BILL REQ. #:  S-4918.3 

READ FIRST TIME 02/07/08.   

     AN ACT Relating to campus safety; amending RCW 28B.10.569; and adding a new section to chapter 28B.10 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1   RCW 28B.10.569 and 1990 c 288 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Each institution of higher education with a commissioned police force shall report to the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs or its successor agency, on a monthly basis, crime statistics for the Washington state uniform crime report, in the format required by the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs, or its successor agency. Institutions of higher education which do not have commissioned police forces shall report crime statistics through appropriate local law enforcement agencies.
     (2) Each institution of higher education shall publish and distribute a report which shall be updated annually and which shall include the crime statistics as reported under subsection (1) of this section for the most recent three-year period. Upon request, the institution shall provide the report to every person who submits an application for admission to either a main or branch campus, and to each new employee at the time of employment. In its acknowledgment of receipt of the formal application for admission, the institution shall notify the applicant of the availability of such information. The information also shall be provided on an annual basis to all students and employees. Institutions with more than one campus shall provide the required information on a campus-by-campus basis.
     (3)(a) Within existing resources, each institution of higher education shall ((provide to every new student and new employee)) make available to all students, faculty, and staff, and upon request to other interested persons, ((information which follows the general categories for safety policies and procedures outlined in this section. Such categories shall, at a minimum, include)) a campus safety plan that includes, at a minimum, the following:
     (i) Data regarding:
     (A) Campus enrollments((,));
     (B) Campus nonstudent workforce profile((,)); and
     (C) The number ((and duties)) of campus security personnel((,));
     (ii) Policies, procedures, and programs related to:
     (A) Preventing and responding to violence and other campus emergencies;
     (B) Setting the weapons policy on campus;
     (C) Controlled substances as defined in RCW 64.44.010; and
     (D) Governing student privacy;
     (iii) Information about:
     (A) Sexual assault, domestic violence, and stalking, including contact information for campus and community victim advocates, information on where to view or receive campus policies on complaints, and the name and contact information of the individual or office to whom students and employees may direct complaints of sexual assault, stalking, or domestic violence; and
     (B) Sexual harassment, including contact information for campus and community victim advocates, information on where to view or receive campus policies on complaints, and the name and contact information of the individual or office to whom students and employees may direct complaints of sexual harassment;
     (iv) Descriptions of:
     (A) Mutual assistance arrangements with state and local police((, sexual assault and domestic violence and policies on controlled substances));
     (B) Methods and options that persons with disabilities or special needs have to access services and programs;
     (C) Escort and transportation services that provide for individual security;
     (D) Mental health and counseling services available to students, faculty, and staff;
     (E) Procedures for communicating with students, faculty, staff, the public, and the media, during and following natural and nonnatural emergencies.
     ((Information)) (b) The campus safety plan shall include, for the most recent academic year ((also shall include)):
     (i) A description of ((any)) programs and services offered by ((an institution's student affairs or services department, and by student government organizations regarding)) the institution and student-sponsored organizations that provide for crime prevention and counseling((, including a directory)). The description must include a listing of the available services ((and appropriate telephone numbers and physical locations of these services. In addition)), the service locations, and how the services may be contacted; and
     (ii) For institutions maintaining student housing facilities ((shall include)), information detailing security policies and programs for those facilities.
     (c)(i) Institutions with a main campus and one or more branch campuses shall provide the information on a campus-by-campus basis.
     ((In the case of)) (ii) Community and technical colleges((, colleges)) shall provide such information ((to)) for the main campuses only, and shall provide reasonable alternative information ((at)) for any off-campus centers and ((other)) affiliated college sites enrolling ((less)) fewer than one hundred students.
     (4)(a) Each institution shall enter into memoranda of understanding that set forth responsibilities for the various local jurisdictions in the event of a campus emergency.
     (b) Each institution shall enter into mutual aid agreements with local jurisdictions regarding the shared use of equipment and technology in the event of a campus emergency.
     (c) Memoranda of understanding and mutual aid agreements shall be updated and included in campus safety plans.
     (5)(a) Each institution shall establish a task force ((which shall annually)) that examines campus security and safety issues at least annually. ((The task force shall review the report published and distributed pursuant to this section in order to ensure the accuracy and effectiveness of the report, and make any suggestions for improvement. This)) Each task force shall include representation from the institution's administration, faculty, staff, recognized student organizations, and police or security organization.
     (b) Each task force shall review the safety plan published and distributed under this section for its respective institution, in order to ensure its accuracy and effectiveness and to make any suggestions for improvement.
     (6) The president of each institution shall designate a specific individual responsible for monitoring and coordinating the institution's compliance with this section and shall ensure that contact information for this individual is made available to all students, faculty, and staff.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 28B.10 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Each institution of higher education shall take the following actions:
     (a) By October 30, 2008, submit a self-study assessing its ability to facilitate the safety of students, faculty, staff, administration, and visitors on each campus, including an evaluation of the effectiveness of these measures, an assessment of the institution's ability to disseminate information in a timely and efficient manner to students, faculty, and staff, an evaluation of the institution's ability to provide an appropriate level of mental health services, and an action plan and timelines describing plans to maximize program effectiveness for the next two biennia. Four-year institutions shall submit their studies to the higher education coordinating board. Community and technical colleges shall submit their studies to the state board for community and technical colleges.
     (b) By October 30th of each even-numbered year, beginning in 2010, each institution shall submit an update to its plan, including an assessment of the results of activities undertaken under any previous plan to address unmet safety issues, and additional activities, or modifications of current activities, to be undertaken to address remaining safety issues at the institution.
     (2) The higher education coordinating board and the state board for community and technical colleges shall report biennially, beginning December 31, 2010, to the governor and the higher education committees of the house of representatives and the senate on:
     (a) The efforts of each institution and the extent to which it has complied with RCW 28B.10.569 and subsection (1)(b) of this section; and
     (b) Recommendations on measures to assist institutions to ensure and enhance campus safety.