Pingree, House Send Bipartisan "Speak Out Act' to President Biden's Desk

Press Release

Today, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) and the U.S. House of Representatives voted to pass the bipartisan, bicameral Speak Out Act, sending the bill to President Biden's desk. The bill prohibits non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) from being enforced in instances in which sexual harassment or sexual assault has been alleged in violation of federal, tribal, or state law and in situations in which survivors wish to break their silence. The bill passed the Senate by unanimous consent on September 29, 2022.

"As it stands, organizations can use NDAs to prevent survivors of sexual harassment or assault from speaking publicly about these incidents. The bipartisan Speak Out Act will fix this broken system, freeing survivors from a culture of silence and helping ensure workplace abusers are held accountable," said Pingree. 

The Speak Out Act would:

Prohibit the applicability of predispute NDAs between employers and current, former, and prospective employees, as well as independent contractors, in cases of sexual assault and sexual harassment;
Prohibit the applicability of predispute NDAs between providers of goods and services and consumers in cases of sexual assault and sexual harassment; and
Invalidate existing predispute NDAs in cases of sexual assault and sexual harassment that have not yet been filed.

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