Bill > S2920

This bill, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2019, makes several key changes to the original Violence Against Women Act of 1994: - It expands the definition of "domestic violence" to include crimes committed by a wider range of intimate partners and family members. It also adds definitions for "female genital mutilation or cutting" and "forced marriage." - It requires prosecutors to develop and implement policies on victim-centered approaches to domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking cases, including limits on the use of bench warrants, body attachments, and material witness warrants for victims who fail to appear. - It increases funding for several key grant programs, including the STOP Grants, the Grants to Improve the Criminal Justice Response, and the Sexual Assault Services Program. - It creates new grant programs, such as for lethality assessment programs and to combat female genital mutilation or cutting. - It enhances housing protections for survivors, including by requiring emergency transfer procedures and prioritizing survivors in homeless assistance programs. - It provides additional resources and support for Native American communities, including by reauthorizing and expanding tribal jurisdiction over certain crimes committed in Indian country. - It includes various other provisions aimed at supporting victims, holding offenders accountable, and improving the overall response to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. The bill is intended to build on the original Violence Against Women Act to further strengthen the national response to these forms of gender-based violence.

https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/2920/all-info