Title: A bill to amend the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act to improve the transparency of the United States Center for Safe Sport, to provide grant accountability, and to protect victims of abuse from retaliation, and for other purposes.
Policy area: Sports and Recreation

Summary:
This bill requires the U.S. Center for Safe Sport to provide grant funding accountability and protect victims of abuse from retaliation.
Amounts transferred to the center by the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) or a national governing body shall be used primarily for the investigation and resolution of allegations of sexual misconduct, or other misconduct, made by amateur athletes affiliated with the USOC, a national governing body, or a paralympic sports organization.
The center shall be audited at least annually and shall report to Congress annually.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) may petition in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for removal of officers and directors of the center if the center (1) engages in any act, practice, or policy that is materially inconsistent with its purpose; or (2) refuses, fails, or neglects to discharge the obligations of the center to protect the safety of amateur athletes.
DOJ may not award a grant to an entity that supports oversight of the USOC if it holds amounts in an offshore account for the purpose of avoiding payment of tax on unrelated business income of charitable organizations.
The USOC, a national governing body, a paralympic sports organization, or any officer, employee, contractor, or agent may not retaliate against any protected individual, including amateur athletes, coaches, or trainers, because of a protected disclosure regarding abuse. National governing bodies must provide protection from retaliation to protected individuals.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2838 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2838

To amend the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act to improve the 
  transparency of the United States Center for Safe Sport, to provide 
grant accountability, and to protect victims of abuse from retaliation, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 12, 2019

Mr. Grassley (for himself, Ms. Ernst, Mrs. Blackburn, Mr. Sullivan, Ms. 
  Murkowski, and Mr. Perdue) introduced the following bill; which was 
  read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
                             Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act to improve the 
  transparency of the United States Center for Safe Sport, to provide 
grant accountability, and to protect victims of abuse from retaliation, 
                        and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. IMPROVING TRANSPARENCY OF THE UNITED STATES CENTER FOR SAFE 
              SPORT.

    (a) Funding Accountability.--Section 220541 of title 36, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) Funding Accountability.--
            ``(1) In general.--Amounts transferred to the Center by the 
        corporation or a national governing body shall be used 
        primarily for the investigation and resolution of allegations 
        of sexual misconduct, or other misconduct, made by amateur 
        athletes affiliated with the corporation, a national governing 
        body, or a paralympic sports organization, in accordance with 
        section 220503(15).
            ``(2) Use of funds.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Of the amounts made available to 
                the Center by the corporation or a national governing 
                body in a fiscal year for the purpose described in 
                section 220503(15)--
                            ``(i) not less than 50 percent shall be 
                        used for processing the investigation and 
                        resolution of allegations described in 
                        paragraph (1);
                            ``(ii) not more than 10 percent may be used 
                        for executive compensation of officers and 
                        directors of the Center; and
                            ``(iii) not more than 20 percent may be 
                        used for administrative expenses of the Center, 
                        except that the reasonable travel expenses of 
                        investigative personnel of the Center and 
                        litigation expenses of the Center shall not be 
                        counted toward such amount.
                    ``(B) Reserve funds.--
                            ``(i) In general.--If, after the Center 
                        uses the amounts as allocated under 
                        subparagraph (A), the Center does not use the 
                        entirety of the remaining amounts for the 
                        purpose described in paragraph (1), the Center 
                        may retain not more than 25 percent of such 
                        amounts as reserve funds.
                            ``(ii) Return of funds.--The Center shall 
                        return to the corporation and national 
                        governing bodies any amounts, proportional to 
                        the contributions of the corporation and 
                        national governing bodies, that remain after 
                        the retention described in clause (i).
                    ``(C) Lobbying and fundraising.--Amounts made 
                available to the Center under this paragraph may not be 
                used for lobbying or fundraising expenses.
            ``(3) Conferences and training.--The Center shall, to the 
        maximum extent practicable, seek reimbursement for the 
        reasonable expenses associated with hosting or supporting 
        conferences for, and providing training or technical assistance 
        to, individuals who are not employees of the Center.''.
    (b) Records, Audits, and Reports.--Section 220543 of title 36, 
United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following:
    ``(b) Audits and Transparency.--
            ``(1) Annual audit.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Not less frequently than 
                annually, the financial statements of the Center for 
                the preceding fiscal year shall be audited by an 
                independent auditor in accordance with generally 
                accepted accounting principles--
                            ``(i) to ensure the adequacy of the 
                        internal controls of the Center; and
                            ``(ii) to prevent waste, fraud, or misuse 
                        of funds transferred to the Center by the 
                        corporation or the national governing bodies.
                    ``(B) Location.--An audit under subparagraph (A) 
                shall be conducted at the location at which the 
                financial statements of the Center normally are kept.
                    ``(C) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the 
                date on which an audit under subparagraph (A) is 
                completed, the independent auditor shall issue an audit 
                report.
                    ``(D) Corrective action plan.--
                            ``(i) In general.--On completion of the 
                        audit report under subparagraph (C) for a 
                        fiscal year, the Center shall prepare, in a 
                        separate document, a corrective action plan 
                        that responds to any corrective action 
                        recommended by the independent auditor.
                            ``(ii) Matters to be included.--A 
                        corrective action plan under clause (i) shall 
                        include the following for each such corrective 
                        action:
                                    ``(I) The name of the person 
                                responsible for the corrective action.
                                    ``(II) A description of the planned 
                                corrective action.
                                    ``(III) The anticipated completion 
                                date of the corrective action.
                                    ``(IV) In the case of a recommended 
                                corrective action based on a finding in 
                                the audit report with which the Center 
                                disagrees, or for which the Center 
                                determines that corrective action is 
                                not required, an explanation and a 
                                specific reason for noncompliance with 
                                the recommendation.
            ``(2) Access to records and personnel.--With respect to an 
        audit under paragraph (1), the Center shall provide the 
        independent auditor access to all records, documents, and 
        personnel and financial statements of the Center necessary to 
        carry out the audit.
            ``(3) Public availability.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Center shall make available 
                to the public on an easily accessible internet website 
                of the Center--
                            ``(i) each audit report under paragraph 
                        (1)(C); and
                            ``(ii) the Internal Revenue Service Form 
                        990 of the Center for each year filed under 
                        section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
                        1986.
                    ``(B) Personally identifiable information.--An 
                audit report or the minutes made available under 
                subparagraph (A) shall not include the personally 
                identifiable information of any individual.
            ``(4) Rule of construction.--For purposes of this 
        subsection, the Center shall be considered a private entity.
    ``(c) Petitions for Equitable Relief.--The Attorney General may 
petition in the United States District Court for the District of 
Columbia for removal of officers and directors of the Center, as may be 
necessary or appropriate, if the Center--
            ``(1) engages in, or threatens to engage in, any act, 
        practice, or policy that is materially inconsistent with the 
        purpose described in section 220503(15); or
            ``(2) refuses, fails, or neglects to discharge, or 
        threatens to refuse, fail, or neglect to discharge, the 
        obligations of the Center to protect the safety of amateur 
        athletes under this chapter.
    ``(d) Report.--The Center shall submit an annual report to 
Congress, including--
            ``(1) a strategic plan with respect to the manner in which 
        the Center shall fulfill its duties under sections 220541 and 
        220542;
            ``(2) a detailed description of the efforts made by the 
        Center to comply with such strategic plan during the preceding 
        year;
            ``(3) any financial statement necessary to present fairly 
        the assets, liabilities, and surplus or deficit of the Center 
        for the preceding year;
            ``(4) an analysis of the changes in the amounts of such 
        assets, liabilities, and surplus or deficit during the 
        preceding year;
            ``(5) a detailed description of Center activities, 
        including--
                    ``(A) the number and nature of misconduct 
                complaints referred to the Center;
                    ``(B) the total number and type of pending 
                misconduct complaints under investigation by the 
                Center;
                    ``(C) the number of misconduct complaints for which 
                an investigation was terminated or otherwise closed by 
                the Center; and
                    ``(D) the number of such misconduct complaints 
                reported to law enforcement agencies by the Center for 
                further investigation;
            ``(6) information relating to the educational activities 
        and trainings conducted by the office of education and outreach 
        of the Center during the preceding year, including the number 
        of educational activities and trainings developed and provided; 
        and
            ``(7) a description of the activities of the Center.
    ``(e) Definitions.--In this section--
            ``(1) `audit report' means a report by an independent 
        auditor that includes--
                    ``(A) an opinion or a disclaimer of opinion that 
                presents the assessment of the independent auditor with 
                respect to the financial records of the Center, 
                including whether such records are accurate and have 
                been maintained in accordance with generally accepted 
                accounting principles;
                    ``(B) an assessment of the internal controls used 
                by the Center that describes the scope of testing of 
                the internal control and the results of such testing; 
                and
                    ``(C) a compliance assessment that includes an 
                opinion or a disclaimer of opinion as to whether the 
                Center has complied with the terms and conditions of 
                subsection (b); and
            ``(2) `independent auditor' means an independent certified 
        public accountant or independent licensed public accountant, 
        certified or licensed by a regulatory authority of a State or a 
        political subdivision of a State, who meets the standards 
        specified in generally accepted accounting principles.''.

SEC. 2. GRANT ACCOUNTABILITY.

    Section 220531 of title 36, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) Grant Accountability.--
            ``(1) Limitations on funding.--The Attorney General may not 
        award a grant under this section to an entity that holds 
        amounts in an offshore account for the purpose of avoiding 
        payment of the tax described in section 511(a) of the Internal 
        Revenue Code of 1986.
            ``(2) Transparency.--
                    ``(A) In general.--As a condition of receiving 
                funds under this section, an entity shall include in an 
                application for a grant--
                            ``(i) a description of the process by which 
                        the entity determines the compensation of the 
                        officers, directors, trustees, and key 
                        employees of the entity, including any 
                        independent individual involved in reviewing 
                        and approving such compensation;
                            ``(ii) the comparability data used in such 
                        process; and
                            ``(iii) contemporaneous substantiation of 
                        the deliberation and decision with respect to 
                        such compensation.
                    ``(B) Public availability.--On request, the 
                Attorney General shall make the information disclosed 
                under subparagraph (A) available for public inspection.
            ``(3) Limitations on conference expenditures.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Except as provided in 
                subparagraph (B), not more than $50,000 of grant funds 
                provided to an entity under this section may be used to 
                host or support a conference.
                    ``(B) Exception.--An entity may use more than 
                $50,000 of grant funds provided under this section to 
                host or support a conference if the Director of the 
                Office of Justice Programs--
                            ``(i) authorizes such additional expense in 
                        writing; and
                            ``(ii) provides a written cost estimate for 
                        the conference, including the cost of food, 
                        beverages, audio-visual equipment, honoraria 
                        for speakers, and entertainment.
            ``(4) Avoidance of duplicative federal grants.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Attorney General shall 
                assess whether a potential grant award to an entity 
                under this section would result in an overlap or a 
                duplication of Federal grant awards.
                    ``(B) Report.--If the Attorney General awards a 
                grant under this section to an entity in a fiscal year 
                for which the entity receives any other Federal grant 
                for a substantially similar purpose, the Attorney 
                General shall submit to the Committee on the Judiciary 
                of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary of the 
                House of Representatives a report that includes--
                            ``(i) a description of each grant awarded 
                        to the entity in such fiscal year that results 
                        in an overlap or a duplication in Federal grant 
                        awards, including the total amount of each such 
                        grant award; and
                            ``(ii) a justification for awarding an 
                        overlapping or a duplicative grant.''.

SEC. 3. PROTECTING ABUSE VICTIMS FROM RETALIATION.

    (a) Definitions.--Section 220501(b) of title 36, United States 
Code, is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraphs (7) through (9) and (10) as 
        paragraphs (8) through (10) and (13), respectively;
            (2) by inserting after paragraph (6) the following:
            ``(7) `covered entity' means--
                    ``(A) an officer or employee of the Center;
                    ``(B) a coach, trainer, manager, administrator, or 
                other employee or official associated with the 
                corporation, a national governing body, or a paralympic 
                sports organization;
                    ``(C) the Department of Justice;
                    ``(D) a Federal or State law enforcement authority;
                    ``(E) a Federal or State entity responsible for 
                receiving reports of child abuse;
                    ``(F) the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 
                or other State or Federal entity with responsibility 
                over claims of sexual harassment; or
                    ``(G) any other person who the protected individual 
                reasonably believes has authority to investigate or act 
                on information relating to abuse, including--
                            ``(i) emotional, physical, or sexual abuse; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) sexual harassment.'';
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (10), as so redesignated, 
        the following:
            ``(11) `protected disclosure' means any lawful act of a 
        protected individual, or in the case of a protected individual 
        who is a minor, an individual acting on behalf of a protected 
        individual--
                    ``(A) to provide information to, cause information 
                to be provided to, or otherwise assist in an 
                investigation by a covered entity (or be perceived as 
                providing information to, causing information to be 
                provided to, or otherwise assisting in such an 
                investigation) relating to abuse, including--
                            ``(i) emotional, physical, or sexual abuse;
                            ``(ii) sexual harassment; and
                            ``(iii) a violation of anti-abuse policies, 
                        practices, and procedures established pursuant 
                        to paragraph (3) of section 220541(a) and 
                        paragraph (2) of section 220542(a);
                    ``(B) to file, cause to be filed, testify, 
                participate in, or otherwise assist in a proceeding 
                filed or about to be filed (or be perceived as filing, 
                causing to be filed, testifying, participating in, or 
                otherwise assisting in such an investigation) relating 
                to abuse, including--
                            ``(i) emotional, physical, or sexual abuse;
                            ``(ii) sexual harassment; and
                            ``(iii) a violation of anti-abuse policies 
                        and procedures established pursuant to 
                        paragraph (3) of section 220541(a) and 
                        paragraph (2) of section 220542(a);
                    ``(C) in communication with Congress; or
                    ``(D) in the case of an amateur athlete, in 
                communication with the Office of the Athlete Ombudsman;
            ``(12) `protected individual' means any--
                    ``(A) amateur athlete, coach, medical professional, 
                or trainer associated with the corporation, a national 
                governing body, or a paralympic sports organization; or
                    ``(B) any official or employee of the corporation, 
                a national governing body, a paralympic sports 
                organization, or a grantee, contractor, or 
                subcontractor of the corporation, a national governing 
                body, or a paralympic sports organization''; and
            (4) by inserting after paragraph (13), as so redesignated, 
        the following:
            ``(14) `retaliation' means any adverse or discriminatory 
        action, or the threat of an adverse or discriminatory action, 
        carried out against a protected individual because of any 
        protected disclosure, including--
                    ``(A) discipline;
                    ``(B) discrimination regarding pay, terms, or 
                privileges;
                    ``(C) removal from a training facility;
                    ``(D) reduced coaching or training;
                    ``(E) reduced meals or housing; and
                    ``(F) removal from competition.''.
    (b) Resolution of Disputes.--Section 220509 of title 36, United 
States Code, is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), in the first sentence, by inserting 
        ``complaints of retaliation or'' after ``relating to''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Retaliation.--
            ``(1) In general.--The corporation, a national governing 
        body, a paralympic sports organization, or any officer, 
        employee, grantee, contractor, subcontractor, or agent of the 
        corporation, a national governing body, or a paralympic sports 
        organization, may not retaliate against any protected 
        individual because of any protected disclosure.
            ``(2) Reporting, investigation, and arbitration.--The 
        corporation shall establish mechanisms for the reporting, 
        investigation, and resolution (through binding third-party 
        arbitration) of complaints of alleged retaliation.
            ``(3) Disciplinary action.--If the corporation finds that 
        an officer or employee of the corporation, a national governing 
        body, or a paralympic sports organizations (or any grantee, 
        contractor, subcontractor, or agent of the corporation, a 
        national governing body, or a paralympic sports organization) 
        has retaliated against a protected individual, the corporation, 
        national governing body, or paralympic sports organization, as 
        applicable, shall take appropriate disciplinary action with 
        respect to any such individual found to have retaliated against 
        the protected individual.
            ``(4) Remedies.--
                    ``(A) In general.--If the corporation finds that an 
                officer or employee of the corporation, a national 
                governing body, or a paralympic sports organization (or 
                a grantee, contractor, subcontractor, or agent of the 
                corporation, a national governing body, or paralympic 
                sports organization) has retaliated against a protected 
                individual, the corporation, national governing body, 
                or paralympic sports organization, as applicable, shall 
                promptly--
                            ``(i) take affirmative action to abate the 
                        violation;
                            ``(ii) reinstate the complainant to the 
                        former position with the same pay and terms and 
                        privileges; and
                            ``(iii) pay compensatory damages, including 
                        economic damages (including backpay with 
                        interest) and any special damages sustained as 
                        a result of the retaliation, including damages 
                        for pain and suffering, reasonable attorney 
                        fees, and costs.
                    ``(B) Reimbursement from national governing body.--
                In the case of a national governing body or a 
                paralympic sports organization found to have retaliated 
                against a protected individual, the corporation may 
                demand reimbursement from the national governing body 
                or paralympic sports organization for damages paid by 
                the corporation under subparagraph (A).
            ``(5) Enforcement action and procedures.--
                    ``(A) In general.--If the corporation has not 
                issued a final decision within 180 days of the filing 
                of the complaint and there is no showing that such 
                delay is due to the bad faith of the complainant, the 
                complainant may bring an action at law or equity for de 
                novo review in the appropriate district court of the 
                United States, which shall have jurisdiction over such 
                an action without regard to the amount in controversy.
                    ``(B) Jury trial.--A party to an action brought 
                under paragraph (A) shall be entitled to trial by jury.
                    ``(C) Relief.--The court shall have jurisdiction to 
                grant all relief under paragraph (4).
            ``(6) Statute of limitations.--An action under paragraph 
        (2) shall be commenced not later than 2 years after the date on 
        which the violation occurs, or after the date on which the 
        protected individual became aware of the violation.
            ``(7) Burdens of proof.--An action under paragraph (2) or 
        (5) shall be governed as follows:
                    ``(A) Required showing by complainant.--The 
                corporation shall dismiss a complaint filed under this 
                subsection and shall not conduct an investigation 
                unless the complainant makes a prima facie showing that 
                any retaliation was a contributing factor in the 
                unfavorable personnel action alleged in the complaint.
                    ``(B) Criteria for determination by the 
                arbitration.--The arbitration may determine that a 
                violation of paragraph (1) has occurred only if the 
                complainant demonstrates that the retaliation was a 
                contributing factor in the unfavorable personnel action 
                alleged in the complaint.
                    ``(C) Prohibition.--Relief may not be ordered under 
                paragraph (4) if the corporation, national governing 
                body, or paralympic sports organization, as applicable, 
                demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that the 
                corporation, national governing body, or paralympic 
                sports organization would have taken the same 
                unfavorable personnel action in the absence of that 
                behavior.
            ``(8) Review.--Any person adversely affected or aggrieved 
        by an order issued under paragraph (4) or (5) may obtain review 
        of the order in the United States Court of Appeals for the 
        circuit in which the violation, with respect to which the order 
        was issued, allegedly occurred or the circuit in which the 
        complainant resided on the date of such violation. The petition 
        for review shall be filed not later than 60 days after the date 
        of the issuance of the arbitration decision of the corporation. 
        Review shall conform to chapter 7 of title 5, United States 
        Code. The commencement of proceedings under this paragraph 
        shall not, unless ordered by the court, operate as a stay of 
        the order.
            ``(9) Rights retained.--Nothing in this subsection shall be 
        deemed to diminish the rights, privileges, or remedies of any 
        employee or other individual under any Federal or State law, or 
        under any collective bargaining agreement.
            ``(10) Nonenforceability of certain provisions waiving 
        rights and remedies.--The rights and remedies provided for in 
        this subsection may not be waived by any agreement, policy 
        form, or condition of employment or association with the 
        corporation, a national governing body, or a paralympic sports 
        organization.
            ``(11) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this subsection 
        shall be construed to mean that the funds transferred by the 
        national governing bodies and paralympic sports organizations 
        to the corporation and the Center qualify as a grant.''.
    (c) Eligibility Requirements for National Governing Bodies.--
Section 220522 of title 36, United States Code, amended--
            (1) in paragraph (14), by striking ``; and'' and inserting 
        a semicolon;
            (2) in paragraph (15), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(16) provides protection from retaliation to protected 
        individuals.''.
                                 <all>