The Stop Campus Hazing Act, signed into law by President Biden on December 24, 2024, creates new requirements related to the monitoring of and reporting on hazing incidents, as well as development of policies and strategies for hazing prevention. A number of deadlines related to the reporting obligations are looming, meaning institutions must start planning now in order to comply with the new law.

For purposes of the Act, “hazing” is defined broadly as an incident that:

1. is committed during the course of initiation into or maintaining membership in a student organization, including clubs, Greek organizations, music groups, and athletic teams. The Act specifically states that the student organization does not have to be recognized by the institution in order to fall under the Act’s requirements—all that is required is that at least two members of the organization be enrolled at the institution; and 
2. causes or creates a risk “above the reasonable risk encountered in the course of participation in the organization” of physical or psychological injury. Examples of such conduct identified in the Act include whipping, confinement, causing a person to incur sleep deprivation, consume drugs or alcohol, or perform sexual acts, and “any activity that places another person in reasonable fear of bodily harm through the use of threatening words or conduct.”

The Act specifies that a person’s willingness to participate in the initiation or membership ritual does not excuse the institution from its obligations under the Act.

The Act creates three new reporting requirements related to hazing incidents. Colleges and universities must disclose hazing incidents that were reported to campus security or local law enforcement in its annual Clery Act reporting. Institutions are required to start collecting data on hazing incidents starting January 1, 2025, and the incidents must be included in the calendar year 2025 Clery Report submitted in 2026.

Institutions also must publish a report entitled “Campus Hazing Transparency Report” two times per year on their websites. The report must identify each hazing incident for which a finding of responsibility was issued to an established or recognized student organization. The report must describe the incident and identify the student organization involved (without violating FERPA) and must also provide the dates of the incident and commencement of investigation, and where a violation is found, the date the investigation concluded and when the student organization was notified of the finding. The first such report must be published on or before December 24, 2025, unless no incident resulting in a finding occurs in that timeframe.

Institutions will be required to maintain the information contained in each update to the Campus Hazing Transparency Report for at least five years. The institution will additionally be obligated to place a statement in a prominent location on the institution’s website that notifies the public of the annual availability of statistics on hazing.

Additionally, a statement of policy regarding hazing prevention and awareness programs must be published on the institution’s website for students, faculty, and staff. While many institutions already publish such policies, institutions will want to make sure existing policies comply with the Act as it requires institutions to include information on how to report incidents of hazing, the process used to investigate incidents of hazing, and local and state laws on hazing. It also requires a statement of policy regarding prevention and awareness programs related to hazing. Specifically, the statement of policy should include, “a description of research-informed campus-wide prevention programs designed to reach students, staff, and faculty, which includes… primary prevention strategies intended to stop hazing before hazing occurs, which may include skill building for bystander intervention, information about ethical leadership, and the promotion of strategies for building group cohesion without hazing.” The statement of policy must be published on or before June 24, 2025.

The Stop Campus Hazing Act is a comprehensive and broad-reaching statute that aims to reduce hazing on college and university campuses. Colleges and universities share this lofty goal as part of their commitment to student safety, but they will need to act quickly to ensure compliance with the Act’s requirements. Policy drafting or revision will be critical, as will tasking staff with data collection, development of hazing prevention programs, compliance with required website notifications, and creating processes for reporting and investigating hazing complaints.

This publication is intended for general information purposes only and does not and is not intended to constitute legal advice. The reader must consult with legal counsel to determine how laws or decisions discussed herein apply to the reader's specific circumstances.