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A bill regarding hazing co-authored by Hays County’s two senators is well on its way to becoming law.
Sen. Donna Campbell (R-New Braunfels) and Sen. Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo) wrote Senate Bill 38 to address hazing. The bill passed out of the Texas Senate’s Criminal Justice Committee with a vote of 5-1 and passed in the Senate with a vote of 26-5. The bill also gained the approval of the House Higher Education Committee by a vote of 6-1 and is now awaiting a vote in the full House. An identical bill filed by Reps. J.M. Lozano (R-Kingsville) and John Frullo (R-Lubbock), House Bill 1482, passed out of the House Higher Education Committee with a vote of 10-1.
SB 38 would amend the state’s education code to expand the definition of hazing to include “an act coercing a student to consume an alcoholic beverage, liquor or drug,” according to an analysis of the bill. The bill would also clarify immunity regulations for people who report incidents of hazing, providing immunity for “a person who voluntarily reports the incident and conditions the grant of immunity on the person reporting the hazing incident before being contacted by the institution concerning the incident or otherwise being included in the institution's investigation of the incident and on the person cooperating in good faith throughout any institutional process regarding the incident.”
The statement of intent for SB 38 notes that there have been concerns about the “continuing prevalence of hazing at postsecondary educational institutions.”
A statement about HB 1482 reads, “There are calls for increased action and transparency with regard to hazing prevention policies at postsecondary educational institutions. … HB 1482 seeks to answer these calls by encouraging the reporting of hazing by witnesses, facilitating the prosecution of perpetrators, and improving disclosure about hazing.
Last year, Texas State University Denise Trauth suspended all fraternity and sorority activities on campus after the November 2017 death of a fraternity pledge. Matthew Ellis, who was 20 at the time of his death, attended an off-campus fraternity event and was found dead the next day. Earlier this year, Ellis’ friend Austin Rice was found guilty of providing alcohol to a minor. Rice provided Ellis with a bottle of alcohol the night before he was found dead. Rice was sentenced to two years of probation and a $500 fine plus court costs. Greek activity resumed on campus after the university developed new rules and regulations for fraternities and sororities.
