WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Joni
Ernst (R-IA), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Lisa Murkowski
(R-AK) yesterday introduced the bipartisan Violence Against Women Act
(VAWA) Reauthorization Act.
“The Violence Against Women Act has improved the
criminal justice system’s ability to keep victims safe and hold perpetrators
accountable. It has been a valuable tool for so many women and their children –
and we must reauthorize it to ensure that these services remain intact,” Brown said.
“VAWA helps give these victims and survivors a place to turn to escape violent
relationships, or the means to seek legal representation. I am pleased that
Democrats and Republicans were able to work together to find common ground to
draft this critical piece of legislation.”
The bill, which would reauthorize VAWA through 2027, preserves
advancements made in previous reauthorizations and includes a number of
additional improvements to the current law. In addition to Senators Brown,
Feinstein, Ernst, Durbin and Murkowski, the bill is cosponsored by Senators
Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Susan Collins (R-ME), Patty Murray (D-WA), Shelley Moore
Capito (R-WV) Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Rob Portman (R-OH), Brian Schatz (D-HI),
John Cornyn (R-TX), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Thom Tillis (R-NC),
Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Jerry Moran (R-KS).
Key provisions of the bill:
- Provides services, protection and justice for young
victims of violence, including extending the Rape Prevention and Education
grant program and improving grants focused on prevention education for
students in institutions of higher education.
- Enhances judicial and law enforcement tools through
reauthorization of the Justice Department’s STOP Violence Against Women
Formula Program, known as the STOP Program, and expansion of the STOP
Program to better support survivors who are 50 years of age or older and
survivors with disabilities.
- Reauthorizes and updates the SMART Prevention Program
to reduce dating violence, help children who have been exposed to domestic
violence, and engage men in preventing violence.
- Provides economic security assistance for survivors by
reauthorizing the National Resource Center on Workplace Response. Expands
the program to support sexual harassment victims and ensure that the
program’s resources are available to private-sector businesses with fewer
than 20 employees in addition to public-sector entities.
- Improves the medical response to instances of domestic
violence and sexual assault, including expanding access to medical
forensic examinations after a sexual assault for survivors who live in
rural communities.
Included in the
Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)
Reauthorization Act is Brown’s
Trafficking
Survivors Housing Act of 2021 which would require the United States Interagency Council on
Homelessness (USICH) to commission a study and report in partnership with
federal agencies, survivors, and the organizations that serve them on the
availability and accessibility of homelessness and housing services for
survivors of trafficking. Brown reintroduced this bipartisan legislation in
June 2021 and previously introduced in 2019 and 2018. The bill text is
available
here. A one-pager on
the bill is available
here.
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