VAWA Delayed in Senate, Moves in  House

Despite a successful and highly publicized hearing in support of the Violence Against Women Act on July 19th, the Senate Judiciary Committee failed to take action on VAWA 2005 (S. 1197) before recessing for the month of August.  Compelling testimony, given by experts on domestic, dating and sexual violence as well as actor Salma Hayek, spokeswoman for the Avon Foundation, and former NBA player and coach M.L. Carr, Family Violence Prevention Fund board member and President/CEO of WARM2Kids, Inc, urged the Senate to move quickly on VAWA reauthorization. The National Advocacy Center also sent a letter (PDF version) to members of the Senate Judiciary expressing strong support for VAWA 2005 and joined in an interfaith letter (PDF version) emphasizing the importance of continuing to combat violence. However, other business kept the Judiciary Committee from marking up VAWA on the 27^th as had been planned.  The Senate bill, S. 1197, still continues to gain support, though, with a total of 47 co-sponsors going into the August recess.

On the House side, Representatives Green (R-WI) and Conyers (D-MI) introduced a comprehensive VAWA reauthorization bill (H.R. 2876) on June 14th. The legislation is similar to the Senate version in most respects, but includes some different provisions and funding levels.  The legislation currently has 88 bi-partisan co-sponsors.  Additional VAWA bills have been introduced by Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) (H.R. 3171 - comprehensive Democratic proposal), Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) (H.R. 3188 - The Immigrant Victims of Violence Protection Act of 2005), and Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA) (H.R. 3185 - The Security and Financial Empowerment Act)

A still different version of VAWA reauthorization was passed out the Judiciary Committee on July 28th as part of a broader Department of Justice Reauthorization bill (H.R. 3402).  More limited in scope than the bi-partisan bill (H.R. 2876) introduced on June 14th by Representatives Green (R-WI) and Conyers (D-MI), the legislation still contains many positive provisions and helps move the reauthorization process forward in the House. H.R. 3402 increases funding for STOP grants to $215 million with expansions to allow grants to support victims’ services programs and tribal organizations and  to provide special victim assistants in local law enforcement offices. It also boosts funding for legal assistance for victims and ensures that adult, youth, and minor victims of violence can be served by the program. In addition, the legislation includes several new grant programs to assist young victims of domestic and sexual violence, additional protections for immigrant victims, and grants to increase outreach to underserved communities. Because of the limits of committee jurisdiction, H.R. 3402 does not include the housing and health titles of VAWA 2005, but these are expected to be added when the bill is brought to the House floor.  Provisions from Rep. Schakowsky and Roybal-Allard's bills could also be wrapped into the final House VAWA bill. More detailed information on what was included in the House Judiciary Committee bill can be found at Women’s Policy, Inc.

See below for more information and action ideas.

June 2005

Legislation to Reauthorize VAWA Introduced

On June 8, a bipartisan group of senators, led by Senators Specter (R-PA), Biden (D-DE) and Hatch (R-UT), introduced legislation to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.  The bill, S. 1197, is the product of many months of negotiations among staff and with advocates and represents a strong commitment to ending domestic and sexual violence.  The bill will now begin working its way through the legislative process and hopefully lead to reauthorization before the current act expires on September 30^th.

(For background information on the history of VAWA, the need for it, and the Good Shepherd connection, visit our VAWA background page.)

Key Provisions

S. 1197 builds on the work VAWA has already done by reauthorizing and expanding current programs and focusing new attention to other crucial aspects of domestic violence and sexual assault, such as treating children impacted by the violence, enhancing health care for rape victims, increasing protections for immigrants, easing housing problems for battered women, and helping domestic violence victims hold on to their jobs.  The bill:

• Reauthorizes and increases funding for the domestic violence hotline, transitional housing, legal assistance for victims and grants to law enforcement, lawyers, judges and advocates;
• Strengthens outreach programs to rural and underserved communities;
• Creates new grant programs to assist victims of sexual assault, to provide services for children and youth who have been exposed to violence, to facilitate collaboration between domestic violence organizations and housing providers and combat family violence in public and assisted housing, to address dating violence among youth, and to train and educate health care professionals on domestic and sexual violence;
• Amends the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (HMIS reporting requirements) to protect the confidentiality of victims of domestic and sexual violence seeking housing assistance;
• Permits victims to take leave time from work (limited – 10 days) to address domestic or sexual violence;
• Expands immigration protections and assistance for battered women and their children, victims of trafficking, and immigrant victims of child abuse and incest; and,
• Encourages greater collaboration and outreach within communities to develop more holistic responses to domestic and sexual violence and to address the needs of underserved communities and communities of color.

The full text of the bill as well as a current list of co-sponsors can be found on the Library of Congress website at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c109:S.1197:. Similar legislation is expected to be introduced in the House by mid-June by Congressman Mark Green of Wisconsin.

What You Can Do

Write your members of Congress from our action website and urge them to co-sponsor VAWA legislation and to support full funding for current VAWA programs.

Committee Action and Co-Sponsorship

Before a full vote on VAWA in the House and Senate, VAWA legislation must be approved by the Judiciary committee in each chamber.  It is important to build strong support for the bills among the committee members to ensure their approval and to push for amendments that would further improve VAWA.  If you are a constituent of any of these Senators or Representatives, it is crucial that they hear from you about the importance of VAWA reauthorization.  Members of the committees can be found at the committee websites –

Senate Judiciary Committee

House Judiciary Committee

Bipartisan support from the committees will hopefully help the bills move more quickly to the floor, but it is also critical to build momentum for VAWA reauthorization by encouraging Senators and Representatives not on the committees to co-sponsor the bills.  The broader the support for VAWA, the more likely a good bill will be passed before Sept. 30^th!

Appropriations

At the same time Congress is working on VAWA reauthorization, members are also making decisions about funding for current VAWA programs in fiscal year 2006.  While VAWA has helped millions of women and their families escape from violence and rebuild their lives over the past 10 years, VAWA programs have never been fully funded.  Funding shortages have left many programs unable to provide the extent of services that are needed.

Providing full funding will not only help more women and families, but also benefit communities and the nation as a whole. VAWA ’94 saved taxpayers at least $14.8 billion in net averted social costs!  Though this year's budget will be tight, ending domestic violence by supporting these successful and cost-effective programs must be a priority. 

For more detailed information about FY06 funding, the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence has put together a briefing book (PDF).

Contact Local Media

The press is a powerful tool that can be used to further raise awareness about VAWA reauthorization. Click here to access an in-depth media tool kit prepared by the National Task Force to End Domestic and Sexual Violence Against Women. The kit includes detailed instructions for building media relations, writing letters to the editor, and issuing press releases and advisories.  Be sure to send copies of any relevant articles (and any letters to the editor you are able to get published!) to your local, state, and Congressional legislators.

Build Support in Your Community

Another effective way to support VAWA reauthorization is to reach out to your local community and educate people about VAWA and domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Some ideas include: organizing a town hall meeting during a Congressional recess and invite your legislator, local government representatives, and community members; inviting your legislators to visit your program; talking about VAWA at local community meetings, local government proceedings and in your agency’s publications and website; having clients, survivors and allied partners write letters or children draw pictures to send to their Members of Congress; or putting up posters about VAWA at your events and in your offices. The Sheila Wellstone Institute has created a Grassroots Action Kit (PDF) to help local communities organize in support of VAWA.  Additional resources, including facts sheets and links to other supporting organizations, are available at www.vawa2005.org.

Share Success Stories and Needs

The National Advocacy Center welcomes and appreciates input from all Good Shepherd agencies and communities as we advocate for the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act – How has VAWA helped clients? What are the greatest needs for clients? What inhibits the work that you do? What would you tell a member of Congress to do to improve services for victims of violence?  Please send us your thoughts, so that we can better advocate for all who have experienced violence in their homes or relationships.

Stay Tuned!

The National Advocacy Center will be closely following VAWA developments and posting new information and action items as reauthorization moves forward.  Check back regularly for updates!