[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4485 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4485

To provide for additional enhancements to the sexual assault prevention 
              and response activities of the Armed Forces.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 10, 2014

Mr. Turner (for himself and Ms. Tsongas) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition 
to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to 
      be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for additional enhancements to the sexual assault prevention 
              and response activities of the Armed Forces.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Furthering Accountability and 
Individual Rights within the Military Act of 2014'' or the ``Fair 
Military Act''.

SEC. 2. APPRAISALS OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES REGARDING COMPLIANCE 
              WITH SEXUAL ASSAULT PREVENTION AND RESPONSE PROGRAMS.

    The Secretary of a military department shall each ensure that the 
written performance appraisals of each member of the Armed Forces 
(whether an officer or enlisted member) under the jurisdiction of that 
Secretary include an assessment of the extent to which the member 
supports the sexual assault prevention and response program of the 
Armed Force concerned.

SEC. 3. PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS OF COMMANDING OFFICERS REGARDING COMMAND 
              CLIMATE.

    The Secretary of a military department shall each ensure that the 
performance appraisals of each commanding officer under the 
jurisdiction of that Secretary indicate the extent to which the 
commanding officer has or has not established a command climate in 
which--
            (1) allegations of sexual assault are properly managed and 
        fairly evaluated; and
            (2) a victim can report criminal activity, including sexual 
        assault, without fear of retaliation, including ostracism and 
        group pressure from other members of the command.

SEC. 4. MODIFICATION OF MILITARY RULES OF EVIDENCE RELATING TO 
              ADMISSIBILITY OF GENERAL MILITARY CHARACTER TOWARD 
              PROBABILITY OF INNOCENCE.

    (a) Modification Required.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, Rule 404(a) of the Military Rules of 
Evidence shall be modified to clarify that, except as provided by 
subsection (b), the general military character of an accused is not 
admissible for the purpose of showing the probability of innocence of 
the accused.
    (b) Exception.--Evidence of a trait of the military character of an 
accused may be offered in evidence by the accused when that trait is 
relevant to an element of an offense for which the accused has been 
charged.

SEC. 5. APPLICABILITY OF SEXUAL ASSAULT PREVENTION AND RESPONSE AND 
              RELATED MILITARY JUSTICE ENHANCEMENTS TO MILITARY SERVICE 
              ACADEMIES.

    (a) Military Service Academies.--The Secretary of the military 
department concerned shall ensure that the provisions of title XVII of 
the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 (Public Law 
113-66) and this Act apply to the United States Military Academy, the 
Naval Academy, and the Air Force Academy in the same manner and to the 
same extent as such title and this Act apply to an Armed Force under 
the jurisdiction of that Secretary.
    (b) Coast Guard Academy.--The Secretary of the Department in which 
the Coast Guard is operating shall ensure that the provisions of title 
XVII of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 
(Public Law 113-66) and this Act apply to the Coast Guard Academy in 
the same manner and to the same extent as such title and this Act apply 
to the Coast Guard.

SEC. 6. JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS PANEL ASSESSMENT OF USE OF MENTAL HEALTH 
              RECORDS BY DEFENSE DURING PRELIMINARY HEARING AND COURT-
              MARTIAL PROCEEDINGS.

    (a) Additional Assessments.--The independent panel established by 
the Secretary of Defense under subsection (a)(2) of section 576 of the 
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 (Public Law 
112-239; 126 Stat. 1758), known as the ``judicial proceedings panel'', 
shall conduct assessments of--
            (1) the use of mental health records by the defense during 
        preliminary hearing and court-martial proceedings; and
            (2) the use of these records in similar civilian 
        proceedings to determine whether any significant discrepancies 
        exist between the two legal systems.
    (b) Submission of Results.--The judicial proceedings panel shall 
include the results of the assessments required by subsection (a) in 
the remaining reports required by subsection (c)(2)(B) of section 576 
of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013.

SEC. 7. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REPORT ON DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE ACTIONS 
              REGARDING SEXUAL ASSAULT PREVENTION AND RESPONSE IN THE 
              ARMED FORCES.

    Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the 
Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of 
Representatives a report describing the status of the implementation of 
the sexual assault provisions contained in the National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (Public Law 112-181), the 
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 (Public Law 
112-239), and the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 
2014 (Public Law 113-66) and the sexual assault prevention initiatives 
announced in memoranda by the Secretary of Defense on May 6, 2013, and 
August 14, 2013.
                                 <all>