WASHINGTON -- The House followed up on the sex abuse scandal involving sports doctor Larry Nassar by passing legislation Monday that requires governing bodies for amateur athletics to promptly report abuse claims to law enforcement.
The House agreed to take up the Senate version of the bill to speed up its passage. The bill passed in the House by a vote of 406-3. Arkansas' four Republican U.S. representatives all voted for the bill.
The House made a change in the bill, which sent it back to the Senate for approval before it can go to President Donald Trump for his signature.
Supporters of the bill, sponsored by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said a patchwork of state laws on reporting suspected sex abuse made it necessary to enact a uniform national standard that would apply to amateur sports groups such as USA Gymnastics as well as to other sports organizations that participate in interstate and international travel. The failure to report a sexual abuse allegation could lead to up to one year in prison.
Lawmakers who spoke in favor of the bill said that Nassar's victims were failed by the people who were supposed to protect them.
"How a serial predator like Dr. Nassar could have preyed on so many young girls for a long time in such a flagrant fashion is appalling," said Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas.
"All they wanted to do was to make us proud. All they wanted to do was show the strength of women and the resolve of women," said Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas.
The legislation also extends the statute of limitations for victims to sue alleged perpetrators, and requires the governing bodies for amateur athletes to put in place "reasonable procedures" to limit one-on-one interactions between minors and adults, except in emergencies.
Feinstein met last year with some of the gymnasts alleging sexual abuse.
"Today is their day, and they should be proud that their decision to speak out has resulted in changes that will prevent the abuse of future generations of athletes," Feinstein said.
Earlier, senators from both parties called for the creation of a select committee to investigate the U.S. Olympic Committee and USA Gymnastics after Nassar was sentenced Wednesday to up to 175 years in prison for sexually abusing more than 150 women and girls over 25 years.
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., said the Senate should review how Dr. Larry Nassar was given unsupervised access to the gymnasts.
Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, also backed the special committee, saying that "while some justice has finally been served, there are a great deal of questions that still remain" about how Nassar was able to continue his abuse for so many years.
"The crimes committed against these young women are atrocious and rattle us all to the core," House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said in a statement. "The fact that it went unreported to law enforcement is intolerable -- and it's a huge wake-up call."
In sentencing Nassar to prison, Judge Rosemarie Aquilina called for "a massive investigation as to why there was inaction, why there was silence."
Shaheen said, "Larry Nassar will spend a lifetime in prison, but enormous disturbing questions remain as to how he was able to freely abuse young girls for decades."
Nassar's victims "deserve answers to these questions," Shaheen said, adding that lawmakers would be putting other young athletes at risk "without institutional accountability" if they don't investigate the U.S. Olympic Committee and its member organizations.
"The USOC is a federally chartered institution and its athletes compete under the American flag, so the Senate has a clear responsibility to expand this investigation beyond the narrow criminal charges adjudicated in Michigan," Shaheen said.
The investigation should include subpoena power for lawmakers to compel amateur sports organizations to produce relevant documents and internal communications, she said.
Information for this article was contributed by Kevin Freking of The Associated Press.
A Section on 01/30/2018