Educational Notification and Disclosure of Actions risking Loss of Life by (END ALL) Hazing Act. The END ALL Hazing Act requires each institution of higher education that receives federal student aid to maintain and update biannually a website page that discloses student organization violations of the institution’s code of conduct that threaten the safety of students. The report would detail the corrective measures imposed by the school on the student organization. This would allow students and parents to make more informed decisions about which student organizations are safe to join. States such as South Carolina and Pennsylvania have already adapted similar laws, but it would be more effective for federal law to include these disclosures to cover all schools.
END ALL HAZING ACT
REACH ACT
Report and Educate About Campus Hazing (REACH) Act. The REACH Act requires institutions of higher education (IHEs) that participate in federal student-aid programs to report hazing incidents and implement hazing education programs.
Specifically, the Act requires each IHE to disclose hazing incidents that were reported to campus officials in its annual security report. The bill defines the term hazing to mean any intentional, knowing, or reckless act committed by a student, or a former student, of an IHE against another student (regardless of that student’s willingness to participate), that (1) is connected with an initiation into, an affiliation with, or the maintenance of membership in an organization that is affiliated with the IHE (e.g., an athletic team); and (2) contributes to a substantial risk of physical injury, mental harm, or degradation or causes physical injury, mental harm, or personal degradation.
In addition, each IHE must implement a comprehensive program to prevent hazing, which must include information on hazing awareness, hazing prevention, and the IHE’s policies on hazing.
STATE LEGISLATION
Our coalition worked with prosecutors, legislators and parents to develop this model state legislation. (See more below)
Legislative News
Adam’s Law, requiring hazing prevention training in college, is signed into law
Criminal charges for hazing now harsher under law named for N.J.’s Timothy Piazza
Collin’s Law signed to stiffen hazing penalties in Ohio
State-based efforts
The Coalition is pursuing state-based anti-hazing legislation that delivers:
- Beginning with the 2020-2021 academic year, each educational institution shall maintain and publicly report actual findings of violations of the educational institution’s code of conduct or federal or state laws relating to hazing that are reported to campus authorities, local law enforcement, national organizations or any organization formally affiliated with the educational institution.
- Significantly strengthens criminal penalties and encourages prosecution. We wanted both misdemeanor and felony level hazing to be introduced. Included in the felony hazing is an automatic trigger from a specific blood alcohol content (BAC) due to high levels of alcohol consumption. We believe local/national organizations and host institutions should be held accountable for hazing when appropriate.
- There should be penalties for those who fail to seek assistance when an incident arises.
- We believe in some limited immunity for those who wish to report hazing in good faith.
- Calls for university accountability for bad actors. We recognize that each host institution has a different adjudication process. However, no matter what that process is, the host institution should also use their process to investigate individuals as well.
- Provides amnesty to encourage people to call for help.
- Each state shall develop a statewide educational plan for preventing hazing at education institutions. This includes secondary and post-secondary institutions.
- Each Department of Education shall establish a “State Anti-Hazing Fund” to collect any fines incurred from this disciplinary sections of this law. That money shall be used for grants to secondary and post-secondary schools for educational purposes.
Model State Legislation
Our coalition worked with prosecutors, legislators and parents to develop this model state legislation.