A bill that would require post-secondary institutions that receive state funding to form trauma-informed response training for sexual assault, domestic and intimate partner violence and other issues passed the House early Sunday morning after a lengthy debate.
The bill passed after 3 a.m. on a 44-16 vote after three hours of debate.
The bill also mandates that every incoming student would be made aware of these services as well as being made aware of an affirmative consent standard before sexual activity. Bill supporters referred to this as “yes means yes” instead of “no means no.”
“The reason we have landed on post-secondary education is because of some of the events that happened with the Aggie basketball team last year with the sexual assault of players by older players and we thought that this was the time to have something in post-secondary education,” bill sponsor Rep. Liz Thomson, D-Albuquerque, said.
The bill had 19 cosponsors.
“We have a different bill here tonight than we’ve had in the past,” bill co-sponsor Gail Chasey, D-Albuquerque, said.
Chasey said that rather than imposing penalties, this bill “require that post-secondary institutions that receive public funding implement policies that are clear for the students so that all of the students in school, male and female, become aware of what the expectations are and really try to eliminate gray areas so that students feel safer on campus.”
The bill would also require post-secondary institutions to provide counseling, health care, mental health care, complainant advocacy, legal assistance and more to both complainants and responding parties.
Much of the debate came from Rep. Andrea Reeb, R-Clovis, who is a former prosecutor. She expressed concerns that some of the processes laid out could affect a criminal proceeding.
Thomson explained that the bill did not have anything to do with criminal proceedings and that much of what Reeb spoke about was guided by processes outlined in the federal Title IX standards.
Mark Duncan, R-Kirtland, attempted to amend the bill to require that universities must refer “any allegation of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence or harassment or stalking” to police.
“We can’t legally have mandatory reporting,” Thomson said.
She also said that this would discourage some people from reporting.
Duncan said that he felt there was a moral obligation to report any such allegation.
“I don’t think you can actually force a victim to report it,” Reeb said when asked about the proposal, though she said it may differ if the victim is a minor.
There is already mandatory reporting if the victim is a minor, Chasey explained.
Thomson also said it could discourage victims from coming forward.
Duncan withdrew the amendment, saying that it was not accurately written.
Many institutions, according to the bill’s Fiscal Impact Report, said that they already fulfilled many requirements of the bill, but that there could be some additional costs.
