Supporting Survivors of Sexual Harassment in Schools Act of 2020
This bill requires the Department of Education to ensure that local educational agencies have full-time Title IX coordinators and that such coordinators provide support to students who report sexual harassment.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8193 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8193
To require the Secretary of Education to ensure that local educational
agencies establish full-time title IX coordinators to improve
oversight, data collection on sexual harassment, student survivor
support, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 8, 2020
Ms. Meng (for herself, Ms. Escobar, Ms. Norton, Mr. Casten of Illinois,
Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Serrano, Mr. Kennedy, Mrs. Napolitano, Mr.
Cuellar, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Ms. Kuster of New Hampshire, Mr.
Suozzi, Mr. Cooper, Mr. Hastings, Mr. Lynch, Mr. Khanna, Mrs. Lawrence,
Mr. Carson of Indiana, Ms. Frankel, and Mrs. Hayes) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and
Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Education to ensure that local educational
agencies establish full-time title IX coordinators to improve
oversight, data collection on sexual harassment, student survivor
support, 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. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Supporting Survivors of Sexual
Harassment in Schools Act of 2020''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C.
1681 et seq.) (in this Act referred to as ``title IX'')
mandates that no individual in the United States shall be
excluded on the basis of sex from participation in, be denied
the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any
education program or activity that receives Federal financial
assistance.
(2) Although title IX protects against sexual and sex-based
harassment and violence, sexual assaults in K-12 schools and
institutions of higher education remain a pervasive problem.
(3) Peer sexual harassment is a significant social problem
with consequences for both students and schools. Four out of 5
students report experiencing sexual harassment. These
experiences have been linked to poor psychological health and
academic withdrawal.
(4) Many school districts have only a part-time, single
title IX coordinator at the local educational agency level to
oversee principals, school-site specific title IX coordinators,
staff, and the safety of thousands of students.
(5) Although educational institutions have a legal
responsibility to enforce, monitor, and respond to sexual
harassment and assault, far more students experience sexual
harassment than schools report.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Education.
(2) Full-time local educational agency title ix
coordinator.--The term ``full-time local educational agency
title IX coordinator'' means an individual who is acting as an
employee of the local educational agency, or who is paid by an
entity contracting with the local educational agency and acting
on behalf of the local educational agency--
(A) with an average work period of 40 hours per
week, 160 hours per month, or full time as defined by
State regulations; and
(B) accountable to fulfill the title IX coordinator
requirements under Federal, State, and local laws and
policy.
(3) Title ix coordinator.--The term ``title IX
coordinator'' means a responsible employee, as described in
section 106.8(a) of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations,
designated to coordinate efforts under title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.).
(4) Local educational agency.--The term ``local educational
agency'' has the meaning given the term in section 8101(30) of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
7801(30)).
(5) Sexual harassment.--The term ``sexual harassment''
means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature, regardless of
whether it is direct or indirect, or verbal or nonverbal
(including conduct that is undertaken in whole or in part,
through the use of electronic messaging services, commercial
mobile services, electronic communications, or other
technology), that unreasonably alters an individual's terms,
conditions, benefits, or privileges of an educational program
or activity, including by creating an intimidating, hostile, or
offensive environment, which takes the form of--
(A) a sexual advance;
(B) a request for sexual favors;
(C) a sexual act, where such submission is made
either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of
a program or activity at a school or school activity,
regardless of a student's submission to or rejection of
such sexual act;
(D) a sexual act, where such submission or
rejection is used as the basis for a decision affecting
a term or condition of a program or activity at a
school or school activity, regardless of a student's
submission to or rejection of such sexual act;
(E) other conduct of a sexual nature; or
(F) domestic violence, intimate partner violence
(dating violence), and sex-based stalking.
SEC. 4. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are to--
(1) support local educational agencies to ensure that title
IX coordinators at the local educational agency level and at
the school level have the support to fully carry out their
roles and responsibilities;
(2) identify that sexual harassment, including stalking and
dating violence, is a pervasive problem in K-12 schools and
requires increased attention;
(3) protect students, teachers, and administrative staff
from inconsistent policies and protocol;
(4) identify, implement, and disseminate best practices for
reducing and preventing sex discrimination in K-12 schools;
(5) increase safety standards in schools to ensure that
sexual harassment does not compromise students' access to
education;
(6) collect data on prevalence, impact of, and response to
sexual harassment in education; and
(7) protect students who come forward to report sexual
harassment.
SEC. 5. SUPPORT FOR TITLE IX COORDINATORS; COLLECTION OF DATA.
(a) Issuance of Rules.--The Secretary shall issue rules necessary
to ensure that there is not less than 1 full-time title IX coordinator
for each local educational agency that receives funds under title V of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and that serves
10,000 or more students.
(b) Civil Rights Data Collection.--The Secretary shall collect and
publish within the Civil Rights Data Collection, in addition to data
already collected and in accordance to Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act (FERPA)--
(1) the full-time and part-time employment of title IX
coordinators for each local educational agency; and
(2) specific data under Offenses: Sexual Violence, cross-
tabulated and disaggregated by sex, disability, and race,
color, or nationality--
(A) number of reported incidents of sexual
harassment, dating violence, stalking, rape, attempted
rape, and sexual assault (other than rape), that
alleged to have occurred at the school or school
activity, committed by a student;
(B) number of reported incidents of sexual
harassment, dating violence, stalking, rape, attempted
rape, and sexual assault (other than rape), that
alleged to have occurred at the school or school
activity, committed by a school staff member;
(C) number of reports of sexual harassment, dating
violence, stalking, rape, attempted rape, and sexual
assault (other than rape) committed by a student that
resulted in a finding that a student was responsible
for the offense or not responsible for the offense;
(D) number of reports of sexual harassment, dating
violence, stalking, rape, attempted rape, and sexual
assault (other than rape), against a school staff
member that were followed by a resignation or
retirement prior to final discipline or termination;
(E) number of reports of sexual harassment, dating
violence, stalking, rape, attempted rape, and sexual
assault (other than rape), that occurred at the school
or school activity, against a school staff member that
were followed by a determination that the school staff
member was responsible or not responsible for the
offense;
(F) number of reports of sexual harassment, dating
violence, stalking, rape, attempted rape, and sexual
assault (other than rape), that occurred at the school
or school activity, against a school staff member that
had a determination that remained pending;
(G) number of reports of sexual harassment, dating
violence, stalking, rape, attempted rape, and sexual
assault (other than rape), that occurred at the school
or school activity, against a school staff member that
were followed by a duty reassignment prior to final
discipline or termination;
(H) the median length of the complaint process from
the filing of a report, to the end of the appeals
process; and
(I) the number of students who took leaves of
absences, transferred schools, or dropped out within a
year after reporting sexual harassment, dating
violence, stalking, rape, attempted rape, and sexual
assault (other than rape) to the school.
(c) Climate Surveys.--
(1) Beginning 18 months after the date of enactment of the
Supporting Survivors of Sexual Harassment in Schools Act, the
full-time local educational agency title IX coordinator shall
develop and collect anonymous climate survey data based on
paragraph (2), cross-tabulated and disaggregated by sex
(including sexual orientation, gender identity, and pregnancy),
disability, and race, color or national origin, in accordance
to Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and except
in circumstances where small population sizes would mean
collection of this data compromises anonymity, from each school
community, including students, parents, and staff, and
conducted not later than one year after such date of enactment,
and conducted, reviewed, and updated annually.
(2) The full-time local educational agency title IX
coordinator shall collect and submit to the Department
anonymous climate survey data cross-tabulated and disaggregated
by sex (including sexual orientation, gender identity, and
pregnancy), disability, and race, color or national origin, in
accordance to Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
and except in circumstances where small population sizes would
mean collection of this data compromises anonymity, that
includes--
(A) the reported incidence and prevalence of
experiences of sexual harassment, sexual violence,
dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking;
(B) the rate in which the perpetrator was a
student, staff, or teacher and other contextual
factors;
(C) whether students report that they know about
institutional policies and procedures, such as the
identity of the title IX coordinator, the location of
title IX resources, including resources on sexual
harassment, gender-based harassment and violence, and
definitions of sexual misconduct;
(D) if students indicate they have reported gender-
based harassment and violence, the role of the people
to whom they reported;
(E) types of disciplinary action and the rate of
disciplinary action taken against the complainant and/
or the respondent related to the report of gender-based
harassment;
(F) the types of accommodations and supports
students who indicate they have reported gender-based
harassment report having received, such as counseling,
medical services, or class scheduling changes;
(G) any reported short-term or long-term impacts on
physical or mental health from students who have
experienced gender-based violence or harassment;
(H) the frequency at which complainants request to
drop classes, take a leave of absence from school, or
leave the institution permanently;
(I) school community members' attitudes toward
gender-based violence and harassment, including
individuals' willingness to intervene as a bystander;
and
(J) school community members' perception of campus
safety and confidence in the institution's ability to
appropriately address gender-based violence and
harassment.
(d) Guidance.--The Secretary must provide guidance to LEAs and
full-time local educational agency title IX coordinators on how to
implement the climate survey.
(e) Report.--The Department must publish an annual report on
climate survey data findings from subsection (b) on the Department
website. The annual report shall include national, State, and district-
level data, cross-tabulated and disaggregated by sex (including sexual
orientation, gender identity, and pregnancy), disability, race, color,
or national origin in accordance to Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act (FERPA), on the following:
(1) The incidence and prevalence of sexual harassment,
sexual violence, dating violence, domestic violence, and
stalking.
(2) The rate of incidences of when the perpetrator was a
student and other contextual factors, such as whether force,
incapacitation, or coercion was involved.
(3) The percentage of students who know about institutional
policies and procedures, such as the identity of the title IX
coordinator, the location of title IX resources, and
definitions of sexual misconduct.
(4) The type of roles of the people to whom incidences of
sexual harassment were most commonly reported.
(5) The types and prevalence of accommodations and supports
provided to survivors, such as counseling, medical services, or
class scheduling changes.
(6) The estimated cost and/or impact of violence on
survivors, such as costs associated with counseling, medical
services, or class scheduling changes.
(7) The frequency at which complainants request to drop
classes, take a leave of absence from school, or leave the
institution permanently.
(8) Types of long-term impacts on the survivor's health,
such as disabilities that may have resulted from experiencing
gender-based violence or harassment.
(9) School community attitudes toward gender-based violence
and harassment, including individuals' willingness to intervene
as a bystander.
(10) School community members' perception of campus safety
and confidence in the institution's ability to appropriately
address gender-based violence and harassment.
(f) Best Practices.--In addition to the data listed in subsection
(e), the report shall include information on best practices.
SEC. 6. DISCLOSURE AND USE OF DATA.
The Secretary shall make the data described in section 6 for each
year publicly available on the website of the Department of Education
and through any other appropriate method, in a timely and user-friendly
manner, and accessible and usable by individuals with disabilities.
SEC. 7. SUPPORT FOR STUDENT SURVIVORS.
(a) Notification.--The Secretary shall require school-level title
IX coordinators and school administrators, upon becoming aware of
sexual harassment, to notify the complainant in writing and orally,
about available assistance to support the complainant of sexual
harassment and ensure their continued and equal access to education,
regardless of the location of the harassment, including--
(1) academic adjustment or other accommodations, such as
adapting course schedules, assignments, or tests, issuing no-
contact orders, or taking other measures to separate the
complainant and the respondent that minimize the burden on the
complainant;
(2) information about and access to support services for
the complainant, such as counseling, mental health and other
health services, and disability accommodations;
(3) providing increased monitoring or supervision at
locations or activities where the misconduct occurred or may
have occurred; and
(4) reasonable accommodations for complainants and
respondents with disabilities, consistent with laws that
protect students with disabilities, including Section 504 of
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504), the Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
(b) Guidance.--Working in collaboration with the full-time
coordinator, the local educational agency title IX must issue guidance
to schools, students, and parents (including guardians) to explicitly
protect students from punishment or retaliation when making reports of
sexual harassment. Such guidance must apply to all reports of
harassment, including in the context of a same-sex relationship or
encounter, and ensure that for all reports of sexual harassment--
(1) the school will not take disciplinary action against
individuals, including witnesses, disclosing code-of-conduct
offenses that are related to the assault, including, but not
limited to, the use of intoxicating substances occurring at or
around the time of a reported incident, reasonable actions
taken to defend against harassment, or actions taken to avoid
seeing the respondent at school;
(2) if a school's code-of-conduct prohibits sexual activity
(or certain forms of sexual activity), the school will not take
disciplinary action against individuals disclosing in good
faith (including witnesses) non-harassing sexual activity
related to the reported incident, or for other non-harassing
sexual activity discovered during an investigation into the
reported incident; and
(3) the full-time local educational agency title IX
coordinator shall review disciplinary actions related to a
complaint of harassment to ensure that disciplinary action was
not taken against a complainant for engaging in action taken as
a result of the sexual harassment.
SEC. 8. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed--
(1) to modify any provision of title IX of the Education
Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.); or
(2) to affect the enforcement of such title by the
Department of Education, the Department of Justice, or any
other Federal entity.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.
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