, training, and support for women and his18 torically underrepresented racial and ethnic minori19 ties within the United States maritime community.’’. 

20 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

21 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Improving Protections 

22 for Midshipmen Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. SUSPENSION OR REVOCATION OF MERCHANT MAR2 INER CREDENTIALS FOR PERPETRATORS OF 

3 SEXUAL HARASSMENT OR SEXUAL ASSAULT. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 77 of title 46, United 

5 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 7704 the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘§ 7704a. Sexual harassment or sexual assault as 

8 grounds for suspension or revocation 

9 ‘‘(a) SEXUAL HARASSMENT.—Subject to subsection 

10 (c)(3), if it is shown at a hearing under this chapter that 

11 a holder of a license, certificate of registry, or merchant 

12 mariner’s document issued under this part, within 10 years 

13 before the beginning of the suspension and revocation pro14 ceedings, is the subject of a substantiated claim of sexual 

15 harassment, then the license, certificate of registry, or mer16 chant mariner’s document shall be suspended or revoked. 

17 ‘‘(b) SEXUAL ASSAULT.—Subject to subsection (c)(3), 

18 if it is shown at a hearing under this chapter that a holder 

19 of a license, certificate of registry, or merchant mariner’s 

20 document issued under this part, within 20 years before the 

21 beginning of the suspension and revocation proceedings, is 

22 the subject of a substantiated claim of sexual assault, then 

23 the license, certificate of registry, or merchant mariner’s 

24 document shall be revoked. 

25 ‘‘(c) SUBSTANTIATED CLAIM.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘substantiated 

2 claim’ means— 

3 ‘‘(A) a legal proceeding, or a final agency 

4 action in any administrative proceeding, that 

5 determines the individual committed sexual har6 assment or sexual assault in violation of any 

7 Federal, State, local, or Tribal law or regulation 

8 and for which all appeals have been exhausted; 

9 or 

10 ‘‘(B) a determination after an investigation 

11 by the Coast Guard that it is more likely than 

12 not the individual committed sexual harassment 

13 or sexual assault as defined in subsection (d), if 

14 the determination affords appropriate due proc15 ess rights to the subject of the investigation. 

16 ‘‘(2) INVESTIGATION BY THE COAST GUARD.—An 

17 investigation by the Coast Guard under paragraph 

18 (1)(B) shall include evaluation of the following mate19 rials that shall be provided to the Coast Guard: 

20 ‘‘(A) Any inquiry or determination made 

21 by the employer of the individual as to whether 

22 the individual committed sexual harassment or 

23 sexual assault. 

24 ‘‘(B) Upon request from the Coast Guard, 

25 any investigative materials, documents, records, 


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1 or files in the possession of an employer or 

2 former employer of the individual that are re3 lated to the claim of sexual harassment or sexual 

4 assault by the individual. 

5 ‘‘(3) ADDITIONAL REVIEW.—A license, certificate 

6 of registry, or merchant mariner’s document shall not 

7 be suspended or revoked under subsection (a) or (b) 

8 unless the substantiated claim is reviewed and af9 firmed, in accordance with the applicable definition 

10 in subsection (d), by an administrative law judge at 

11 the same suspension or revocation hearing under this 

12 chapter described in subsection (a) or (b), as applica13 ble. 

14 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) SEXUAL HARASSMENT.—The term ‘sexual 

16 harassment’ means any of the following: 

17 ‘‘(A) Conduct that— 

18 ‘‘(i) involves unwelcome sexual ad19 vances, requests for sexual favors, or delib20 erate or repeated offensive comments or ges21 tures of a sexual nature, when— 

22 ‘‘(I) submission to such conduct is 

23 made either explicitly or implicitly a 

24 term or condition of a person’s job, 

25 pay, or career; 


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1 ‘‘(II) submission to or rejection of 

2 such conduct by a person is used as a 

3 basis for career or employment deci4 sions affecting that person; 

5 ‘‘(III) such conduct has the pur6 pose or effect of unreasonably inter7 fering with an individual’s work per8 formance or creates an intimidating, 

9 hostile, or offensive working environ10 ment; or 

11 ‘‘(IV) conduct may have been by a 

12 person’s supervisor, a supervisor in an13 other area, a co-worker, or another 

14 credentialed mariner; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) is so severe or pervasive that a 

16 reasonable person would perceive, and the 

17 victim does perceive, the environment as 

18 hostile or offensive. 

19 ‘‘(B) Any use or condonation, by any per20 son in a supervisory or command position, of 

21 any form of sexual behavior to control, influence, 

22 or affect the career, pay, or job of a subordinate. 

23 ‘‘(C) Any deliberate or repeated unwelcome 

24 verbal comment or gesture of a sexual nature by 

25 any fellow employee of the complainant. 


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1 ‘‘(2) SEXUAL ASSAULT.—The term ‘sexual as2 sault’ means any form of abuse or contact as defined 

3 in chapter 109A of title 18. 

4 ‘‘(e) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary of the department 

5 in which the Coast Guard is operating may issue further 

6 regulations as necessary to update the definitions in this 

7 section, consistent with descriptions of sexual harassment 

8 and sexual assault addressed in titles 10 and 18, to imple9 ment this section.’’. 

10 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The chapter analysis of 

11 chapter 77 of title 46, United States Code, is amended by 

12 inserting after the item relating to section 7704 the fol13 lowing: 

‘‘7704a. Sexual harassment or sexual assault as grounds for suspension or revocation.’’. 

14 SEC. 3. SUPPORTING THE UNITED STATES MERCHANT MA15 RINE ACADEMY. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 513 of title 46, United 

17 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘§ 51323. Sexual assault and sexual harassment pre19 vention information management system 

20 ‘‘(a) INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 1, 

22 2023, the Maritime Administrator shall establish an 

23 information management system to track and main24 tain, in such a manner that patterns can be reasonVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:54 Dec 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3196.RS S3196

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1 ably identified, information regarding claims and in2 cidents involving cadets that are reportable pursuant 

3 to subsection (d) of section 51318 of this chapter. 

4 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION MAINTAINED IN THE SYS5 TEM.—Information maintained in the system shall 

6 include the following information, to the extent that 

7 information is available: 

8 ‘‘(A) The overall number of sexual assault 

9 or sexual harassment incidents per fiscal year. 

10 ‘‘(B) The location of each such incident, in11 cluding vessel name and the name of the com12 pany operating the vessel, if applicable. 

13 ‘‘(C) The names and ranks of the individ14 uals involved in each such incident. 

15 ‘‘(D) The general nature of each such inci16 dent, to include copies of any associated reports 

17 completed on the incidents. 

18 ‘‘(E) The type of inquiry made into each 

19 such incident. 

20 ‘‘(F) A determination as to whether each 

21 such incident is substantiated. 

22 ‘‘(G) Any informal and formal account23 ability measures taken for misconduct related to 

24 the incident, including decisions on whether to 

25 prosecute the case. 


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1 ‘‘(3) PAST INFORMATION INCLUDED.—The infor2 mation management system under this section shall 

3 include the relevant data listed in this subsection re4 lated to sexual assault and sexual harassment that the 

5 Maritime Administrator possesses, and shall not be 

6 limited to data collected after January 1, 2023. 

7 ‘‘(4) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—The Maritime Ad8 ministrator and the Department of Transportation 

9 Chief Information Officer shall coordinate to ensure 

10 that the information management system under this 

11 section shall be established and maintained in a se12 cure fashion to ensure the protection of the privacy of 

13 any individuals whose information is entered in such 

14 system. 

15 ‘‘(5) CYBERSECURITY AUDIT.—Ninety days after 

16 the implementation of the information management 

17 system, the Office of Inspector General of the Depart18 ment of Transportation shall commence an audit of 

19 the cybersecurity of the system and shall submit a re20 port containing the results of that audit to the Com21 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

22 the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and 

23 Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. 

24 ‘‘(6) CORRECTING RECORDS.—In establishing the 

25 information management system, the Maritime AdVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:54 Dec 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3196.RS S3196

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1 ministrator shall create a process to ensure that if 

2 any incident report results in a final agency action 

3 or final judgement that acquits an individual of 

4 wrongdoing, all personally identifiable information 

5 about the acquitted individual is removed from that 

6 incident report in the system. 

7 ‘‘(b) SEA YEAR PROGRAM.—The Maritime Adminis8 trator shall provide for the establishment of in-person and 

9 virtual confidential exit interviews, to be conducted by per10 sonnel who are not involved in the assignment of the mid11 shipmen to a Sea Year vessel, for midshipmen from the 

12 Academy upon completion of Sea Year and following com13 pletion by the midshipmen of the survey under section 

14 51322(d). 

15 ‘‘§ 51324. Student advisory board at the United States 

16 Merchant Marine Academy 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Maritime Administrator shall 

18 establish at the United States Merchant Marine Academy 

19 an advisory board to be known as the Advisory Board to 

20 the Secretary of Transportation (referred to in this section 

21 as the ‘Advisory Board’). 

22 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Advisory Board shall be 

23 composed of not fewer than 12 midshipmen of the Merchant 

24 Marine Academy who are enrolled at the Merchant Marine 


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1 Academy at the time of the appointment, including not 

2 fewer than 3 cadets from each class. 

3 ‘‘(c) APPOINTMENT; TERM.—Midshipmen shall serve 

4 on the Advisory Board pursuant to appointment by the 

5 Maritime Administrator. Appointments shall be made not 

6 later than 60 days after the date of the swearing in of a 

7 new class of midshipmen at the Academy. The term of mem8 bership of a midshipman on the Advisory Board shall be 

9 1 academic year. 

10 ‘‘(d) REAPPOINTMENT.—The Maritime Administrator 

11 may reappoint not more than 6 cadets from the previous 

12 term to serve on the Advisory Board for an additional aca13 demic year if the Maritime Administrator determines such 

14 reappointment to be in the best interests of the Merchant 

15 Marine Academy. 

16 ‘‘(e) MEETINGS.—The Advisory Board shall meet with 

17 the Secretary of Transportation not less than once each aca18 demic year to discuss the activities of the Advisory Board. 

19 The Advisory Board shall meet in person with the Maritime 

20 Administrator not less than 2 times each academic year to 

21 discuss the activities of the Advisory Board. 

22 ‘‘(f) DUTIES.—The Advisory Board shall— 

23 ‘‘(1) identify health and wellbeing, diversity, and 

24 sexual assault and harassment challenges and other 

25 topics considered important by the Advisory Board 


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1 facing midshipmen at the Merchant Marine Academy, 

2 off campus, and while aboard ships during Sea Year 

3 or other training opportunities; 

4 ‘‘(2) discuss and propose possible solutions, in5 cluding improvements to culture and leadership devel6 opment at the Merchant Marine Academy; and 

7 ‘‘(3) periodically review the efficacy of the pro8 gram in section 51323(b), as appropriate, and pro9 vide recommendations to the Maritime Administrator 

10 for improvement. 

11 ‘‘(g) WORKING GROUPS.—The Advisory Board may es12 tablish one or more working groups to assist the Advisory 

13 Board in carrying out its duties, including working groups 

14 composed in part of midshipmen at the Merchant Marine 

15 Academy who are not current members of the Advisory 

16 Board. 

17 ‘‘(h) REPORTS AND BRIEFINGS.—The Advisory Board 

18 shall regularly provide the Secretary of Transportation and 

19 the Maritime Administrator reports and briefings on the 

20 results of its duties, including recommendations for actions 

21 to be taken in light of such results. Such reports and brief22 ings may be provided in writing, in person, or both. 


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1 ‘‘§ 51325. Sexual Assault Advisory Council 

2 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Transpor3 tation shall establish a Sexual Assault Advisory Council (in 

4 this section referred to as the ‘Council’). 

5 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Council shall be com7 posed of not fewer than 8 and not more than 14 indi8 viduals selected by the Secretary of Transportation 

9 who are alumni that have graduated within the last 

10 4 years or current midshipmen of the United States 

11 Merchant Marine Academy (including midshipmen or 

12 alumni who were victims of sexual assault and mid13 shipmen or alumni who were not victims of sexual as14 sault) and governmental and nongovernmental ex15 perts and professionals in the sexual assault field. 

16 ‘‘(2) EXPERTS INCLUDED.—The Council shall in17 clude— 

18 ‘‘(A) not less than 1 member who is licensed 

19 in the field of mental health and has prior expe20 rience working as a counselor or therapist pro21 viding mental health care to survivors of sexual 

22 assault in a victim services agency or organiza23 tion; and 

24 ‘‘(B) not less than 1 member who has prior 

25 experience developing or implementing sexual asVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:54 Dec 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S3196.RS S3196

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1 sault or sexual harassment prevention and re2 sponse policies in an academic setting. 

3 ‘‘(3) RULES REGARDING MEMBERSHIP.—No em4 ployee of the Department of Transportation shall be 

5 a member of the Council. The number of governmental 

6 experts appointed to the Council shall not exceed the 

7 number of nongovernmental experts. 

8 ‘‘(c) DUTIES; AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Council shall meet not 

10 less often than semiannually to— 

11 ‘‘(A) review— 

12 ‘‘(i) the policies on sexual harassment, 

13 dating violence, domestic violence, sexual 

14 assault, and stalking under section 51318 of 

15 this title; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) related matters the Council views 

17 as appropriate; and 

18 ‘‘(B) develop recommendations designed to 

19 ensure that such policies and such matters con20 form, to the extent practicable, to best practices 

21 in the field of sexual assault and sexual harass22 ment response and prevention. 

23 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—To carry out 

24 this subsection, the Council may— 


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1 ‘‘(A) conduct case reviews, as appropriate 

2 and only with the consent of the victim of sexual 

3 assault or harassment; 

4 ‘‘(B) interview current and former mid5 shipmen of the United States Merchant Marine 

6 Academy (to the extent that such midshipmen 

7 provide the Department of Transportation ex8 press consent to be interviewed by the Council); 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(C) review— 

11 ‘‘(i) exit interviews under section 

12 51323(b) and surveys under section 

13 51322(d); 

14 ‘‘(ii) data collected from restricted re15 porting; and 

16 ‘‘(iii) any other information necessary 

17 to conduct such case reviews. 

18 ‘‘(3) PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMA19 TION.—In carrying out this subsection, the Council 

20 shall comply with the obligations of the Department 

21 of Transportation to protect personally identifiable 

22 information. 

23 ‘‘(d) REPORTS.—On an annual basis for each of the 

24 5 years after the date of enactment of this section, and at 

25 the discretion of the Council thereafter, the Council shall 


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1 submit, to the President and the Committee on Commerce, 

2 Science, and Transportation and the Committee on Appro3 priations of the Senate and the Committee on Transpor4 tation and Infrastructure and the Committee on Appro5 priations of the House of Representatives, a report on the 

6 Council’s findings based on the reviews conducted pursuant 

7 to subsection (c) and related recommendations. 

8 ‘‘(e) EMPLOYEE STATUS.—Members of the Council 

9 shall not be considered employees of the United States Gov10 ernment for any purpose and shall not receive compensa11 tion other than reimbursement of travel expenses and per 

12 diem allowance in accordance with section 5703 of title 5. 

13 ‘‘(f) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Federal Advi14 sory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the 

15 Council. 

16 ‘‘§ 51326. Student support 

17 ‘‘The Maritime Administrator shall— 

18 ‘‘(1) require a biannual survey of midshipmen, 

19 faculty, and staff of the Academy assessing the inclu20 siveness of the environment of the Academy; and 

21 ‘‘(2) require an annual survey of faculty and 

22 staff of the Academy assessing the inclusiveness of the 

23 environment of the Sea Year program.’’. 

24 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 30 days 

25 after the date of enactment of this section, the Maritime 


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1 Administrator shall provide Congress with a briefing on the 

2 resources necessary to properly implement section 51326 of 

3 title 46, United States Code, as added by this section. 

4 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—The chapter anal5 ysis for chapter 513 of title 46, United States Code, is 

6 amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘51323. Sexual assault and sexual harassment prevention information management system. 

‘‘51324. Student advisory board at the United States Merchant Marine Academy. 

‘‘51325. Sexual Assault Advisory Council. 

‘‘51326. Student Support.’’. 

7 (d) UNITED STATES MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY

8 STUDENT SUPPORT PLAN.— 

9 (1) STUDENT SUPPORT PLAN.—Not later than 

10 January 1, 2023, the Maritime Administrator shall 

11 issue a Student Support Plan for the United States 

12 Merchant Marine Academy, in consultation with rel13 evant mental health professionals in the Federal Gov14 ernment or experienced with the maritime industry or 

15 related industries. Such plan shall— 

16 (A) address the mental health resources 

17 available to midshipmen, both on-campus and 

18 during Sea Year; 

19 (B) establish a tracking system for suicidal 

20 ideations and suicide attempts of midshipmen; 

21 (C) create an option for midshipmen to ob22 tain assistance from a professional care provider 

23 virtually; and 


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1 (D) require an annual survey of faculty 

2 and staff assessing the adequacy of mental health 

3 resources for midshipmen of the Academy, both 

4 on campus and during Sea Year. 

5 (2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 30 

6 days after the date of enactment of this section, the 

7 Maritime Administrator shall provide Congress with 

8 a report on the resources necessary to properly imple9 ment this subsection. 

10 (e) SPECIAL VICTIMS ADVISOR.—Section 51319 of title 

11 46, United States Code, is amended— 

12 (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection 

13 (d); 

14 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘(c) SPECIAL VICTIMS ADVISOR.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall des18 ignate an attorney (to be known as the ‘Special Vic19 tims Advisor’) for the purpose of providing legal as20 sistance to any cadet of the Academy who is the vic21 tim of an alleged sex-related offense regarding admin22 istrative and criminal proceedings related to such of23 fense, regardless of whether the report of that offense 

24 is restricted or unrestricted. 


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1 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL VICTIMS ADVISORY.—The Secretary 

2 shall ensure that the attorney designated as the Spe3 cial Victims Advisor has knowledge of the Uniform 

4 Code of Military Justice, as well as criminal and 

5 civil law. 

6 ‘‘(3) PRIVILEGED COMMUNICATIONS.—Any com7 munications between a victim of an alleged sex-re8 lated offense and the Special Victim Advisor, when 

9 acting in their capacity as such, shall have the same 

10 protection that applicable law provides for confiden11 tial attorney-client communications.’’; and 

12 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(e) UNFILLED VACANCIES.—The Administrator of the 

14 Maritime Administration may appoint qualified can15 didates to positions under subsections (a) and (d) of this 

16 section without regard to sections 3309 through 3319 of title 

17 5.’’. 

18 (f) CATCH A SERIAL OFFENDER ASSESSMENT.— 

19 (1) ASSESSMENT.—Not later than one year after 

20 the date of enactment of this section, the Com21 mandant of the Coast Guard, in coordination with 

22 the Maritime Administrator, shall conduct an assess23 ment of the feasibility and process necessary, and ap24 propriate responsible entities to establish a program 

25 for the United States Merchant Marine Academy and 


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1 United States Merchant Marine modeled on the Catch 

2 a Serial Offender program of the Department of De3 fense using the information management system re4 quired under subsection (a) of section 51323 of title 

5 46, United States Code, and the exit interviews under 

6 subsection (b) of such section. 

7 (2) LEGISLATIVE CHANGE PROPOSALS.—If, as a 

8 result of the assessment required by paragraph (1), 

9 the Commandant or the Administrator determines 

10 that additional authority is necessary to implement 

11 the program described in paragraph (1), the Com12 mandant or the Administrator, as applicable, shall 

13 provide appropriate legislative change proposals to 

14 Congress. 

15 (g) SHIPBOARD TRAINING.—Section 51322(a) of title 

16 46, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 

17 the following: 

18 ‘‘(3) TRAINING.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As part of training 

20 that shall be provided not less than semiannually 

21 to all midshipmen of the Academy, pursuant to 

22 section 51318, the Maritime Administrator shall 

23 develop and implement comprehensive in-person 

24 sexual assault risk-reduction and response train25 ing that, to the extent practicable, conforms to 


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1 best practices in the sexual assault prevention 

2 and response field and includes appropriate sce3 nario-based training. 

4 ‘‘(B) DEVELOPMENT AND CONSULTATION

5 WITH EXPERTS.—In developing the sexual as6 sault risk-reduction and response training under 

7 subparagraph (A), the Maritime Administrator 

8 shall consult with and incorporate, as appro9 priate, the recommendations and views of experts 

10 in the sexual assault field.’’. 


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Calendar No. 597 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3196 

A BILL 

To enhance the policies, procedures, and training 

Marine Academy, and for other purposes. for midshipmen at the United States Merchant 

DECEMBER 7, 2022 

Reported with an amendment 


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