S 0296 General Bill, By M.T. Rose
 A Bill to amend the Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, by adding Chapter
 139 to Title 59 so as to provide for the Campus Safety and Security
 Information Act and to provide penalties for violations.

   11/05/90  Senate Prefiled
   11/05/90  Senate Referred to Committee on Education
   01/08/91  Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-103
   01/08/91  Senate Referred to Committee on Education SJ-103

A BILL

TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING CHAPTER 139 TO TITLE 59 SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY SECURITY INFORMATION ACT AND TO PROVIDE PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS.

Whereas, rape is the most frequently committed violent crime in the United States. The Federal Bureau of Investigations estimates that someone is raped every two minutes; and

Whereas, most rape and sexual assaults are committed by people who are acquainted with or related to their victim; and

Whereas, no one asks to be raped. Only four percent of all rapes have anything to do with the way a woman dressed; and

Whereas, only two percent of all rape charges are unfounded; and

Whereas, rape and sexual assaults are acts of violence and expressions of dominance. Seventy percent of rapes and assaults are planned; and

Whereas, rape can happen anywhere. More than fifty percent of rapes and sexual assaults take place in the residence of the victim or attacker; and

Whereas, acquaintance rape and date rape occur more frequently on college campuses than does rape by strangers; and

Whereas, research on college women indicates twenty percent of the female population has been sexually coerced by acquaintances. In a survey, over thirty percent of men admitted to using physical force or emotional pressure to obtain sexual favors; and

Whereas, twenty-five percent of women in college have been the victims of rape or attempted rape. Eighty-four percent of these victims knew their assailants, and only five percent reported their rapes to the police; and

Whereas, as individuals we are shocked and horrified when we learn that someone we know or someone in our community has been raped or sexually assaulted or when the annual statistics on the incidents are reported; and

Whereas, the frequency with which rape and sexual assault occur suggests that we, as individuals and as a society, are ambivalent about the social/sexual milieu in which rape and sexual assault occur and which even fosters the incidents. That milieu, one in which women's sexuality often becomes the center of attention, also fosters sexual harassment; and

Whereas, campus violence reporting procedures of institutions of higher learning often are flawed. Too often they are torn between the bad publicity that violent incidents create and the need to provide an accurate picture of campus conditions; and

Whereas, the members of the General Assembly hope to address this serious problem by enacting the College and University Security Information Act. Now, therefore,

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1. Title 59 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

Section 59-139-10. This chapter is known as the College and University Security Information Act.

Section 59-139-20. This chapter applies to institutions of higher learning and their branches and post-secondary business, trade, and technical education institutions in this State.

Section 59-139-30. Each institution annually shall report to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division crime statistics for publication in a report on crime to be developed by the division on forms and in the format the division requires.

Section 59-139-40. Each institution shall publish and distribute a report which must be updated annually and which must include the crime statistics as reported under Section 59-139-30 for the most recent three-year period. Crime rates also must be included in the report. The crime rates reported must be based on the numbers and categories of crimes reported under Section 59-139-30 and the number of undergraduate and graduate students and employees at the institution. Upon request, the institution shall provide the report to every person who submits an application for admission to the institution and to each new employee at the time of employment. In its acknowledgment of receipt of the application of admission, the institution shall notify the applicant of the availability of the information. The information also must be provided annually to all students and employees. Institutions with more than one campus shall provide the required information to each campus.

Section 59-139-50. Each institution shall provide to every person who submits an application for admission and to every new employee at the time of employment and annually to all students and employees information regarding the institution's security policies and procedures. Institutions with more than one campus shall provide the information to each campus. The information for the most recent school year must include, but is not limited to:

( 1) the number of undergraduate and graduate students enrolled;

( 2) the number of undergraduate and graduate students living in student housing;

( 3) the total number of nonstudent employees working on the campus;

( 4) the administrative office responsible for security on the campus;

( 5) a description of the type and number of security personnel utilized by the institution, including a description of their training;

( 6) the enforcement authority of security personnel, including their working relationship with state and local law enforcement agencies;

( 7) the policy on reporting criminal incidents to state and local law enforcement agencies;

( 8) the policy regarding access to institutional facilities and programs by students, employees, guests, and other individuals;

( 9) the procedures and facilities for students and others to report criminal actions or other emergencies occurring on campus and policies concerning the institution's response to the reports;

(10) a statement of policy regarding the possession, use, and sale of alcoholic beverages;

(11) a statement of policy regarding the possession, use, and sale of illegal drugs;

(12) a statement of policy regarding the possession and use of weapons by security personnel and any other person;

(13) the policy regarding students or employees with criminal records;

(14) the security considerations used in the maintenance of campus facilities, including landscaping, groundskeeping, and outdoor lighting;

(15) a description of the communication mediums used to inform the campus community about security matters as well as the frequency with which the information usually is provided.

Section 59-139-60. An institution which maintains student housing facilities shall include in the information required by Section 59-139-50:

(1) the types of student housing available including, but not limited to, on-campus; off-campus; single, double, group, single sex, and coed; undergraduate; graduate; and married;

(2) the policy on housing assignments and requests by students for assignment changes;

(3) the policy concerning the identification and admission of visitors in student housing facilities;

(4) the measures to secure entrances to student housing facilities;

(5) the standard security features used to secure doors and windows in students' rooms;

(6) a description of the type and number of employees, including security personnel, assigned to the student housing facilities which must include a description of their security training;

(7) the type and frequency of programs designed to inform student housing residents about housing security and enforcement procedures;

(8) the policy and special security procedures for housing students during low-occupancy periods such as holidays and vacation periods;

(9) the policy on the housing of guests and others not assigned to the student housing or not regularly associated with the institution.

Section 59-139-70. The State Board of Education may promulgate the regulations necessary to carry out this chapter.

Section 59-139-80. When the State Board of Education has reason to believe that an institution is violating this chapter, it shall request the Attorney General, solicitor, or appropriate official having jurisdiction in the circuit or county in which the institution is located to bring a civil action for appropriate relief. If the court finds that the institution wilfully is violating or wilfully has violated this article the board may recover a civil penalty of not more than ten thousand dollars for each violation."

SECTION 2. This act takes effect January 1, 1991, except for Section 59-139-70, as contained in Section 1, which takes effect upon approval by the Governor.