Ranking Member Cassidy, Ernst, Colleagues Introduce Bill Holding Universities, Biden Admin Accountable for Addressing Discrimination on College Campuses

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Joni Ernst (R-IA) introduced the Restoring Civility on Campus Act, which ensures universities and the Department of Education (DeptEd) immediately address civil rights complaints if a student experiences violence or harassment on campus because of their heritage. This legislation builds upon Cassidy's prior legislative efforts to address discrimination on college campuses amid rising antisemitism in the aftermath of the October 7 attacks.

Cassidy and Ernst were joined in introducing this legislation by U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA).

"The threats and violence against Jewish students demand action. No student should be afraid to walk around campus because of who they are," said Dr. Cassidy. "Universities and the Department of Education have failed to meet their legal obligation to protect Jewish students from harm. This bill forces accountability and ensures discrimination is never ignored."

"I have been demanding answers from this administration about what they are doing to combat the abhorrent and un-American spike in antisemitism on college campuses, and their inaction speaks volumes," said Senator Ernst. "Jewish students should not be forced to risk their safety in pursuit of an education. The Restoring Civility on Campus Act will force the Department of Education to stop sitting on its hands and comply with the law to protect students from the hate and violence that have exploded across the country."

Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, DeptEd's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has a responsibility to ensure university programs or activities that receive federal funds do not discriminate against students based on their shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics.

Last year, antisemitic incidents on campus increased by 700 percent. Schools failing to address harassment and violent confrontations of Jewish students on American campuses constitute a violation of Title VI. OCR has a poor track record of processing civil rights complaints in a timely and effective manner, delaying accountability for college administrators responsible for assuring student safety.

Colleges must already publicly report crimes on campus through the Clery Act, including hate crimes and the prejudice that motivated the crime. These reports are crucial for prospective families evaluating campus safety for Jewish students after the violent 2023-2024 academic year. However, these reports are notoriously inaccurate, especially when it comes to reporting serious crimes.

The Restoring Civility on Campus Act:

• Requires OCR to initiate an immediate investigation of civil rights complaints involving alleged discrimination on the basis of shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics on or after October 7, 2023.
• Increases transparency for students who report antisemitism by requiring OCR to:
  • Update the student complainant on the status of their OCR case at least every 30 days.
  • Disclose the result of institutional disciplinary proceedings to the student who reported a civil rights violation.

• Ensures accurate reporting of hate-motivated crimes and strengthens OCR's enforcement of Title VI by:
  • Requiring DeptEd to conduct Annual Security Report audits for documented campus crimes motivated by prejudice at institutions with a pending Title VI complaint.
  • Temporarily increasing fines on schools that fail to disclose a crime motivated by antisemitism on an Annual Security Reports to $1,000,000 from $69,733 per violation. This raises the standard fine issued under the Clery Act for two years.

• Improves accountability over university and agency officials by:
  • Requiring DeptEd staff to either work in-person or be on-site at a college campus to process the expedited evaluation of OCR complaints.
  • Requiring the president or chancellor of the institution to meet with OCR investigators regarding a Title VI complaint.

• Requires DeptEd to issue a public report on OCR cases involving alleged discrimination on the basis of shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics for university officials 30 days following the opening of the case. The report also must be updated every 30 days for the following two years. The report must include:
  • Findings and determinations for complaints on or after October 7, 2023.
  • Any similarities between complaints to identify national trends and security concerns, such as violations of time, place, and manner policies, the status of criminal charges or campus disciplinary procedures, and allegations of retaliation.
  • Identification of mitigation strategies to ensure that colleges and universities can safely operate.

Read the full bill text here.

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