Ernst's 'Violence Against Women Act' signed into law - KCRG

WASHINGTON D.C. (KCRG) - U.S. Senator Joni Ernst joined Senators Dianne Feinstein, Dick Durin, and Lisa Murkowski in signing a modernized and reauthorized version of the Violence Agaisnt Women Act (VAWA) into law.

Ernst, a survivor of domestic violence and sexual assault, championed the reauthorizing of the bill which now goes into effect through 2027.

“As one of the one out of three women that have experienced some form of physical violence by an intimate partner, I’ve worked for three years, in good faith and across the aisle, to reauthorize and modernize this very important legislation. My hope is that with this bill, some women will never have to suffer this horrific, personal abuse, and those that do will have the necessary support and resources in a moment of crisis to cope with and ultimately overcome their trauma. Today, I join my fellow survivors, my colleagues, and our strong advocates across this country in celebrating VAWA’s reauthorization and modernization,” said Senator Ernst.

VAWA originally expired in 2018. The bill states it will:

• Provided 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.
• Enhance 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.
• Reauthorize and update the SMART Prevention Program to reduce dating violence, help children who have been exposed to domestic violence, and engage men in preventing violence.
• Provide economic security assistance for survivors by reauthorizing the National Resource Center on Workplace Response. Expand 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.
• Improve 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.

You can watch Ernst’s remarks on the signing of the bill here:

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source: https://www.kcrg.com/2022/03/16/ernsts-violence-against-women-act-signed-into-law/

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