10/08/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/08/2025 14:40
WASHINGTON - Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) reintroduced the Campus Accountability and Safety Act (CASA) to help combat sexual assault on college and university campuses. The bipartisan legislation would improve the way institutions of higher education address and report incidents of sexual assault that take place on their campuses, and it would protect both survivors and accused students by ensuring that schools have a uniform and fair process for investigating and conducting campus disciplinary proceedings. The legislation would also create new resources and support services for survivors and set new notification requirements for both survivors and accused students involved in the campus disciplinary process.
"Across America, inconsistent enforcement mechanisms are failing to treat sexual assault crimes with the seriousness they deserve. We're taking action to change that. Our legislation creates a coordinated approach to address incidents of sexual assault on college campuses. It would inform university protocols for handling reports, and it would strengthen recovery resources for survivors and empower them to know their rights," Grassley said.
"Sexual assault on college campuses remains a serious and persistent problem, and it is up to us in Congress to protect survivors and make sure these crimes are handled with fairness," Gillibrand said. "The bipartisan Campus Accountability and Safety Act would strengthen the support network for survivors and increase accountability for schools by creating a standardized process for investigating instances of sexual assault. This will help survivors get the justice they deserve and ensure a fair process for everyone involved. I'm proud to lead this legislation and committed to working across the aisle to get it passed."
Specifically, CASA would:
Background:
Grassley and Gillibrand first introduced CASA in 2014 and have consistently pushed for its passage. Grassley and Gillibrand also teamed up on the Speak Out Act - which was passed in 2022 - to clarify nondisclosure agreements cannot prohibit survivors from speaking out about sexual assault or harassment.
During the 117th Congress, Grassley and Gillibrand led the effort to fundamentally change the military justice system. They successfully included language in the FY2022 and 2023 defense bills to remove judicial functions and prosecutorial decisions from the chain of command for certain serious crimes, including sexual assault and domestic violence, and put them in the hands of professional military prosecutors.
Grassley and Gillibrand also led the bipartisan Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act to passage in 2022. This crucial legislation prevents perpetrators from being able to push survivors of sexual harassment and sexual assault into the secretive, biased process of forced arbitration.
Grassley is a leading advocate for survivors. After news of USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar's sexual abuse charges broke, Grassley chaired the first ever congressional hearing to protect young athletes. Soon after, he authored bipartisan legislation to bolster federal sex tourism statutes that had been too weak to convict Nassar. The bill was signed into law as part of the Fiscal Year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act.
-30-