Governor Hochul Signs Legislation to Protect Survivors, Hold Perpetrators Accountable for Rape

 

Legislation S.3161/A.3340 Modernizes State Law to Ensure Forced Sexual Conduct Can Be Prosecuted as Rape

Governor Hochul Has Prioritized Protecting Survivors, Signing the Adult Survivors Act and Strengthening Support for Survivors of Domestic Abuse

Governor Kathy Hochul today signed legislation to modernize New York State law to protect survivors of rape and hold perpetrators accountable for sexual assault. The legislation, S.3161/A.3340, updates the definition of rape in the penal code to ensure that additional forms of nonconsensual, forced sexual conduct can be prosecuted as rape. Since taking office, Governor Hochul has prioritized supporting survivors including by signing the Adult Survivors Act, implementing new protections for survivors of domestic violence, and cracking down on human trafficking.

“We are reassuring survivors that when they walk into a police station or approach the witness stand that the full weight of the law is behind them now going forward,” Governor Hochul said. “Rape will be treated like the horrific crime that it is. The voices have been heard, and we affirm that justice will be served."

Legislation (S.3161/A.3340), also known as the “Rape is Rape” bill, removes the penetration requirement from the rape statutes and also defines rape as vaginal sexual contact, oral sexual contact, and anal sexual contact. The existing statue excluded oral and anal rape from being called rape and required a higher standard for vaginal rape. By modernizing New York’s rape statutes, this legislation ensures all survivors are protected from these crimes and offenders will be held fully accountable.

Governor Hochul has deployed new resources across State government to ensure survivors are protected. Last year, the Governor announced new guidance for law enforcement agencies when responding to domestic incidents. The Governor has also announced the availability of a streamlined application for individuals seeking help from the state with crime-related expenses.

In addition, Governor Hochul has taken significant steps to protect individuals in the workforce from harassment and sexual assault. She launched a statewide workplace sexual harassment hotline, signed new laws to protect employees from sexual misconduct in the workplace, and developed a sexual harassment model policy for employers to use.

Governor Hochul's 2024 State of the State includes significant steps to protect survivors of domestic violence. The Governor is proposing bold investments in a set of proven strategies to increase the likelihood of both successfully prosecuting domestic violence cases and seizing firearms, deterring future violence among high-risk offenders, and helping survivors recover:

• Provide dedicated funding to District Attorneys’ offices in GIVE jurisdictions to expand DV STAT, a model first piloted in Queens that supports collection of evidence and relationship-building with victims even before an arrest is made.
• Provide funding to jurisdictions to implement “gold standard” risk assessment tools to focus on high-risk domestic violence perpetrators and victims;
• Provide dedicated funding to GIVE jurisdictions to focus on domestic violence offenders, identifying the most high-risk individuals and engaging them to reduce recidivism;
• Provide funding to expand the Supervision Against Violent Engagement (SAVE) program to improve public safety among recently released individuals by focusing on domestic violence;
• Provide funding to local jurisdictions partnering with CACs to build the data collection capacity of local law enforcement and to work with the State's Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence to review the current state capacity of law enforcement information-sharing with regard to domestic violence reports. New York will modernize the use of the critical data available when answering domestic calls for service through the Domestic Incident Reporting and expand the use of the National Incident Based Reporting System so critical and potentially life-saving information and reports are electronic, shareable, and searchable statewide;
• Continue the Governor’s commitment to providing survivors with the emergency, flexible funding aid they need at their time of crisis via microgrants to be used to cover expenses in emergency situations.

The Office of Victim Services directly reimburses medical providers for the cost of a forensic rape exam (FRE) if an individual does not have private health insurance or chooses not to use their private health care insurance for the examination. This measure is an exception to the agency’s payer of last resort rule and provides for the personal privacy of victims. The Office of Victim Services also accepts FRE documentation in lieu of police reports, which enables individuals to seek financial assistance and reimbursement from OVS for other expenses related to the crime.

OVS funds and supports 239 victim assistance programs statewide that provide essential services, such as crisis counseling, support groups, case management, emergency shelter, civil legal help and relocation assistance, among other assistance, to victims and survivors of sexual assault and other crimes, and their families. Individuals may visit ovs.ny.gov/connect to find these programs, which provide services at no cost and regardless of whether an individual has reported the crime to police. New York State’s Domestic and Sexual Violence Hotline also is available for confidential support and advocacy 24/7: 800-942-6906 (voice), 844-997-2121 (text) and opdv.ny.gov (chat).