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[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3180 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3180

  To require the Department of Defense to develop a plan to track and 
          respond to incidents of hazing in the Armed Forces.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 15, 2012

Mrs. Gillibrand introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
              referred to the Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
  To require the Department of Defense to develop a plan to track and 
          respond to incidents of hazing in the Armed Forces.

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

SECTION 1. PLAN TO TRACK AND RESPOND TO HAZING INCIDENTS IN THE ARMED 
              FORCES.

    (a) Plan and Briefing Required.--Not later than May 1, 2013, the 
Secretary of Defense shall provide to the Committees on Armed Services 
of the Senate and the House of Representatives a briefing and plan that 
outlines efforts by the Department of Defense--
            (1) to prevent the hazing of members of the Armed Forces by 
        other members of the Armed Forces;
            (2) to provide training on the prevention of hazing to 
        members of the Armed Forces;
            (3) to improve methods of reporting incidents of hazing in 
        the Armed Forces, including anonymous reporting procedures; and
            (4) to respond to and resolve alleged hazing incidents 
        involving members of the Armed Forces, including the 
        prosecution of offenders through the use of punitive articles 
        under chapter 47 of title 10, United States Code (the Uniform 
        Code of Military Justice).
    (b) Database.--The plan required by subsection (a) shall include 
the establishment of a database for the purpose of improving the 
ability of the Department of Defense--
            (1) to determine the extent to which hazing incidents 
        involving members of the Armed Forces are occurring and the 
        nature of such hazing incidents; and
            (2) to track, respond to, and resolve hazing incidents 
        involving members of the Armed Forces.
    (c) Recommendations.--As part of the briefing required by 
subsection (a), the Secretary of Defense shall provide the following:
            (1) Recommendations for a universal definition of 
        ``hazing'' to be used by all the Armed Forces.
            (2) Such recommendations for changes to the Uniform Code of 
        Military Justice and the Manual for Courts-Martial as the 
        Secretary considers necessary to improve the prosecution of 
        hazing incidents.
    (d) Consultation.--The Secretary of Defense shall prepare the plan, 
database, and recommendations required by this section in consultation 
with the Secretaries of the military departments.
    (e) Hazing Described.--For purposes of carrying out this section, 
the Secretary of Defense shall use the definition of hazing contained 
in the August 28, 1997, Secretary of Defense Policy Memorandum, which 
defined hazing as any conduct whereby a member of the Armed Forces, 
regardless of branch or rank, without proper authority causes another 
member to suffer, or be exposed to, any activity which is cruel, 
abusive, humiliating, oppressive, demeaning, or harmful. Soliciting or 
coercing another person to perpetrate any such activity is also 
considered hazing. Hazing need not involve physical contact among or 
between members of the Armed Forces. Hazing can be verbal or 
psychological in nature.
                                 <all>
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