[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5646 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 5646
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require institutions of
higher education to disclose hazing incidents, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 21, 2023
Mrs. McBath (for herself and Mr. Duncan) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
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.
Section 485(f)(1)(F) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
1092(f)(1)(F)) is amended--
(1) in clause (i)(IX), by striking ``and'' after the
semicolon;
(2) in clause (ii), by striking ``and'' after the
semicolon;
(3) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
``(iv) of hazing incidents that were reported to
campus security authorities or local police
agencies.''.
SEC. 3. 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--
(1) by redesignating clauses (iii) through (v) as clauses
(iv) through (vi), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after clause (ii) the following:
``(iii) The term `hazing' means any intentional,
knowing, or reckless act committed by a person, whether
individually or in concert with other persons, against
a student regardless of that student's willingness to
participate, that--
``(I) was committed in connection with an
initiation into, an affiliation with, or the
maintenance of membership in, an organization
(such as a club, society, association, athletic
team, fraternity, sorority, or student
government); and
``(II) causes or is likely to contribute to
a substantial risk, above the reasonable risk
encountered in the course of participation in
the institution of higher education or the
organization (such as the physical training
necessary for participation in an athletic
team), of physical injury, mental harm, or
degradation.''.
SEC. 4. RECORDING 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, such statistics shall be compiled in
accordance with the definition of that term in paragraph
(6)(A)(iii).''.
SEC. 5. HAZING EDUCATION AND REPORTING.
Section 485(f) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
1092(f)) is 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 of higher education participating
in any program under this title, other than a foreign
institution of higher education, shall develop and distribute
as part of the report described in paragraph (1) a statement of
policy regarding the following:
``(i) A comprehensive program to prevent hazing
that shall--
``(I) be a campus-wide program for
students, staff, faculty, and other campus
stakeholders, such as alumni and families of
students;
``(II) be a research-based program;
``(III) be designed and implemented in
partnership with a broad coalition of campus
stakeholders, including leadership of the
institution, faculty, staff, students, alumni,
and families of students;
``(IV) include information on hazing
awareness, hazing prevention, the institution's
policies on hazing, how to report hazing, and
the process used to investigate hazing; and
``(V) include skill building for bystander
intervention, information about ethical
leadership, and the promotion of strategies for
building group cohesion without hazing.
``(ii) The institution's current campus policies
relating to hazing, which shall include procedures that
comply with the following:
``(I) The institution shall--
``(aa) collect information,
beginning not later than 6 months after
the date of enactment of the Stop
Campus Hazing Act, with respect to
hazing incidents and hazing prevention
policies of the institution;
``(bb) prepare, in accordance with
this clause, a report (which shall be
referred to as the `Campus Hazing
Transparency Report') containing the
information required under this clause;
``(cc) make the Campus Hazing
Transparency Report publicly available
not later than 12 months after the date
of enactment of the Stop Campus Hazing
Act; and
``(dd) update the Campus Hazing
Transparency Report not less frequently
than on January 15 and July 15 of each
year, with, for each such update, each
incident for which a formal finding has
been issued, as described in subclause
(II), during the period preceding such
update that ends 15 days before the
date of such update.
``(II) The Campus Hazing Transparency
Report shall include each incident involving a
student of the institution for which a formal
finding of guilt, responsibility, or
culpability is issued that either of the
following was committed:
``(aa) A violation related to
hazing--
``(AA) of the institution's
standards of conduct; or
``(BB) of Federal, State,
or local law.
``(bb) When committed in connection
with a violation reported under item
(aa) and that threatened a student's
physical safety (including a violation
involving the abuse or illegal use of
alcohol or drugs), any violation of--
``(AA) the institution's
standards of conduct; or
``(BB) Federal, State, or
local law.
``(III) The Campus Hazing Transparency
Report shall include, for each formal finding
under subclause (II), the following:
``(aa) The name of the organization
with which the violation that resulted
in a formal finding of guilt,
responsibility, or culpability, was
committed in connection.
``(bb) A general description of the
violation that resulted in a formal
finding of guilt, responsibility, or
culpability, the charges, the findings
of the institution, and the sanctions
placed on the organization.
``(cc) The dates on which--
``(AA) the incident was
alleged to have occurred;
``(BB) the violation that
resulted in a formal finding of
guilt, responsibility, or
culpability was charged;
``(CC) the investigation
was initiated; and
``(DD) the investigation
ended with a finding that a
violation occurred.
``(IV) The Campus Hazing Transparency
Report shall not include any information that
would reveal personally identifiable
information about any individual student.
``(V) The institution shall provide, in a
prominent location on the institution's public
website, a link to the webpage that contains
the Campus Hazing Transparency Report. Such
webpage shall include--
``(aa) a statement notifying the
public of the availability of
information including findings or
sanctions, except information protected
under section 444 of the General
Education Provisions Act (commonly
known as the `Family Educational Rights
and Privacy Act of 1974');
``(bb) a description of how a
member of the public may obtain such
information;
``(cc) a statement that the
institution is required to provide such
information pursuant to this clause;
``(dd) a statement notifying the
public of the availability of the
statistics required to be made
available under paragraph (1)(F); and
``(ee) information about the
institution's anti-hazing policy.
``(B) Each institution shall maintain each Campus Hazing
Transparency Report on its website for a period of 7 academic
years.
``(C) In the case of an allegation that a multi-institution
organization was involved in a hazing incident, the
requirements of this subsection shall apply only to the
institution or institutions at which the persons involved in
such allegation are enrolled or were formerly enrolled,
including any student who was a victim in the alleged
incident.''.
SEC. 6. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act, or an amendment made by this Act, shall be
construed to alter legal standards regarding, or affect the rights
(including remedies and procedures) available to individuals under the
Constitution of the United States or other Federal laws that establish
protections for freedom of speech or expression.
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