SOS Campus Act
Latest action · Nov 16, 2015 Referred to the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedMar 19, 2015
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Survivor Outreach and Support Campus Act or the SOS Campus Act
Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require each institution of higher education (IHE) that participates in any program under title IV (Student Assistance) to designate an independent advocate for campus sexual assault prevention and response (Advocate) with experience in providing sexual assault victim services.
Requires each Advocate to: (1) report to an individual outside the body responsible for investigating and adjudicating sexual assault complaints at the IHE, (2) submit to such individual an annual report summarizing how the resources supplied to the Advocate were used, (3) represent the interests of each student victim without regard to whether they conflict with the IHE's interests, and (4) be appointed in such manner as the Secretary of Education deems appropriate.
Directs each Advocate to:
- ensure that sexual assault victims at the IHE are able to receive, at their election, specified information and services;
- guide sexual assault victims who request assistance through the reporting, counseling, administrative, medical and health, academic accommodations, or legal processes of the IHE or local law enforcement;
- attend, at the request of a sexual assault victim, any administrative or IHE-based adjudication proceeding related to such assault as an advocate for the victim;
- maintain the privacy and confidentiality of the victim and any witness to such sexual assault and to not notify the IHE or any other person of the identity of the victim or of any such witness or the alleged circumstances surrounding the reported sexual assault except as otherwise required by state law or, with respect to the identity of the victim or witness, with the consent of such victim or witness; and
- conduct a public information campaign to inform the students enrolled at the IHE of the existence of, contact information for, and services provided by the Advocate.
Prohibits IHEs from retaliating against: (1) Advocates for representing the interests of a student victims, or (2) student victims for reporting sexual assaults to Advocates.
Cosponsors 17
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Mar 19, 2015 to Jun 14, 2016; 7 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-NC | Alma S. Adams | Original | Mar 19, 2015 |
| D-FL | Corrine Brown | Original | Mar 19, 2015 |
| D-CA | Doris O. Matsui | Original | Mar 19, 2015 |
| D-DC | Eleanor Holmes Norton | Original | Mar 19, 2015 |
| D-CA | Jared Huffman | Original | Mar 19, 2015 |
| D-CA | Judy Chu | Original | Mar 19, 2015 |
| D-OH | Marcy Kaptur | Original | Mar 19, 2015 |
| D-CA | John Garamendi | Apr 13, 2015 | |
| D-CA | Loretta Sanchez | Jun 11, 2015 | |
| D-AZ | Raúl M. Grijalva | Jun 15, 2015 | |
| D-TN | Steve Cohen | Jul 9, 2015 | |
| D-AZ | Ann Kirkpatrick | Jul 14, 2015 | |
| D-MS | Bennie G. Thompson | Jul 15, 2015 | |
| D-CA | Mark Takano | Jul 28, 2015 | |
| D-FL | Kathy Castor | Sep 10, 2015 | |
| D-PA | Matt Cartwright | Sep 16, 2015 | |
| D-NH | Ann M. Kuster | Jun 14, 2016 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Education and Workforce Committee | Referred Mar 19, 2015 |
| Higher Education and Workforce Development Subcommittee | Referred Nov 16, 2015 |
Actions 3
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Nov 16, 2015Referred to the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training.
- Mar 19, 2015Introduced in House
- Mar 19, 2015Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 161, no. 47, March 19, 2015, page H1805.
CRS reports 1
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 1
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| R43764 | Sexual Violence at Institutions of Higher Education Archived | Report | Apr 15, 2016 |
Related bills 2
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 706 | SOS Campus Act | Related bill | Mar 11, 2015 |
| HR 3734 | SOS Campus Act | Reintroduced Bill | Sep 11, 2017 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require institutions of higher education to have an independent advocate for campus sexual assault prevention and response.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- SOS Campus Act
- Survivor Outreach and Support Campus Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Education.
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Mar 19, 2015Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
