10 U.S.C. § 2031 Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps
(a)(1) The Secretary of each military department shall establish and maintain a Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, organized into units, at public and private secondary educational institutions, including Job Corps centers as defined in section 147 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3197), which apply for a unit and meet the standards and criteria prescribed pursuant to this section. The Secretary of Defense shall promulgate regulations prescribing the standards and criteria to be followed by the military departments in selecting the institutions at which units are to be established and maintained. (2) It is a purpose of the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps to instill in students in United States secondary educational institutions the values of citizenship, service to the United States (including an introduction to service opportunities in military, national, and public service), and personal responsibility and a sense of accomplishment.
(b)(1) No unit may be established or maintained at an institution unless—(A) the number of physically fit students in such unit who are in a grade above the 7th grade and physically co-located with the 9th grade participating unit and are citizens or nationals of the United States, or aliens lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence, is—(i) in the case of an educational institution with fewer than 1,000 enrolled students, the lesser of—(I) 10 percent of the number of such students who are in a grade above the 7th grade and physically co-located with the 9th grade participating unit; and (II) 50; or (ii) in the case of an educational institution with 1,000 or more enrolled students—(I) 50; or (II) a number, determined by the Secretary of the military department concerned, that is higher than 50 and not more than 100; (B) the institution has adequate facilities for classroom instruction, storage of arms and other equipment which may be furnished in support of the unit, and adequate drill areas at or in the immediate vicinity of the institution, as determined by the Secretary of the military department concerned; (C) the institution provides a course of military instruction of not less than three academic years’ duration and which may include instruction or activities in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, as prescribed by the Secretary of the military department concerned, or is a Job Corps center as defined in section 147 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3197); (D) the institution agrees to limit membership in the unit to students who maintain acceptable standards of academic achievement and conduct, as prescribed by the Secretary of the military department concerned; and (E) the unit meets such other requirements as the Secretary of the military department concerned prescribes in the memorandum of understanding required under paragraph (2). (2) The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe in regulations a memorandum of understanding to be signed by the Secretary of the military department concerned and each institution operating a unit under this section. The memorandum shall be standardized to the extent practicable and include the following elements:(A) A requirement that an institution notify the Secretary of the military department concerned of allegations of misconduct (including sexual misconduct and harassment) against an instructor who is receiving retired or other pay, not later than 48 hours after such institution learns of such allegations. (B) A process by which the Secretary of the military department concerned certifies an instructor, including the conduct of appropriate background checks by such Secretary and the institution concerned. (C) A process by which the Secretary of the military department concerned shall conduct oversight of instructors certified by such Secretary, including a requirement that such certification shall expire after not more than five years. (D) Processes by which such institution’s program will be inspected by the military department concerned prior to establishment of a new unit, or not less often than once every four years in the case of units existing as of January 1, 2024, staggered as the Secretary determines appropriate. (E) A requirement that each institution certifies it—(i) has created a process for students to report violations of their rights under title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), as applicable, and title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), including the rights of students to not be subject to discrimination or subject to retaliation for reporting a violation of those laws, if such laws apply to the public or private institution; (ii) has implemented policies ensuring students and instructors are notified of those rights, as well as the process for reporting violations of those rights, including information on available mandatory reporters, if such laws apply to the institution; (iii) has implemented annual training to inform students of methods to prevent, respond to, and report sexual assault and harassment; (iv) agrees to report all allegations of violations described in this subparagraph to the military department concerned and, if subject to the jurisdiction of the Department of Education, the Office of Civil Rights of the Department of Education not less often than annually; (v) has developed processes to ensure that each student enrolled in a unit under this section has done so voluntarily; and (vi) agrees to provide the data necessary to compile the report under subsection (j).
(c) The Secretary of the military department concerned shall, to support the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program—(1) detail officers and noncommissioned officers of an armed force under his jurisdiction to institutions having units of the Corps as administrators and instructors; (2) provide necessary text materials, equipment, and uniforms and, to the extent considered appropriate by the Secretary concerned, such additional resources (including transportation and billeting) as may be available to support activities of the program; (3) establish minimum acceptable standards for performance and achievement for qualified units; and (4) maintain a prioritized waiting list that includes all secondary educational institutions that have made a request for a unit under this section and have not yet been approved by the Secretary concerned, and prescribe regulations describing the factors to be considered in assigning priority, including the length of time an institution has been waiting for a unit.
(d)(1) Instead of, or in addition to, detailing officers and noncommissioned officers on active duty under subsection (c)(1), the Secretary of the military department concerned may authorize qualified institutions to employ, as administrators and instructors in the program—(A) retired officers and noncommissioned officers whose qualifications are approved by the Secretary and the institution concerned and who request such employment; (B) officers and noncommissioned officers who are separated with an honorable discharge within the past 5 years with at least 8 years of service and are approved by the Secretary and the institution concerned and who request such employment; or (C) officers and noncommissioned officers who are active participating members of the selected reserve at the time of application, for purposes of section 101(d) of this title, and have not yet reached retirement eligibility and are approved by the Secretary and the institution concerned and who request such employment. (2) Employment under this subsection shall be subject to the following conditions:(A) The Secretary concerned shall pay to the institution an amount equal to one-half of the Department’s prescribed JROTC Standardized Instructor Pay Scale amount paid to the member by the institution for any period. (B) The Secretary concerned may pay to the institution more than one-half of the amount paid to the member by the institution if (as determined by the Secretary)—(i) the institution is in an educationally and economically deprived area; and (ii) the Secretary determines that such action is in the national interest. (C) Payments by the Secretary concerned under this subsection shall be made from funds appropriated for that purpose. (D) The Secretary concerned may require successful applicants to transfer to the Individual Ready Reserve. (3) The Secretary concerned may not require an officer or noncommissioned officer described in paragraph (1)(B) to have completed more than 8 years of service as a member of the armed forces as a condition for approval by the Secretary to serve as an administrator or instructor in the program.
(e)(1) When determined by the Secretary of the military department concerned to be in the national interest and agreed upon by the institution concerned, the institution may reimburse a Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps instructor for moving expenses incurred by the instructor to accept employment at the institution in a position that the Secretary concerned determines is hard-to-fill for geographic or economic reasons. (2) As a condition on providing reimbursement under paragraph (1), the institution shall require the instructor to execute a written agreement to serve a minimum of two years of employment at the institution in the hard-to-fill position. (3) Any reimbursement provided to an instructor under paragraph (1) is in addition to the minimum instructor pay otherwise payable to the instructor. (4) The Secretary concerned shall reimburse an institution providing reimbursement to an instructor under paragraph (1) in an amount equal to the amount of the reimbursement paid by the institution under that paragraph. Any reimbursement provided by the Secretary concerned shall be provided from funds appropriated for that purpose. (5) The provision of reimbursement under paragraph (1) or (4) shall be subject to regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense for purposes of this subsection.
(f)(1) Each public secondary educational institution that maintains a unit under this section shall permit membership in the unit to homeschooled students residing in the area served by the institution who are qualified for membership in the unit (but for lack of enrollment in the institution). (2) A student who is a member of a unit pursuant to this subsection shall count toward the satisfaction by the institution concerned of the requirement in subsection (b)(1) relating to the minimum number of student members in the unit necessary for the continuing maintenance of the unit.
(g) No unit may be established or maintained at an educational institution that is owned, operated, or controlled by a person that—(1) is the People’s Republic of China; (2) is a member of the Chinese Communist Party; (3) is a member of the People’s Liberation Army; (4) is identified by the Secretary of Defense under section 1260H(a) of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (10 U.S.C. 113 note) as a Chinese military company; (5) is included in the Non-SDN Chinese Military-Industrial Complex Companies List published by the Department of the Treasury; or (6) is owned by or controlled by or is an agency or instrumentality of any person described in paragraphs (1) through (5).
(h)(1) The Secretary of Defense may suspend or place on probation a unit of the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps that fails to comply with the provisions of the memorandum of understanding required pursuant to subsection (b) or any other requirement of this section. (2) A unit may be placed on probation under paragraph (1) for a period of up to three years. (3) A unit may be suspended under paragraph (1) if, after the three-year probationary period, such unit remains out of compliance with the requirements of this section and the Secretary of the military department concerned determines that such suspension is necessary to mitigate program deficiencies or to protect the safety of program participants.
(i)(1) The Secretary of Defense shall establish and support not fewer than 3,400, and not more than 4,000, units of the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. (2) The requirement under paragraph (1) shall not apply—(A) if the Secretary fails to receive an adequate number of requests for Junior Reserve Officer’s Training Corps units by public and private secondary educational institutions; and (B) during a time of national emergency when the Secretaries of the military departments determine that funding must be allocated elsewhere.
(j)(1) Not later than March 31, 2024, and annually thereafter through March 31, 2029, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on allegations of sexual misconduct, sexual harassment, and sex discrimination in Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps programs during the preceding year. (2) Each report required under paragraph (1) shall set forth the following:(A) The number of reported allegations of violations under title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.) in school-affiliated Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps programs, including—(i) the number of such reported allegations that were investigated; (ii) the outcome of those investigations; and (iii) the number of such reported allegations by State, the District of Columbia, or overseas location where these reports occurred. (B) The number of reports that the Department of Defense or armed forces have received during the reporting period involving allegations of acts of violence, including sexual abuse or harassment, by instructors against students in Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps programs, including—(i) the offense involved; (ii) the armed force involved; (iii) the number of instructors and number of allegations each instructor received; (iv) the number of reports of sexual misconduct and harassment that have been investigated; (v) the number of reports or investigations that have led to the removal of an instructor from a Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program; and (vi) the number of such reported allegations by State, the District of Columbia, or overseas location where these reports occurred. (C) Any steps the Department of Defense has taken to mitigate sexual misconduct and harassment in Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps programs during the preceding year. (3) Each report required under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form and may not be designated as controlled unclassified information. (4) The Secretary shall annually report to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives regarding compliance with this subsection by the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps programs, including an up-to-date report on the Secretary’s monitoring of such compliance.