[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5646 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]
H.R.5646
One Hundred Eighteenth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,
the third day of January, two thousand and twenty-four
An Act
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require institutions of
higher education to disclose hazing incidents, 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 ``Stop Campus Hazing Act''.
SEC. 2. INCLUSION OF HAZING INCIDENTS IN ANNUAL SECURITY REPORTS.
(a) Statistics on Hazing Incidents.--
(1) In general.--Section 485(f)(1)(F) of the Higher Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092(f)(1)(F)) is amended--
(A) in clause (i)(IX), by striking ``and'' after the
semicolon;
(B) in clause (ii), by striking ``and'' after the
semicolon;
(C) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(D) by adding at the end the following:
``(iv) of hazing incidents that were reported to campus
security authorities or local police agencies.''.
(2) Compilation of hazing incidents.--Section 485(f)(7) of the
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092(f)(7)) is amended by
inserting after the second sentence the following: ``For hazing
incidents referred to in clause (iv) of paragraph (1)(F), such
statistics shall be compiled per each single hazing incident and in
accordance with the definition of the term `hazing' in paragraph
(6)(A)(vi), and if the same person or persons commit more than one
hazing act, and the time and place intervals separating each such
act are insignificant, such acts shall be reported as a single
hazing incident.''.
(3) Beginning of compilation of hazing statistics.--Not later
than January 1 of the first year after the date of enactment of
this Act, each eligible institution participating in any program
under title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070
et seq.), other than a foreign institution of higher education,
shall begin to collect statistics on hazing incidents for the
purpose of complying with clause (iv) of section 485(f)(1)(F) of
such Act, as added by paragraph (1) of this subsection.
(4) Definition of hazing.--Section 485(f)(6)(A) of the Higher
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092(f)(6)(A)) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(vi) The term `hazing', for purposes of reporting statistics
on hazing incidents under paragraph (1)(F)(iv), means any
intentional, knowing, or reckless act committed by a person
(whether individually or in concert with other persons) against
another person or persons regardless of the willingness of such
other person or persons to participate, that--
``(I) is committed in the course of an initiation into, an
affiliation with, or the maintenance of membership in, a
student organization; and
``(II) causes or creates a risk, above the reasonable risk
encountered in the course of participation in the institution
of higher education or the organization (such as the physical
preparation necessary for participation in an athletic team),
of physical or psychological injury including--
``(aa) whipping, beating, striking, electronic
shocking, placing of a harmful substance on someone's body,
or similar activity;
``(bb) causing, coercing, or otherwise inducing sleep
deprivation, exposure to the elements, confinement in a
small space, extreme calisthenics, or other similar
activity;
``(cc) causing, coercing, or otherwise inducing another
person to consume food, liquid, alcohol, drugs, or other
substances;
``(dd) causing, coercing, or otherwise inducing another
person to perform sexual acts;
``(ee) any activity that places another person in
reasonable fear of bodily harm through the use of
threatening words or conduct;
``(ff) any activity against another person that
includes a criminal violation of local, State, Tribal, or
Federal law; and
``(gg) any activity that induces, causes, or requires
another person to perform a duty or task that involves a
criminal violation of local, State, Tribal, or Federal
law.''.
(5) Definition of student organization.--Section 485(f)(6)(A)
of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092(f)(6)(A)) is
further amended by adding at the end the following:
``(vii) The term `student organization', for purposes of
reporting under paragraph (1)(F)(iv) and paragraph (9)(A), means an
organization at an institution of higher education (such as a club,
society, association, varsity or junior varsity athletic team, club
sports team, fraternity, sorority, band, or student government) in
which two or more of the members are students enrolled at the
institution of higher education, whether or not the organization is
established or recognized by the institution.''.
(b) Statement of Policy and Prevention Program on Hazing.--Section
485(f)(1) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092(f)(1)) is
amended by inserting after subparagraph (J) the following:
``(K) A statement of current policies relating to hazing (as
defined by the institution), how to report incidents of such
hazing, and the process used to investigate such incidents of
hazing, and information on applicable local, State, and Tribal laws
on hazing (as defined by such local, State, and Tribal laws).
``(L) A statement of policy regarding prevention and awareness
programs related to hazing (as defined by the institution) that
includes a description of research-informed campus-wide prevention
programs designed to reach students, staff, and faculty, which
includes--
``(i) the information referred to in subparagraph (K); and
``(ii) primary prevention strategies intended to stop
hazing before hazing occurs, which may include skill building
for bystander intervention, information about ethical
leadership, and the promotion of strategies for building group
cohesion without hazing.''.
(c) Effective Date; Application.--The amendments made by this
section shall--
(1) take effect on the date that is 6 months after the date of
enactment of this Act; and
(2) apply with respect to the annual security report required
under section 485(f)(1) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1092(f)(1)) for the calendar year that is 2 years after such
date of enactment, including any data collected on or after such
effective date, and any subsequent report required under such
section.
SEC. 3. CAMPUS HAZING TRANSPARENCY REPORT.
Section 485(f) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
1092(f)) is further amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (9) through (18) as paragraphs
(10) through (19), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (8) the following:
``(9)(A) Each institution participating in any program under this
title, other than a foreign institution of higher education, shall
develop, in accordance with the institution's statement of policy
relating to hazing under paragraph (1)(K), a report (which shall be
referred to as the `Campus Hazing Transparency Report') summarizing
findings concerning any student organization (except that this shall
only apply to student organizations that are established or recognized
by the institution) found to be in violation of an institution's
standards of conduct relating to hazing, as defined by the institution,
(hereinafter referred to in this paragraph as a `hazing violation')
that requires the institution to--
``(i) beginning July 1, 2025, collect information with respect
to hazing incidents at the institution;
``(ii) not later than 12 months after the date of the enactment
of the Stop Campus Hazing Act, make the Campus Hazing Transparency
Report publicly available on the public website of the institution;
and
``(iii) not less frequently than 2 times each year, update the
Campus Hazing Transparency Report to include, for the period
beginning on the date on which the Report was last published and
ending on the date on which such update is submitted, each incident
involving a student organization for which a finding of
responsibility is issued relating to a hazing violation,
including--
``(I) the name of such student organization;
``(II) a general description of the violation that resulted
in a finding of responsibility, including whether the violation
involved the abuse or illegal use of alcohol or drugs, the
findings of the institution, and any sanctions placed on the
student organization by the institution, as applicable; and
``(III) the dates on which--
``(aa) the incident was alleged to have occurred;
``(bb) the investigation into the incident was
initiated;
``(cc) the investigation ended with a finding that a
hazing violation occurred; and
``(dd) the institution provided notice to the student
organization that the incident resulted in a hazing
violation.
``(B) The Campus Hazing Transparency Report may include--
``(i) to satisfy the requirements of this paragraph,
information that--
``(I) is included as part of a report published by the
institution; and
``(II) meets the requirements of the Campus Hazing
Transparency Report; and
``(ii) any additional information--
``(I) determined by the institution to be necessary; or
``(II) reported as required by State law.
``(C) The Campus Hazing Transparency Report shall not include any
personally identifiable information, including any information that
would reveal personally identifiable information, about any individual
student in accordance with section 444 of the General Education
Provisions Act (commonly known as the `Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act of 1974').
``(D) The institution shall publish, in a prominent location on the
public website of the institution, the Campus Hazing Transparency
Report, including--
``(i) a statement notifying the public of the annual
availability of statistics on hazing pursuant to the report
required under paragraph (1)(F), including a link to such report;
``(ii) information about the institution's policies relating to
hazing under paragraph (1)(K) and applicable local, State, and
Tribal laws on hazing; and
``(iii) the information included in each update required under
subparagraph (A)(iii), which shall be maintained for a period of 5
calendar years from the date of publication of such update.
``(E) The institution may include, as part of the publication of
the Campus Hazing Transparency Report under subparagraph (D), a
description of the purposes of, and differences between--
``(i) the report required under paragraph (1)(F); and
``(ii) the Campus Hazing Transparency Report required under
this paragraph.
``(F) For purposes of this paragraph, the definition of `campus'
under paragraph (6)(A)(ii) shall not apply.
``(G) An institution described in subparagraph (A) is not required
to--
``(i) develop the Campus Hazing Transparency Report under this
subsection until such institution has a finding of a hazing
violation; or
``(ii) update the Campus Hazing Transparency Report in
accordance with clause (iii) of subparagraph (A) for a period
described in such clause if such institution does not have a
finding of a hazing violation for such period.''.
SEC. 4. JEANNE CLERY CAMPUS SAFETY ACT.
Paragraph (19) of section 485(f) of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092(f)(19)), as so redesignated, is amended by
striking ``Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus
Crime Statistics Act'' and inserting ``Jeanne Clery Campus Safety
Act''.
SEC. 5. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act, or an amendment made by this Act, shall be
construed to affect the rights (including remedies and procedures)
available to persons under the First Amendment of the Constitution of
the United States or rights to due process.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.