Agreement made on legislation to stop sexual assault on college campuses
Logan Reidsma | Photo Editor
Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks at SU in early May to announce additions to his Enough is Enough Campaign. Legislation to make Cuomo's bill into law was agreed upon Tuesday.
New York state is poised to pass Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s comprehensive on-campus sexual assault legislation, “Enough is Enough,” after an agreement on the bill was made by Cuomo and state legislators, Cuomo’s office announced on Tuesday.
The bill includes a definition of affirmative consent and defines it as a, “knowing, voluntary, and mutual decision among all participants to engage in sexual activity,” according to a Cuomo press release. The full New York State Legislature still has to vote on the bill.
California is the only other state that currently has an affirmative consent law in the books.
“Enough is Enough” would mandate that universities give students a Students’ Bill of Rights, which clearly states what legal rights survivors of sexual assault have in reporting to the university or to outside law enforcement, according to the release.
The bill would also enact an amnesty policy that forgives students engaging in alcohol and drug related activities if they report a sexual assault as well mandatory training for students, staff and faculty, according to the release.
New York State Police would be given $4.5 million to create a “sexual assault victims unit,” according to the release. An additional $4.5 million would go to rape crisis centers around the state and $1 million will go directly to colleges and universities.
Cuomo introduced the bill in January and has since been promoting it around the state. He visited SU on May 6 to speak about the bill and SU was one of 11 private institutions to join the campaign on that day.
“Chancellor (Kent) Syverud was the first private college or university president to endorse the Enough is Enough legislation,” said Kevin Quinn, SU’s senior vice president for public affairs, in an email. “We are proud that the Governor turned to Syracuse University for leadership on this important legislation.”
The policies have already been implemented at New York’s SUNY campuses, according to a March 16 press release from Cuomo. The Legislature’s passage of the bill would extend the law to all other public and private universities around the state.
–News Editor Justin Mattingly, [email protected], contributed reporting to this article.
Published on June 16, 2015 at 4:46 pm
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