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NEW YORK (AP) — New York's public university system is the first to support a bipartisan federal effort that would strengthen colleges and universities' assistance for sexual assault victims while establishing penalties for non-compliance.
U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and State University of New York officials are set to announce SUNY's support Wednesday in Manhattan.
The New York Democrat is a primary backer of the Campus Accountability and Safety Act.
The bill creates new standards for training and calls for an anonymous annual survey of students to provide a full accounting of campus sexual assaults at colleges and universities.
College campuses reported nearly 5,000 forcible sex offenses in 2012. New York colleges reported 365 of them.
SUNY is the largest university system in the U.S. with nearly a half-million students at more than 60 campuses.
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