text: Lawmaker: Void confidentiality for sexual assault | Syms for Arizona
  Lawmaker: Void confidentiality for sexual assault
  A state lawmaker on Thursday proposed legislation that would make nondisclosure agreements "void and unenforceable" when dealing with cases of alleged sexual assault or harassment.
  State Rep. Maria Syms, R-Paradise Valley, said she has proposed House Bill 2020 to close the "sexual predator loophole" that allows perpetrators to buy their victims' silence. Ending such agreements, she said, could prevent future incidents.
  "We want to make sure that sexual predators cannot buy their way out of jail or liability only to prey on people in the future," Syms said.
  Syms' bill includes a provision prohibiting anyone from entering a confidentiality agreement related to allegations of sexual assault or harassment by an elected official.
  While Syms, who joined the Legislature this year, said she personally hasn't experienced harassment at the Capitol, she said she was harassed in her earlier career as an attorney. Most women, she said, face harassment at some point in their lives.
  "I hope this legislation is one step forward in restoring that trust and restoring people's faith in the work that we do down at the Legislature," she said.
  The Arizona House of Representatives has hired an outside attorney to investigate accusations against Shooter and other lawmakers. It's unknown if confidentiality agreements are an issue in any of those investigations.
  Syms said she was motivated to propose the bill in light of the "historic moment in our country." Women and men across the United States, from statehouses to Hollywood, have gone public with allegations of sexual misconduct by often-powerful individuals.
  In Weinstein's case, multiple women have accused him of using confidentiality pacts to buy their silence. Weinstein has said his encounters were consensual. The movement has also shed light on members of Congress who've used nondisclosure agreements to quiet allegations.
  Andrea Johnson, senior counsel for state policy at the National Women's Law Center, said confidentiality agreements have been "shown to play a role in allowing harassment to be swept under the rug."
  "Blanket bans could be problematic, so they should definitely talk to sexualassault advocates that are working with victims" to balance those interests, Johnson said.
  She said that while she's sensitive to the concern that some victims might want privacy, there's also a public-safety concern in creating transparency to "make sure we stop the bad guys."
  "We want to make sure that sexual predators cannot buy their way out of jail or liability only to prey on people in the future."