Trial Engrossment of Amendment A01675 to House Bill 1025 P.N. 1358, Regular Session 2023-2024

A01675

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

1025

Session of

2023

INTRODUCED BY N. NELSON, FRANKEL, McNEILL, HANBIDGE, KAZEEM,

PISCIOTTANO, PIELLI, BRIGGS, MADDEN, SANCHEZ, SCHLOSSBERG,

GUENST, HOHENSTEIN, DELLOSO, HILL-EVANS, HARKINS, FLEMING,

STURLA, WARREN, KINKEAD, FREEMAN, O'MARA, OTTEN, CEPEDA-

FREYTIZ, BOROWSKI, CERRATO, KHAN, SIEGEL, MAYES, PROBST,

ISAACSON, SCOTT, GIRAL, GALLAGHER, BENHAM, TAKAC, T. DAVIS,

SMITH-WADE-EL, SALISBURY, SAMUELSON, BRENNAN AND VITALI,

APRIL 25, 2023

AS REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, HOUSE OF

REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, MAY 24, 2023

AN ACT

Amending the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), entitled "An

act relating to the public school system, including certain

provisions applicable as well to private and parochial

schools; amending, revising, consolidating and changing the

laws relating thereto," in Safe2Say Program, further

providing for definitions and for Safe2Say Program; in

postsecondary institution sexual harassment and sexual

violence policy and online reporting system, further

providing for definitions, for policy for postsecondary

institution sexual harassment and sexual violence and for

online reporting system; and making an editorial change.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Section 1302-D of the act of March 10, 1949

(P.L.30, No.14), known as the Public School Code of 1949, is

amended by adding a definition to read:

Section 1302-D. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this article

shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

* * *

"Hate-based intimidation." A criminal act of inflicting

physical injury on another individual, harm to property or other

type of injury, which is motivated by hatred toward the actual

or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry,

sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual

orientation or disability of another individual or group of

individuals with which the other individual is associated.

* * *

Section 2. Section 1303-D(c)(1) and (2) and (d) of the act

are amended and, subsection (c) is amended by adding a paragraph

and the section is amended by adding a subsection to read:

Section 1303-D. Safe2Say Program.

* * *

program shall be responsible for the following:

(1) To ensure anonymous reporting concerning unsafe,

potentially harmful, dangerous, violent [or] and criminal

activities, including, but not limited to, the reporting of

hate-based intimidation, in a school entity or the threat of

the activities in a school entity.

(2) To establish protocols and procedures to promptly

notify the appropriate law enforcement agency via 911 centers

and the Pennsylvania State Police when the program receives

an anonymous report of violent [or] and criminal activities,

including an anonymous report of hate-based intimidation, in

a school entity that poses an immediate threat of violence or

criminal activity and creates a substantial risk of serious

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bodily injury.

* * *

(11) To train and provide instruction to employees of

school entities on how to recognize and report hate-based

intimidation BY INCORPORATING SUCH TRAINING AND INSTRUCTION

INTO CURRENT TRAINING .

(c.1) False information.--If an investigation determines

that an anonymous report of criminal activities under subsection

purpose of harassing, annoying, alarming or harming an

individual, the school entity shall, with the consent of the

individual, release a public statement on its publicly

accessible Internet website that the individual has committed no

wrongdoing and that the report contained false information and

was submitted solely for the purpose of harassing, annoying,

alarming or harming the individual.

(d) School entity.--Each school entity shall:

(1) develop procedures for assessing and responding to

reports received from the program[.]; and

(2) require each school in the school entity to

incorporate into periodic in-service training sessions

appropriate instruction in recognizing and reporting conduct,

including hate-based intimidation, that poses an immediate

threat of violence and creates a substantial risk of serious

bodily injury to any person.

Section 3. Article XX-J heading of the act is amended to

read:

ARTICLE XX-J

POSTSECONDARY INSTITUTION SEXUAL HARASSMENT [AND], SEXUAL

VIOLENCE AND HATE-BASED INTIMIDATION POLICY AND

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ONLINE REPORTING SYSTEM

Section 4. Section 2001-J of the act is amended by adding a

definition to read:

Section 2001-J. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this article

shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Hate-based intimidation." A criminal act of inflicting

physical injury on another individual, harm to property or other

type of injury, which is motivated by hatred toward the actual

or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry,

sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual

orientation or disability of another individual or group of

individuals with which the other individual is associated.

* * *

Section 5. Sections 2002-J and 2003-J of the act are amended

to read:

Section 2002-J. Policy for postsecondary institution sexual

harassment [and], sexual violence and hate-based

intimidation.

(a) Adoption.--A postsecondary institution shall adopt a

clear, understandable written policy on sexual harassment [and],

sexual violence and hate-based intimidation that informs victims

and students of their rights under Federal and State law,

including the crime victims bill of rights. No later than June

30, 2023 DECEMBER 31, 2023 , a postsecondary institution shall

amend its current policy on sexual harassment and sexual

violence to include provisions to govern hate-based

intimidation.

(b) Report.--

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(1) The sexual harassment [and], sexual violence and

hate-based intimidation policy under subsection (a) shall

include a provision that a witness or victim of an incident

of sexual harassment [or], sexual violence or hate-based

intimidation who reports the incident in good faith will not

be sanctioned by the institution for admitting in the report

to a violation of the institution's student conduct policy on

the personal use of drugs or alcohol.

(2) Nothing in this article may be construed to prohibit

a postsecondary institution from including a provision in its

sexual harassment, sexual violence and hate-based

intimidation policy to govern the receipt of reports from the

general public, provided that the public reports involve a

student of the postsecondary institution.

a model policy and make the model policy available to

postsecondary institutions. A postsecondary institution may

adopt the model policy as the policy of the institution on

sexual harassment [and], sexual violence and hate-based

intimidation.

Section 2003-J. Online reporting system.

(a) Establishment of online reporting system.--A

postsecondary institution shall establish and maintain an online

reporting system to receive complaints of sexual harassment

[and], sexual violence and hate-based intimidation from students

and employees. A report shall be investigated through the

process established in the postsecondary institution's sexual

harassment [and], sexual violence and hate-based intimidation

policy. A postsecondary institution may not fail or refuse to

investigate an anonymous report because it is anonymous.

A01675 - 5 -

(b) Anonymous reports.--The online reporting system shall

permit anonymous reports, which shall be investigated in

accordance with subsection (a).

provide students and employees making reports under this section

with the following:

(1) Information regarding who will receive and have

access to the reports filed.

(2) How information gathered through the online

reporting system will be used.

(3) Contact information for on-campus and off-campus

organizations serving victims of sexual harassment [and],

sexual violence and hate-based intimidation.

(d) Statement.--The online reporting system shall

prominently post the online system's policy regarding reports

and investigations of sexual harassment [and], sexual violence

and hate-based intimidation and shall encourage individuals to

review the policy for more information about procedures and

resources.

(e) Access to data.--A postsecondary institution shall limit

access to the data collected, created or maintained under

subsection (a) to only the data subject and as follows:

(1) Only individuals with explicit authorization from a

postsecondary institution may enter, update, access, share or

disseminate electronic data related to an incident of sexual

harassment [or], sexual violence and hate-based intimidation

collected, created or maintained under this section.

(2) The ability of an authorized individual to enter,

update, access, share or disseminate data must be limited

through the use of role-based access that corresponds to the

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official duties or training level of the individual and the

institutional authorization that grants access for that

purpose.

(3) Actions in which the data related to an incident of

sexual harassment [or], sexual violence or hate-based

intimidation are entered, updated, accessed, shared or

disseminated outside the postsecondary institution must be

recorded in a data audit trail.

(4) An institution shall immediately and permanently

revoke the authorization of an individual determined to have

willfully entered, updated, accessed, shared or disseminated

data in violation of this section.

(5) An institution or individual implementing, operating

or working for the program may not be compelled to produce a

record except pursuant to a court order.

Section 6. This act shall take effect immediately.

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