BATON ROUGE, La. (WGNO) — On Wednesday, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards announced that he has signed HB 409 by Rep. Aimee Freeman, which creates a framework to ensure proper Title IX reporting and accountability.
The bill was proposed following a sexual misconduct scandal that rocked LSU during the spring.
“I’m proud to have signed HB 409 by Rep. Aimee Freeman into law and have it as part of my legislative package,” said Gov. Edwards. “Born out of disappointment and frustration over the troubling allegations of sexual misconduct at our state’s flagship university, the bill establishes the framework that strengthens and clarifies Title IX reporting and procedures on our college and university campuses.
“It ensures that when a student reports such a violation, the Title IX process happens timely and thoroughly and that there are severe penalties in place if it does not. I applaud Rep. Freeman and all of the women legislators involved in addressing a serious problem and taking the necessary steps to make certain that all of our institutions of higher learning are safe for our students and that there is real accountability in place.”