House passes bill to bolster reporting of sexual assaults on public transit

The House passed legislation on Wednesday that would require transportation companies to establish formal policies against sexual misconduct and boost public reporting of such incidents.

Lawmakers passed the bill handily by a vote of 339 to 85, with all of the votes in opposition from Republicans. 

House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) said that many of the nearly 6,000 reports of unruly passenger incidents on U.S. airlines in 2021 included sexual misconduct, including a Frontier Airlines passenger who punched a flight attendant and groped two others last summer. 

The Federal Aviation Administration has reported record numbers of unruly passengers in the last year, largely due to clashes over mask requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

But there is currently no federal data hub on sexual assault or harassment incidents on public transportation. The bill would seek to address that gap by requiring the Department of Transportation to collect data about the number of incidents of sexual misconduct reported by transportation personnel and passengers each year and share it publicly. 

“The risk of an unwelcoming and even threatening environment has never been more real for both passengers and transportation workers alike,” DeFazio said.

“These results highlight the need for the federal government to do much more to root out the scourge of sexual assault in our transportation system. But we can’t effectively respond to these incidents until we fully understand the scope of the problem,” he said. 

Ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Lyft have come under scrutiny in recent years over safety threats to passengers, including sexual assault. 

Uber disclosed in December 2019 that it had received roughly 6,000 reports of sexual assault in the U.S. over two years. Last December, Uber agreed to pay a $9 million settlement for failing to comply with requests from California regulators for information about customers’ sexual assault claims. 

Lyft, meanwhile, disclosed that it received more than 1,800 reports of sexual assault in 2019.

The bill would further require transportation providers such as airlines, taxis and bus systems to establish formal policies prohibiting sexual misconduct and train personnel on how to respond to such incidents.

It would also establish a maximum civil penalty of $35,000 for individuals who physically or sexually assault transportation personnel. After 10 years, the penalty would go up to $45,000. 

Most Republicans overall backed the legislation, and no one spoke in opposition during the brief House floor debate. 

“We want to help ensure that sexual misconduct in transportation is eliminated, and this bill is a step in the right direction,” said Rep. Daniel Webster (Fla.), the only Republican who spoke during debate on the legislation.