HR-2026 : Still Just a Bill

Support Uniformed Patriots; Prevent Offenses and Restore Trust Act or the SUPPORT Act

This bill directs the Secretary of a military department to ensure that:

• the commander of each unit of the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps or Senior Reserve Officers' Training Corps and all professors of military science, senior military instructors, and civilian employees assigned or employed as administrators and instructors of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps receive sexual assault prevention and response training and education; and
• information regarding legal assistance and the services of the Department of Defense (DOD) sexual assault prevention and response program is made available to such Reserve Officers' Training Corps personnel.

The Secretary of DOD (Secretary) shall establish a strategy to prevent retaliation by members of the Armed Forces against other members who report or otherwise intervene on behalf of sexual assault victims.

The Secretary or the Secretary of a military department may permit a DOD civilian employee who is a victim of a sex-related offense to obtain the services of a Special Victims' Counsel.

The Secretary is directed to improve the Special Victims' Counsel program regarding: (1) criminal justice experience for judge advocates, (2) counsel training, (3) program performance standards, and (4) increased counsel-client communication.

The Secretary shall:

• provide for revised sexual assault prevention and response training to address the incidence of male service members being sexually assaulted, and appropriate DOD mental and medical care (including improved provider guidelines) for male victims;
• ensure that mental health records are neither sought from a medical treatment facility by investigators or military justice practitioners nor acknowledged or released by medical treatment facility personnel until their production has been ordered by a military judge or Article 32 hearing officer; and
• examine DOD and interagency review process for implementing statutory changes to the Uniform Code of Military Justice and explore streamlining options.