WASHINGTON — A Texas Republican and California Democrat are pushing a new effort in Congress to reduce sexual assaults on college campuses and improve treatment for assault victims.
Rep. Ted Poe, the Republican, said his goal is to pass the bills before the end of this year’s legislative session.
The Megan Rondini Act, named after a Texas native who committed suicide after she was raped while she was a student at the University of Alabama, would require hospitals to have a sexual assault forensic examiner available to victims at all time, or to have a plan for getting victims to nearby hospitals with an examiner,
Rep. Jackie Speier, the Democrat, announced a measure that would increase financial penalties for colleges found in violation of the Clery Act and increases funding for Title IX and Clery Act investigators. Another measure would require schools to designate Confidential Advisors and establishes minimum training standards for on-campus personnel.
One in five women experience rape or sexual assault on college campuses, according to the Department of Justice, and the majority of victims do not report their assault.
Poe credited the 12th Woman, a Texas A&M University organization that supports and advocates for victims of sexual assault on campus, for pushing Texas A&M to do more for victims on campus and setting the tone for a national conversation.
“A&M has a chance to be fearless on every front and to be fearless in the face of such horrible things that are happening to victims,” Poe said.
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