Law signed to mandate U.S. colleges report hazing incidents

NEW YORK, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- The first federal anti-hazing law has been enacted by U.S. President Joe Biden, marking the end of a yearslong push by victims' families for more transparency and accountability on college campuses.

The Stop Campus Hazing Act, which passed the U.S. House of Representatives in September and the U.S. Senate this month and signed by Biden on Tuesday, requires universities to start collecting hazing statistics to include in regular public reports.

"These requirements could kick in as soon as next week and impact many campus groups," reported USA Today about the development.

Under longstanding federal statutes, colleges and universities must disclose crimes that occur on their campuses each year. Yet despite the sometimes violent and fatal nature of hazing, schools have never been required by the federal government to disclose statistics about how often it happens, especially within fraternities and sororities that target their new members.

While nearly every U.S. state has an anti-hazing law, the measures vary in scope and impact, according to the advocacy group StopHazing. Prior attempts to put a federal law on the books have fizzled out in Congress.