California college students must now consent before having sex

Colleges in California that receive state funding must bolster polices on campus sexual assault under laws signed today, the first in the U.S. requiring students give consent before they have sex.

The bill, signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, requires public universities and private colleges that get financial grants to mandate students agree verbally or through some other affirmative signal before having sex.

Colleges across the U.S. are examining their policies and procedures for preventing, investigating and reporting sexual assaults as students file complaints over improper responses from the schools. Princeton, Harvard and Dartmouth are among dozens of schools being probed by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights for alleged violations of Title IX, which bars gender discrimination in education.

Brown, a 76-year-old Democrat, also signed an organized labor-sponsored bill that provides protection to temporary workers. Under the new law, companies that hire temporary workers through a staffing agency can be held liable for improperly withholding pay or violating workers’ rights.

This story was originally published September 30, 2014 at 7:43 AM with the headline "California college students must now consent before having sex."