Federal Legislative Priorities

Fiscal Year 2010 Appropriations:

SASP is funded at $15 million—a $3 million increase over 2009.

VOCA is funded at $705 million—a $70 million increase over 2009.

VAWA Fix/Improving Assistance to Domestic and Sexual Violence Victims Act:

s. 327 by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT)

H.R. 3401 by Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL)

This legislation will make important technical changes to VAWA that will improve the law’s implementation and the services we provide to victims. 

VAWA IV:

National advocates are working diligently to discuss and prioritize issues for the scheduled reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act in 2011. National sexual assault advocates are coordinating efforts to ensure inclusion of sexual assault priorities.

VOCA Preservation:

S. 1340 by Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Mike Crapo (R-ID)

H.R. 3402 by Congressman Ted Poe (R-TX)

The bill would establish a minimum funding level for disbursements from the Crime Victims Fund, created by the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (VOCA), for fiscal years 2010 to 2014.  Such funding levels are designed to ensure a reasonable growth in victim programs without jeopardizing the long-term sustainability of the Crime Victims Fund. 

Economic Protections/SAFE Act:

H.R.739 by Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA)

S. 1740 Senator Patty Murray (D-WA)

Derived from the Security and Financial Empowerment Act, this series of bills is designed to ensure that victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking have the economic security they need to escape violent relationships and recover from violence. These bills would provide victims with leave, eligibility for unemployment insurance, reasonable accommodations for violence-related needs, and protections from employment and insurance discrimination.

The Justice for Survivors of Sexual Assault Act 

S. 2736 by Senators Al Franken (D-MN), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), and Orrin Hatch (R-UT)

H.R.4114 Rep. Carol Maloney (D-NY)

This legislation will work to reduce the national backlog of over 180,000 untested rape kits currently in police storage. It will also address several other problems that work to deny justice to victims of sexual assault – including the denial of free rape kits to survivors of sexual assault and the shortage of trained health professionals capable of administering rape kit exams.

Compassionate Care for Servicewomen Act

S. 2904 by Senators Al Franken (D-MN) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME)

H.R. 4386 by Rep. Michael Michaud (D-ME)

This legislation ensures that emergency contraception is available to Servicewomen. It requires that emergency contraception be included in the basic core formulary of the uniform formulary, the list of medications that must be stocked at all full-service military treatment facilities; specifies that prior authorization shall not be required for emergency contraception, as DoD may require for certain medications; and requires that emergency contraception be available specifically in drug form (since intrauterine devices can also sometimes be used as emergency contraception).

Military Domestic Violence and Sexual Violence Response Act

H.R.840 by Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (D-NY)
This legislation aims to reduce sexual assault and domestic violence involving members of the Armed Forces and their family members and partners through enhanced programs of prevention and deterrence, enhanced programs of victims services, and strengthened provisions for prosecution of assailants, and for other purposes.