,i #aagth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #ecif ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,september #bh1 #bjba,mrs4 ,dingell 7for herself and ,mrs4 ,hayes7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,education and ,labor ,a ,,bill ,to amend title ,,ix of the ,education ,amendments of #aigb to establish standards of liability for harassment on the basis of sex1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,title ,,ix ,take ,responsibility ,act of #bjba4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,as the ,supreme ,court has held in ,franklin v4 ,gwinnett ,county ,public ,schools1 #ejc ,u4,s4 #fj1 #ge 7#aiib71 and ,davis v4 ,monroe ,county ,board of ,education1 #ebf ,u4,s4 #fbi1 #fcc 7#aiii71 covered entities are liable for harassment on the basis of sex under their education programs and activities under title ,,ix of the ,education ,amendments of #aigb 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #abfha et seq47 7referred to in this ,act as title ,,ix74 7#b7 ,as courts have properly recognized1 experiencing the effects of sexual harassment under an education program or activity1 whether perpetrated by employees or agents of the program or activity1 by peers of the victim1 or by others1 can be a form of unlawful and intentional discrimination that inflicts substantial harm on beneficiaries of the program or activity and violates the obligation of a covered entity to maintain a nondiscriminatory environment4 7#c7 ,title ,,ix protects persons1 of any gender1 from discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs and activities that receive ,federal funding4 ,supreme ,court opinions have established that under title ,,ix1 schools are responsible for addressing sexual harassment1 regardless of the location of the harassment1 when it impacts a person's access to an educational program or activity4 7#d7 ,perpetrators of sexual harassment and violence at school are not limited to students4 ,incidents have also involved faculty1 administrators1 coaches1 and other staff members4 7#e7 ,a school culture that tolerates inappropriate verbal and physical contact and that intentionally or unintentionally discourages reporting these behaviors undermines the emotional1 intellectual1 and professional growth of millions of young people4 7#f7 ,sexual harassment of students1 especially among women and girls1 students of color1 disabled students1 and ,,lgbtq students1 is widely prevalent in ,k-#ab and higher education1 for example3 7,a7 ,one in #e girls ages #ad through #ah have been kissed or touched without their consent1 #eh percent of ,,lgbtq youth ages #ac through #ba are sexually harassed1 and children with disabilities are #b4i times more likely than their peers to be sexually assaulted4 7,b7 ,historically marginalized and underrepresented groups are more likely to experience sexual harassment than their peers1 with ,native ,american1 ,black1 and ,latina girls being more likely than ,white girls to be forced to have sex when they do not want to do so4 7,c7 ,in college1 #a in #d women1 #a in #ae men1 and #a in #d transgender1 nonbinary1 and gender-nonconforming students are sexually assaulted during their time as undergraduates4 7,d7 ,one in #c college women and #a in #f college men are survivors of dating violence or domestic violence4 7#g7 ,few students report harassment to their schools1 often because of shame or self-blame1 fear of retaliation1 fear of being ignored or disciplined1 fear of police or immigration officials1 or lack of knowledge of services schools can offer to help4 7#h7 ,failure to meaningfully enforce title ,,ix leads to discrimination by creating a hostile learning environment that impedes educational attainment1 damages rights to equal access to education1 and undermines learning for all4 7#i7 ,when schools fail to protect survivors1 including by offering supportive measures that are designed to preserve and to restore their equal access to education1 survivors often suffer in the form of lower academic achievement1 lost scholarships1 and lost degrees4 7#aj7 ,current title ,,ix regulations issued by the ,secretary of ,education entitled ,nondiscrimination on the ,basis of ,sex in ,education ,programs or ,activities ,receiving ,federal ,financial ,assistance 7#he ,fed4 ,reg4 #cjjbf1 ,may #ai1 #bjbj7 have made it more difficult for student survivors to report harassment and receive help and pose uniquely burdensome procedures for cases of sexual harassment that are not required for any other type of student or staff misconduct1 only further sweeping sexual violence under the rug4 7#aa7 ,title ,,ix's language is broad and sweeping1 making clear ,congress' intent to open the courthouse doors to victims of a wide range of sex discrimination in schools4 ,however1 since title ,,ix's passage1 courts have created barriers that make it extraordinarily difficult for survivors to obtain redress from schools through private litigation4 7#ab7 ,in a #e to #d opinion in ,gebser v4 ,lago ,vista ,independent ,school ,district1 #ebd ,u4,s4 #bgd 7#aiih71 the ,supreme ,court held that students subjected to sexual harassment may receive a damages remedy under title ,,ix only when school officials have actual notice of the harassment and are deliberately indifferent1 or respond in a clearly unreasonable manner1 to it4 7#ac7 ,although they do not affect the relevant standards for individuals to obtain injunctive and equitable relief for harassment on the basis of race1 color1 sex1 national origin1 age1 or disability under covered programs and activities1 ,gebser and similar opinions severely limit the availability of remedies for such individuals by imposing new1 more stringent standards for recovery of damages under title ,,ix4 ,yet in many cases1 damages are the only remedy that would effectively rectify past harassment4 7#ad7 ,these limitations on effective relief thwart ,congress' underlying purpose to protect students from harassment1 and they create prohibitively high standards for title ,,ix sexual harassment lawsuits that are more onerous than those applicable to workplace sexual harassment lawsuits under title ,,vii of the ,civil ,rights ,act of #aifd 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bjjj;e et seq474 ,as a result1 schools are required to do less to address harassment against their students than to address the same harassment of their employees1 meaning that students1 who are children and young adults1 must suffer worse harassment than adult employees before they are entitled to a remedy in court4 7#ae7 ,some lower courts have added additional onerous barriers under which a school is only liable for its failure to address known sexual harassment if the victim later experiences further actionable sexual harassment4 7#af7 ,a ,federal court of appeals opinion in ,kollaritsch v4 ,michigan ,state ,university ,board of ,trustees1 #idd ,f4#c;d #fac1 #fba-bd 7#fth ,cir4 #bjai71 went so far as to foreclose money damages if a victim of sexual harassment does not experience further actionable harassment as a result of the recipient's deficient response to a complaint1 even if the recipient's conduct causes educational injuries under title ,,ix4 7#ag7 ,gebser and subsequent opinions create an incentive for covered entities to insulate themselves from knowledge of harassment on the basis of sex rather than adopting and enforcing practices that will minimize the danger of such harassment4 ,the opinions thus undermine the purpose of prohibitions on discrimination in the civil rights laws to induce covered programs or activities to adopt and enforce practices that will minimize the danger that vulnerable students or other persons will be exposed to such odious behavior4 7#ah7 ,legislative action is necessary and appropriate to reverse ,gebser and other court opinions and restore the availability of a full range of remedies for harassment based on sex4 7#ai7 ,restoring the availability of a full range of remedies for harassment will-- 7,a7 ensure that students and other persons of federally funded programs and activities have protection from harassment on the basis of sex2 7,b7 encourage covered entities to adopt and enforce meaningful policies and procedures to prevent and remedy harassment2 7,c7 deter incidents of harassment2 and 7,d7 provide appropriate remedies for discrimination4 #c4 ,prohibition of harassment 7a7 ,prohibition of harassment ,section #ija of the ,education ,amendments of #aigb 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #afha7 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7d7 ,prohibition of harassment 7#a7 ,if an agent or an employee of a covered entity engages in harassment1 regardless of where the harassment occurs1 on the basis of sex1 which is enabled or assisted by the authority exercised as an employee or agent of the covered entity1 against a person who is participating in or receiving benefits1 services1 or opportunities from an education program or activity1 or who is attempting to do so1 and the harassment alters the aggrieved person's ability to do so1 including by creating an intimidating1 hostile1 or offensive environment1 the covered entity is liable for sex discrimination4 7#b7 7,a7 ,if a person who is an agent or employee of a covered entity engages in harassment1 regardless of where the harassment occurs1 on the basis of sex against a person who is participating in or receiving benefits1 services1 or opportunities from an education program or activity or who is attempting to do so-- 7i7 the harassment is not enabled or assisted by the authority exercised as an employee or agent of the covered entity2 7ii7 the harassment alters the aggrieved person's ability to participate in or receive benefits1 services1 or opportunities from an education program or activity1 including by creating an intimidating1 hostile1 or offensive environment2 and 7iii7 the covered entity knew1 or in the exercise of reasonable care should have known1 of the harassment1 then the covered entity is liable for sex discrimination unless it can demonstrate that it exercised reasonable care to promptly prevent and correct the effects of any harassment based on sex4 7,b7 ,if a person who is not an agent or employee of a covered entity engages in harassment1 regardless of where the harassment occurs1 on the basis of sex against a person who is participating in or receiving benefits1 services1 or opportunities from an education program or activity or who is attempting to do so1 and the harassment alters the aggrieved person's ability to do so1 including by creating an intimidating1 hostile1 or offensive environment1 and the covered entity knew1 or in the exercise of reasonable care should have known1 of the harassment1 then the covered entity is liable for sex discrimination unless it can demonstrate that it exercised reasonable care to promptly prevent and correct the effects of any harassment based on sex4 7,c7 ,a covered entity shall exercise reasonable care in response to harassment based on sex if any of the following individuals knew1 or in the exercise of reasonable care should have known1 about the harassment3 7i7 ,an agent or employee who has the authority to take action to redress the harassment4 7ii7 ,an agent or employee who has the duty to report to an administrator harassment or any other misconduct by others4 7iii7 ,an individual who a harassment victim or reporting party could reasonably believe has this authority or responsibility4 7,d7 ,a showing that the covered entity has exercised reasonable care to promptly prevent and correct the effects of any harassment based on sex includes a demonstration by the covered entity that it has-- 7i7 established1 adequately publicized1 and enforced an effective and comprehensive harassment prevention policy and complaint procedure that is likely to provide redress and avoid harm without exposing the person subjected to the harassment to undue risk1 effort1 or expense2 7ii7 if requested by the aggrieved person or otherwise deemed necessary to protect the aggrieved person or other persons within the program or activity from a significant ongoing threat1 undertaken a prompt1 thorough1 and impartial investigation1 unless the allegations are patently frivolous2 7iii7 provided supportive measures that had the purpose and effect of preserving and restoring the aggrieved person's equal access to the education program or activity1 regardless of whether the aggrieved person requested an investigation2 and 7iv7 after receiving notice1 taken other necessary1 immediate1 and appropriate corrective action designed to stop the harassment that occurred and correct its effects1 regardless of whether the aggrieved person experienced subsequent harassment4 4 7b7 ,civil action ,section #ijb of the ,education ,amendments of #aigb 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #afhb7 is amended-- 7#a7 by inserting 7a7 before ,each ,federal department and agency which is empowered2 and 7#b7 by adding at the end the following3 7b7 ,any person aggrieved by the failure of a covered entity to comply with this title1 including any regulation promulgated pursuant to this title1 may bring a civil action in any court of competent jurisdiction to enforce such person's rights4 4 7c7 ,actions brought by aggrieved persons ,title ,,ix of the ,education ,amendments of #aigb 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #afha et4 seq47 is amended by inserting after section #ijb the following3 #ijb;,a4 ,actions brought by or on behalf of aggrieved persons ,in an action brought against a covered entity by 7including on behalf of7 an aggrieved person who has been subjected to discrimination prohibited under this title 7including its implementing regulations71 the plaintiff may recover equitable and legal relief 7including compensatory and punitive damages71 and attorney's fees 7including expert fees74 4