,i #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #aeic ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,april #ag1 #bjac ,ms4 ,speier 7for herself1 ,mr4 ,andrews1 ,ms4 ,bass1 ,mr4 ,becerra1 ,mr4 ,bera of ,california1 ,mr4 ,blumenauer1 ,ms4 ,bonamici1 ,mr4 ,brady of ,pennsylvania1 ,mr4 ,braley of ,iowa1 ,ms4 ,brown of ,florida1 ,mr4 ,butterfield1 ,mr4 ,capuano1 ,mr4 ,carson of ,indiana1 ,mr4 ,cartwright1 ,ms4 ,castor of ,florida1 ,ms4 ,chu1 ,mr4 ,cicilline1 ,ms4 ,clarke1 ,mr4 ,clay1 ,mr4 ,cleaver1 ,mr4 ,cohen1 ,mr4 ,connolly1 ,mr4 ,conyers1 ,mr4 ,crowley1 ,mr4 ,cummings1 ,mr4 ,danny ,k4 ,davis of ,illinois1 ,mr4 ,de,fazio1 ,ms4 ,de,gette1 ,ms4 ,de,lauro1 ,mr4 ,delaney1 ,mr4 ,doggett1 ,ms4 ,edwards1 ,mr4 ,ellison1 ,ms4 ,eshoo1 ,mr4 ,farr1 ,mr4 ,fattah1 ,ms4 ,frankel of ,florida1 ,mr4 ,garamendi1 ,mr4 ,al ,green of ,texas1 ,mr4 ,grijalva1 ,mr4 ,gutierrez1 ,ms4 ,hahn1 ,mr4 ,hastings of ,florida1 ,mr4 ,holt1 ,mr4 ,honda1 ,mr4 ,huffman1 ,ms4 ,jackson ,lee1 ,mr4 ,johnson of ,georgia1 ,mr4 ,jones1 ,ms4 ,kaptur1 ,mr4 ,keating1 ,mr4 ,kind1 ,ms4 ,lee of ,california1 ,mr4 ,lewis1 ,mr4 ,levin1 ,mr4 ,ben ,ray ,lujn of ,new ,mexico1 ,mrs4 ,carolyn ,b4 ,maloney of ,new ,york1 ,mr4 ,markey1 ,ms4 ,matsui1 ,mrs4 ,mc,carthy of ,new ,york1 ,ms4 ,mc,collum1 ,mr4 ,mc,govern1 ,mr4 ,mc,nerney1 ,mr4 ,george ,miller of ,california1 ,ms4 ,moore1 ,mrs4 ,napolitano1 ,ms4 ,norton1 ,mr4 ,payne1 ,mr4 ,perlmutter1 ,ms4 ,pingree of ,maine1 ,mr4 ,polis1 ,mr4 ,quigley1 ,mr4 ,rangel1 ,mr4 ,rahall1 ,ms4 ,roybal-,allard1 ,ms4 ,schakowsky1 ,ms4 ,schwartz1 ,mr4 ,schrader1 ,mr4 ,thompson of ,california1 ,mr4 ,thompson of ,mississippi1 ,mr4 ,tierney1 ,ms4 ,titus1 ,mr4 ,tonko1 ,mr4 ,walz1 ,ms4 ,waters1 ,mr4 ,welch1 ,ms4 ,wilson of ,florida1 and ,mr4 ,larson of ,connecticut7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,armed ,services ,a ,,bill ,to amend title #aj1 ,united ,states ,code1 to improve the prevention of and response to sexual assault in the ,armed ,forces by establishing a ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,council and an enhanced ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office and by requiring the appointment of a ,director of ,military ,prosecutions for sexual-related offenses committed by a member of the ,armed ,forces1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,sexual ,assault ,training ,oversight and ,prevention ,act or the ,,stop ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,the ,department of ,defense conducted a survey of members of the ,armed ,forces serving on active duty that revealed that only #ac4e percent of such members reported incidents of sexual assault1 which means that more than #ai1jjj incidents of sexual assault of members of the ,armed ,forces actually occurred in #bjaj alone4 7#b7 ,despite modest attempts1 the ,department of ,defense has failed to address the chronic under reporting of incidents of sexual assault and harassment1 as by the ,department's own estimates1 #hf percent of sexual assaults went unreported in #bjaj4 7#c7 ,the military adjudication system itself lacks independence1 as military judges depend on command1 and members of the ,armed ,forces have only limited access to civilian courts to address their grievances4 7#d7 ,the ,cox ,commission1 sponsored by the ,national ,institute of ,military ,justice1 as well as several other actors1 have consistently observed that the ,united ,states has fallen behind countries such as ,canada and the ,united ,kingdom in terms of its military justice system4 7#e7 ,the military atmosphere is not conducive to resolving issues of sexual assault and harassment1 and sexual violence continues to infect the ,armed ,forces4 7#f7 ,the culture of the ,united ,states ,armed ,forces is based on the chain of command4 ,in a case of sexual assault1 a commander may be responsible for both the victim and the offender1 or both of their units1 or the entire base or ship where the offense occurred4 ,command discretion empowers a commander to decide if the case goes forward to court martial4 ,the great deference afforded command discretion raises serious concerns about conflicts of interest and the potential for abuse of power4 #c4 ,department of ,defense ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,council 7a7 ,in general ,chapter #g of title #aj1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by adding at the end the following new section3 #ahi4 ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,council 7a7 ,establishment2 membership ,there is a ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,council 7hereinafter in this section referred to as the ,council74 ,composed of a majority of civilians this ,council shall be independent from the chain of command within the ,department of ,defense4 7b7 ,membership 7#a7 ,the membership of the ,council is comprised of individuals selected by the ,president and the ,secretary of ,defense who are governmental and nongovernmental experts and professionals in the judicial and sexual assault fields as follows3 7,a7 ,two members shall be appointed by the ,secretary of the ,defense from among the ,department of ,defense personnel who have previously served as military judges in courts-martial cases relating to sexual assault4 7,b7 ,one member shall be appointed by the ,president from among the ,department of ,justice personnel with expertise in prosecuting cases of sexual assault4 7,c7 ,one member shall be appointed by the ,president who shall have extensive experience advocating for the rights of those sexually assaulted while serving in the ,armed ,forces4 7,d7 ,one member shall be appointed by the ,president who shall have extensive expertise adjudicating civilian cases of sexual assault4 7#b7 ,members shall be appointed for a term of three years1 except that a member of the ,council appointed to fill a vacancy occurring before the end of the term for which the member's predecessor was appointed shall only serve until the end of such term4 ,a member may serve after the end of the member's term until the member's successor takes office4 7c7 ,chairman2 meetings 7#a7 ,the ,council shall elect a chair from among its members4 7#b7 ,the ,council shall meet not less often than once every year4 7d7 ,administrative provisions 7#a7 ,each member of the ,council who is not an officer or employee of the ,federal ,government shall be compensated at a rate equal to the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for ,executive ,schedule ,level ,,iv under section #ecae of title #e1 for each day 7including travel time7 during which such member is engaged in the performance of the duties of the ,council4 ,members of the ,council who are officers or employees of the ,united ,states shall serve without compensation in addition to that received for their services as officers or employees of the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,the members of the ,council shall be allowed travel expenses1 including per diem in lieu of subsistence1 at rates authorized for employees of agencies under subchapter ,i of chapter #eg of title #e1 while away from their homes or regular places of business in the performance of services for the board4 7e7 ,responsibilities ,the ,council shall be responsible for the following matters3 7#a7 ,appointing certain personnel to the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office and advising the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office4 7#b7 ,appointing1 in consultation with the ,secretary of ,defense1 the ,director of ,military ,prosecutions4 7#c7 ,appointing1 in consultation with the ,president and the ,secretary of ,defense1 the ,executive ,director of the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office4 7#d7 ,reviewing each request of the ,director of ,military ,prosecutions with respect to a case stemming from a sexual-related offense that has been referred to an appellate court within the military or that has been referred to the ,department of ,justice4 7#e7 ,submitting to the ,secretary of ,defense1 ,congress1 and the ,attorney ,general a report on each request by the ,director of ,military ,prosecutions for a referral to a higher court4 7#f7 ,advising the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office on-- 7,a7 the development of sexual assault reporting protocols2 7,b7 the development of sexual assault risk-reduction and response training2 7,c7 the development of sexual assault policy2 and 7,d7 the effectiveness of the ,director of ,military ,prosecution4 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is amended by adding at the end the following new item3 #ahi4 ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,council4 4 #d4 ,department of ,defense ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office 7a7 ,in general ,chapter #d of title #aj1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by adding at the end the following new section3 #ade4 ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office 7a7 ,establishment ,there is in the ,department a ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office 7in this section referred to as the ,office74 ,the head of the ,office is the ,executive ,director of the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office1 who shall be appointed by the ,secretary of ,defense1 in consultation with the ,president4 7b7 ,responsibilities ,the ,office shall be responsible for the following3 7#a7 ,coordination with appropriate military criminal investigative organizations to carry out investigations of accusations of sexual assault4 7#b7 ,coordination and oversight of the provision of the three fundamental rights of victims of sexual assault1 safety1 security1 and a place to communicate and to be validated4 7#c7 ,determining whether alleged victims or alleged perpetrators of sexual assault should be temporarily reassigned to be separated from the alleged assailant4 7#d7 ,establishing protocols to ensure that all reports of sexual assault are taken out of the chain of command and reported directly to the ,office4 7#e7 ,providing instruction in referring alleged victims of sexual assault to the ,office to the following personnel3 7,a7 ,sexual assault coordinators4 7,b7 ,sexual assault prevention and response victim advocates4 7,c7 ,health care personnel4 7,d7 ,chaplains4 7,e7 ,unit commanders4 7,f7 ,investigators and law enforcement personnel4 7,g7 ,judge advocates4 7#f7 ,maintaining the ,military ,sexual ,registry under section #efc of the ,duncan ,hunter ,national ,defense ,authorization ,act for ,fiscal ,year #bjji 7,public ,law #aaj-dag74 7c7 ,coordination of training ,the ,executive ,director shall coordinate the training efforts of the ,office with each of the military departments to ensure that all members of the ,armed ,forces receive-- 7#a7 the contact information for the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office for purposes of reporting violations of sexual-related offenses2 and 7#b7 clear1 written guidelines regarding who on the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office to contact1 including the direct telephone number for a victims' advocate1 and what steps to take in the event of a sexual assault4 7d7 ,personnel ,for the purposes of carrying out the responsibilities of the ,office1 the ,executive ,director of the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office1 in consultation with the ,sexual ,assault ,response ,council established under section #ahh of this title1 may select1 appoint1 and employ such officers and employees as may be necessary1 subject to the provisions of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 governing appointments in the competitive service1 and the provisions of chapter #ea and subchapter ,,iii of chapter #ec of such title1 relating to classification and ,general ,schedule pay rates4 7e7 ,inspector ,general reviews ,the ,inspector ,general shall conduct case reviews of a statistically significant number of cases involving allegations of sexual assault on a quarterly basis to determine if proper procedures were followed in accordance with the sexual assault protocols and guidelines within the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office4 7f7 ,report to ,congress ,the ,executive ,director shall submit to ,congress an annual report on sexual assault in the ,armed ,forces4 7g7 ,definition of military criminal investigative organization ,in this section1 the term military criminal investigative organization means the ,army ,criminal ,investigation ,command1 the ,naval ,criminal ,investigative ,service1 and the ,air ,force ,office of ,special ,investigations4 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is amended by adding at the end the following new item3 #ade4 ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office4 4 7c7 ,transfer of function ,all functions and personnel of the ,sexual ,assault ,prevention and ,response ,office of the ,department of ,defense1 as of the date of the enactment of this ,act1 shall be transferred to the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,office established by section #ade of title #aj1 ,united ,states ,code1 as added by subsection 7a74 #e4 ,director of ,military ,prosecutions 7a7 ,in general ,chapter #dg of title #aj1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by inserting after section #idj the following new section3 #idj;,a4 ,art4 #adj;,a4 ,director of ,military ,prosecutions 7a7 ,appointment ,there is a ,director of ,military ,prosecutions who shall be appointed by the ,sexual ,assault ,oversight and ,response ,council established under section #ahi of this title4 7b7 ,responsibilities 7#a7 ,notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter1 the ,director of ,military ,prosecutions shall have independent and final authority to oversee the prosecution of all sexual-related offenses committed by a member of the armed forces4 7#b7 ,the ,director of ,military ,prosecutions shall refer sexual-related offenses to be tried by courts-martial4 ,the ,director may consult with relevant commanding officers and refer less serious offenses1 as determined by the ,director1 to a commanding officer for non-judicial punishment pursuant to section #hae of this title 7article #ae74 7#c7 ,the ,director of ,military ,prosecutions shall be the convening authority for all sexual-related offenses and shall determine the type of court-martial to which each such case will be referred4 ,members of a court-martial shall be selected by a court-martial administrator at the request of the ,director4 7c7 ,sexual-,related offense ,in this section1 the term sexual-related offense means-- 7#a7 rape2 7#b7 sexual assault2 7#c7 aggravated sexual contact2 7#d7 abusive sexual contact2 7#e7 indecent assault2 7#f7 nonconsensual sodomy2 7#g7 any other sexual-related offense the ,secretary of ,defense determines should be covered by this section2 and 7#h7 an attempt to commit an offense described in a preceding paragraph4 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section #idj the following new item3 #idj;,a4 ,art4 #adj;,a4 ,director of ,military ,prosecutions4 4