Grassley and Gillibrand Lead Bipartisan, Bicameral Bill to Combat Sexual Assault on College Campuses

Grassley and Gillibrand Lead Bipartisan, Bicameral Bill to Combat Sexual Assault on College Campuses

WASHINGTON - Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) today reintroduced the Campus Accountability and Safety Act (CASA). The legislation would enhance recovery resources for survivors of sexual assault on college campuses, ensure a consistent adjudication process and bolster transparency standards for academic institutions.

"Our bill is a coordinated approach to addressing incidents of sexual assault on college campuses. It would inform university protocols for handling reports, while also strengthening recovery resources for survivors and empowering them to know their rights," Grassley said. "Inconsistent enforcement mechanisms are failing to treat the crime of sexual assault with the seriousness it deserves. Congress ought to act swiftly on this bipartisan legislation to change that."

"Sexual assault on college campuses remains a major and pervasive problem, but Congress has not taken the necessary action to address it," Gillibrand said. "The bipartisan Campus Accountability and Safety Act would reform how institutions of higher learning address and report incident of sexual assault and would dedicate new resources to survivors. This important measure would increase accountability and ensure a fair process for campus disciplinary action."

Additionally cosponsoring are Sens. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.). Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) are leading the House companion bill.

"Sexual assault on college campuses continues to be a crisis that demands our immediate action. And, as with all crimes, weak enforcement and insufficient accountability only embolden perpetrators to act with impunity. This bipartisan, bicameral legislation is a commitment to our students that we are taking action: action to ensure their safety and action to hold our educational institutions accountable by transforming how sexual assault and violence are handled and addressed. By demanding greater transparency, enforcing stringent accountability measures, and providing essential resources and support to victims, we can eliminate the toxic culture of inaction that has plagued our campuses for too long and create a safer environment for our students," Fitzpatrick said.

"One in five women and one in sixteen men experience sexual assault on college campuses. Due to stigma and complex systems, many survivors don't report sexual violence, much less pursue justice through their university's system, and many perpetrators are never held accountable," Khanna said. "I'm proud to lead this bipartisan bill with my colleagues to increase transparency, provide resources for survivors, and reduce barriers in the reporting process."

Specifically, CASA would:

• Require academic institutions to include on their websites campus safety policies, an annual security report, instructions for filing a complaint and statistics regarding sexual misconduct allegations on campus.
• Direct academic institutions to name specialists who would undergo training to serve as confidential aides for survivors.
• Improve protections for individuals who report sexual misconduct in good faith from university punishment for acting in self-defense, or using drugs or alcohol, when their report references such behavior.
• Expand the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Campus Grant Program to address sexual harassment on campuses.
• Require the Comptroller General to study VAWA grant efficacy and submit a report to Congress within two years of CASA enactment.

Background:

Grassley and Gillibrand helped write the original CASA in 2014 and has pushed for its passage in the 114th, 115th, 116th and 117^th Congresses. CASA provisions regarding transparency became law in the VAWAReauthorization Act of 2022. Grassley and Gillibrand teamed up on the Speak Out Act - which Congress enacted in 2022 - to clarify nondisclosure agreements cannot prohibit survivors from speaking out about sexual assault or harassment.

Grassley is a leading advocate for survivors. After news of USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar's sexual abuse charges broke, the Senate Judiciary Committee under then-Chairman Grassley convened the first ever congressional hearing to protect young athletes. Soon after, he authored bipartisan legislation to bolster federal sex tourism statutes that had been too weak to convict Nassar. The bill was signed into law as part of the Fiscal Year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act.

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