Grassley, Cassidy, Ernst Introduce Bill to Crack Down on Wave of Antisemitic Discrimination on College Campuses

Grassley, Cassidy, Ernst Introduce Bill to Crack Down on Wave of Antisemitic Discrimination on College Campuses

Reported antisemitic incidents on U.S. college campuses surged 700 percent last year

WASHINGTON - Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) joined Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) in introducing legation directing universities and the Education Department to immediately address civil rights complaints if a student experiences violence or harassment on campus because of their heritage.

The Restoring Civility on Campus Act builds on Grassley's work to support Israel after Hamas' October 7 attack and stem antisemitism at U.S. higher-ed institutions. Download audio of Grassley discussing this bill ahead of today's Joint Session of Congress, where Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke.

"Six million Jews were tragically murdered during the Holocaust. It's unfathomable to think, even after the horrific events during World War II, antisemitism is still happening in the United States," Grassley said. "Frankly, our academic leaders shouldn't need direction from Congress to protect students and take swift action against civil rights violations - but, evidently, they do. Our universities and education officials must do more to combat antisemitism. I'm glad to advance this important measure with my colleagues."

"The threats and violence against Jewish students demand action. No student should be afraid to walk around campus because of who they are," Cassidy said. "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," Ernst said. "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."

Background

Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) must ensure university programs or activities that receive federal funds do not discriminate against students based on their ancestry or ethnic characteristics. Schools that neglect to address on-campus harassment and violent confrontations towards Jewish students are in violation of Title VI. Further, per the Clery Act, colleges must publicly report hate crimes and the prejudices behind them. However, these reports are notoriously inaccurate and/or incomprehensive.

The Restoring Civility on Campus Act requires OCR to initiate immediate investigations into civil rights complaints involving alleged discrimination on the basis of shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics on or after October 7, 2023. It also tightens protocols for reporting and handling hate-motivated crimes, including by bolstering OCR enforcement mechanisms.

Restoring Civility on Campus Act Provisions

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 hate-motivated crime reporting and strengthens OCR Title VI enforcement by:

• Requiring the Education Department 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 from the current to $69,733 per violation, to $1,000,000 per violation. This raises the standard fine issued under the Clery Act for two years.

Improves accountability over university and agency officials by requiring:

• Education Department staff to either work in-person or be on-site at a college campus to process the expedited evaluation of OCR complaints.
• The president or chancellor of the institution to meet with OCR investigators regarding a Title VI complaint.
• The Education Department 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 department must update the report every 30 days for the following two years. It must include:
  • Findings and determinations for complaints on or after October 7, 2023.
  • Any similarities among 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 retaliation allegations.
  • Mitigation strategies to ensure campus safety.

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