H.R. 1620 - Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2021

Bill Text

    Rules Committee Print 117-3 PDF XML

    Showing the text of H.R. 1620, as introduced.

    Text of H.R. 1620 PDF XML

    (as introduced)

Rule Information

COMMITTEE ACTION:
REPORTED BY A RECORD VOTE of 8-3 on Tuesday, March 16, 2021.

FLOOR ACTION ON H. RES. 233: 
Agreed to by record vote of 216-204, after agreeing to the previous question by record vote of 212-200, on Tuesday, March 16, 2021.

MANAGERS: Torres/Fischbach

1. Structured rule for H.R. 1620.
2. Provides one hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their designees.
3. Waives all points of order against consideration of the bill.
4. Provides that an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 117-3, modified by the amendment printed in part A of the Rules Committee report, shall be considered as adopted and the bill, as amended, shall be considered as read.
5. Waives all points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended.
6. Provides that following debate, each further amendment printed in part B of the Rules Committee report not earlier considered as part of amendments en bloc pursuant to section 3 shall be considered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a Member designated in the report, shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, may be withdrawn by the proponent at any time before the question is put thereon, shall not be subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question.
7. Provides that at any time after debate the chair of the Committee on the Judiciary or his designee may offer amendments en bloc consisting of further amendments printed in part B of the Rules Committee report not earlier disposed of. Amendments en bloc shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for 20 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their designees, shall not be subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question.
8. Waives all points of order against the amendments printed in part B of the Rules Committee report or amendments en bloc described in section 3 of the resolution.
9. Provides one motion to recommit.

10. Closed rule for H.R. 6.
11. Provides one hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their designees.
12. Waives all points of order against consideration of the bill.
13. Provides that an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 117-4 shall be considered as adopted and the bill, as amended, shall be considered as read.
14. Waives all points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended.
15. Provides one motion to recommit.
16. Closed rule for H.R. 1603.
17. Provides one hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their designees.
18. Waives all points of order against consideration of the bill.
19. Provides that the amendment printed in part C of the Rules Committee report shall be considered as adopted and the bill, as amended, shall be considered as read.
20. Waives all points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended.
21. Provides one motion to recommit.
22. Closed rule for H.R. 1868.
23. Provides one hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Budget or their designees.
24. Waives all points of order against consideration of the bill.
25. Provides that the bill shall be considered as read.
26. Waives all points of order against provisions in the bill.
27. Provides one motion to recommit.
28. Closed rule for H.J. Res. 17.
29. Provides one hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their designees.
30. Waives all points of order against consideration of the joint resolution.
31. Provides that the joint resolution shall be considered as read.
32. Waives all points of order against provisions in the joint resolution.
33. Provides one motion to recommit.
34. House Resolution 232 is hereby adopted.
35. Provides that notwithstanding clause 7(a) of rule X (interim committee funding), during the One Hundred Seventeenth Congress, the period described in such clause shall end at midnight on April 22.

Amendments (click headers to sort)

#Version #Sponsor(s)PartySummaryStatus
1Version 6Newman (IL)DemocratRevised Requires grant applicants of the National Resource Center on Workplace Responses to include microbusiness in their outreach to qualify.Made in Order
2Version 2Moore (WI), Underwood (IL), Adams (NC)DemocratRevised Authorizes a study on the intersection between domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking, and maternal mortality or morbidity.Made in Order
3Version 1Swalwell (CA)DemocratWithdrawn Adds the No Guns for Abusers Act of 2021, which requires the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to submit a comprehensive report to Congress on best practices for state and local statues and policies with respect to the relinquishment of firearms by domestic abusers and authorizes a grant program to provide funds to jurisdictions which adopt these best practices. Requires the Attorney General to propose federal legislation and adopt rules, policies, and practices for the federal government for domestic abuser firearm relinquishment consistent with the best approaches identified in the NIJ report.Withdrawn
4Version 1Brown (MD)DemocratWithdrawn Allows an ex parte order to be issued at the request of an employer on behalf of its employee or at the request of an institution of higher education on behalf of its student.Withdrawn
5Version 1Dingell (MI), Fitzpatrick (PA)Bi-PartisanEstablishes pilot program grants (up to 10) through the Department of Justice to state and tribal courts, offering them the opportunity to explore the feasibility and effectiveness of serving protection orders electronically.Made in Order
6Version 1Greene (GA)RepublicanStrikes section 707, the severability clause.Submitted
7Version 1Espaillat (NY)DemocratWithdrawn Ensures that persons convicted of misdemeanor crimes against dating partners and persons subject to protection orders cannot posses ghost guns. Ghost guns being any part or combination of parts intended that can be converted into a firearm.Withdrawn
8Version 1Greene (GA)RepublicanStrikes all "such sums" clauses in the bill.Submitted
9Version 1Kuster (NH), Speier (CA), Moore (WI)DemocratWithdrawn Reauthorizes grants for the Rainn National Sexual Assault Hotline through fiscal year 2028.Withdrawn
10Version 2Ross, Deborah (NC)DemocratRevised Revises the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act to allow grants to be used to for the development of statewide databases with information on where sexual assault nurse examiners (SANE nurses) are located.Made in Order
11Version 1Torres, Ritchie (NY)DemocratMandates state and local governments submit to the Attorney General a report on the number of sexual assault response teams at hospitals and their average victim response times to be eligible for certain federal funds.Made in Order
12Version 1Ross, Deborah (NC)DemocratWithdrawn Revises the Victims of Crimes Act (VOCA) to allow grants to be used to for the analysis of sexual assault kits.Withdrawn
13Version 2Burgess (TX)RepublicanRevised Requires the DOJ and HHS to issue guidance and best practices on strategies to improve coordination of sexual assault forensic examination training and program sustainability.Made in Order
14Version 1Torres, Ritchie (NY)DemocratWithdrawn Mandates certain law enforcement agencies to submit to the Attorney General an annual report on the caseload for homicide and special victims' units and the number of rape cases of certain types to be eligible for certain federal funds made available by the Department of Justice.Withdrawn
15Version 2Levin, Andy (MI)DemocratRevised Amends Sec. 101 (STOP Grants) to add "implementing a vertical prosecution system" to the list of permissible uses for STOP grants. "Vertical prosecution" refers to a plan for prosecuting cases in which one individual prosecuting attorney remains the primary individual responsible for the case, as well as the primary contact for victim witnesses from complaint through sentencing.Made in Order
16Version 1Moore (WI), Kuster (NH)DemocratAuthorizes and expands programs offering sexual assault medical forensic exams and sexual assault victim services in tribal communities.Made in Order
17Version 1Plaskett (VI)DemocratEstablishes a civil cause of action against a person that discloses an intimate image of an individual without the depicted individual's consent, if the person disclosed the image with knowledge of or reckless disregard for such lack of consent.Made in Order
18Version 1Connolly (VA)DemocratAdds the right to be informed of the status and location of a sexual assault evidence collection kit to the rights of sexual assault survivors (18 U.S.C. 3772).Made in Order
19Version 1Torres, Norma (CA)DemocratRequires the Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary of HHS, to conduct a study investigating whether abused victims who raise evidence of domestic violence are more likely to lose primary custody of their children to an abusive partner or to the State, including reviewing and providing recommendations on restructuring relevant state laws, regulations, and practices.Made in Order
20Version 2Torres, Norma (CA)DemocratRevised Requires the Attorney General, in coordination with the Secretary of HHS, to conduct a study on the direct and collateral economic costs and risks of divorce from an abusive partner to a victim of domestic violence, including payment of alimony, legal fees, spousal support, or the division of property.Made in Order
21Version 1Speier (CA), Katko (NY), Jeffries (NY), Lieu (CA), Scanlon (PA), Plaskett (VI), Escobar (TX)Bi-PartisanAdds the Stopping Harmful Image Exploitation and Limiting Distribution Act (the “SHIELD Act”) to the bill, which addresses the malicious sharing of private, intimate images, known as “nonconsensual pornography” or “revenge porn.”Made in Order
22Version 1Lawrence (MI)DemocratAmends Section 102 (Grants Encouraging Improvements and Alternatives to the Criminal Justice Response), to authorize grants to also be used for the purpose of better identifying and responding to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking against individuals who have been arrested or have contact with the juvenile or adult criminal justice system, and for developing or strengthening diversion programs and to ensure they receive comprehensive victim services.Made in Order
23Version 1Pressley (MA), Newman (IL)DemocratEstablishes LGBTQ+ specific grants and services to LGBTQ+ victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.Made in Order
24Version 2Phillips (MN)DemocratRevised Establishes a pilot program to identify and make immigration relief available to immigrants who are dependent upon their abusers for immigration status and have been subject to battering or extreme cruelty and have already been authorized for employment.Made in Order
25Version 1Gosar (AZ)RepublicanAuthorizes the Attorney General to make grants to private entities to train victims of domestic violence on the usage of firearms.Submitted
26Version 1Lesko (AZ)RepublicanPrevents a victim service provider from being compelled to place a woman or child into a circumstance in which they fear for a violation of privacy or safety.Submitted
27Version 2Crist (FL)DemocratRevised Clarifies that STOP grants can be used to cover the fees associated with replacing driver’s licenses and birth certificates for survivors and their children. This amendment will provide survivors and their families with life-saving assistance as they take steps to build a safe and independent life.Made in Order
28Version 1Stefanik (NY)RepublicanSUBSTITUTE Strikes all and replaces the text with the Violence Against Women Extension Act of 2021.Made in Order
29Version 1Lesko (AZ)RepublicanProvides protection to faith-based organizations and religious entities.Submitted
30Version 6Case (HI), Kahele (HI)DemocratRevised Ensures the inclusion of Native Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian groups. Requires a review and subsequent Department of Justice report of Native Hawaiian interactions with the criminal justice system and related crime prevention programs to add to pre-existing data on Native Indians and Alaska Natives.Made in Order
31Version 1Wagner (MO)RepublicanEnhances VAWA’s transparency and accountability measures by making entities found by the Attorney General to have intentionally misused VAWA grant funds ineligible to apply for future grants for up to 5 years, after reasonable notice and opportunity for a hearing.Made in Order
32Version 1Pressley (MA), Newman (IL)DemocratWithdrawn Establishes a Deputy Director for the LGBTQ+ Community in the Office on Violence Against Women.Withdrawn
33Version 1Wagner (MO)RepublicanEnsures that the Creating Hope through Outreach, Options, Service, and Education for Children and Youth (CHOOSE Children and Youth) Program can continue to include programs that address sex trafficking.Submitted
34Version 1Speier (CA), Kuster (NH), Frankel (FL), Escobar (TX), Lawrence (MI), Moore (WI), Dingell (MI), Pressley (MA), Clark, Katherine (MA), McBath (GA), Hayes (CT)DemocratDirects the Secretary of Education to make available a climate survey for institutions of higher education to administer to students on their experiences with sexual assault, sexual harassment, domestic violence, stalking, and dating violence.Made in Order
35Version 1Wagner (MO)RepublicanAdds the Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act of 2019, which makes it a federal crime to perform a sex-selection abortion or force a woman to obtain a sex-selection abortion. A "sex-selection abortion" is an abortion based on the sex or gender of an unborn child; the targeted victims of sex-selection abortions performed in the United States and worldwide are overwhelmingly female.Submitted
36Version 1Hern (OK)RepublicanStrikes all "gender identity" and "sexual orientation" language and replaces it with "biological sex."Submitted
37Version 2Scanlon (PA)DemocratWithdrawn Provides legal assistance to victims of trafficking after an arrest involving a member of the Armed Forces is made, most often when the victim is arrested for prostitution involving said servicemember.Withdrawn
38Version 2Hern (OK)RepublicanRevised Inserts findings that females included in a study by Pew Research Center on gun ownership increases among women cited personal protection as the primary reason for obtaining a gun.Revised
39Version 3Scanlon (PA)DemocratRevised Provides legal representation to individuals for post conviction relief proceedings.Made in Order
40Version 2Leger Fernandez (NM)DemocratRevised Directs the Office on Violence Against Women to report on actions taken to prevent suicide amongst survivors and to consult with SAMHSA to establish best practices to prevent suicide amongst survivors.Made in Order
41Version 1Wasserman Schultz (FL), Speier (CA)DemocratWithdrawn Amends the investigation and adjudication process to hold Department of Justice officers and employees accountable for violations of the Crime Victims’ Rights Act.Withdrawn
42Version 1Speier (CA), Wasserman Schultz (FL)DemocratWithdrawn Amends the Crime Victims Rights Act by clarifying the scope of victims’ rights and creating stronger judicial and administrative processes for victims to assert their rights.Withdrawn
43Version 1Scanlon (PA)DemocratCreates a pathway for providing legal services through the Department of Veterans Affairs to address unmet needs such as elder law, child custody, and housing disputes.Made in Order
44Version 1Meng (NY)DemocratEnsure family-focused programming for prisoners – from intake through reentry – to support the prisoners’ familial needs, as well as provide appropriate training for correctional staff to engage with prisoners’ families.Made in Order
45Version 1Speier (CA), Kuster (NH), Frankel (FL), Lawrence (MI), Moore (WI), Dingell (MI), Pressley (MA), Escobar (TX), Clark, Katherine (MA), Hayes (CT)DemocratEstablishes an Interagency Task Force on Sexual Violence in Education to provide pertinent information to the government, public, and educational institutions on campus sexual violence prevention and response, as well as how to better assist survivors.Made in Order
46Version 1Davis, Rodney (IL), Spanberger (VA), Joyce, David (OH), Omar (MN), Stivers (OH)Bi-PartisanRequires the Department of Health and Human Services to include in their Study and Report on Barriers to Survivors' Economic Security Access (Sec. 704), the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on such survivors as it relates to their ability to maintain economic security.Made in Order
47Version 1Meng (NY)DemocratEnsures clear distribution and accessibility of sanitary products to prisoners and provides that no visitor is prohibited from visiting due to the visitor’s use of sanitary products.Made in Order
48Version 3Kahele (HI), Case (HI)DemocratRevised Ensures appropriate consultation and inclusion with indigenous groups to support the tailored needs of indigenous women.Made in Order
49Version 2Lawrence (MI), Speier (CA)DemocratRevised Incentivizes states to adopt laws prohibiting the prosecution of minors for prostitution.Made in Order
50Version 2Leger Fernandez (NM)DemocratRevised Requires that services provided pursuant to grants to support families in the justice system are provided in a culturally relevant manner and requires DOL’s public outreach and education campaign to be conducted in a culturally relevant manner.Made in Order
51Version 2Gosar (AZ)RepublicanRevised Prohibits anything discovered using a trauma informed theory from replacing investigative facts based on due process and innocence until proven guilty.Revised
52Version 1Torres, Norma (CA), Espaillat (NY)DemocratWithdrawn Prevents ICE and CBP from arresting immigrants at courthouses, rape crisis centers, women's shelters, and hospitals to protect domestic abuse victims and their children. States that it is the sense of Congress that ICE and CBP arrests at courthouses, rape crisis centers, women's shelters, and hospitals disrupt the judicial process by intimidating victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking, who are seeking justice. Requires the Secretary of HHS to review the polices of ICE and CBP related to courthouse arrests.Withdrawn
53Version 3Speier (CA), Lofgren (CA)DemocratLate Revised Builds on the unanimous passage of the Survivors’ Bill of Rights Act (Pub.L. 114-236) establishing rights for survivors of federal sexual assault offenses by incentivizing states to ensure that survivors have, at a minimum, the rights guaranteed by the federal law. Includes the right to be informed if the government intends to destroy or dispose of a sexual assault evidence collection kit, the right to be informed of any result of a kit, and the right to have a sexual assault evidence collection kit or its probative contents preserved without charge for the maximum applicable statute of limitations or 20 years, whichever is shorter.Made in Order
54Version 2Bush, Cori (MO)DemocratLate Revised Ensures that survivors can access transitional housing and be protected from unfair evictions and denial of service.Made in Order
55Version 2Bush, Cori (MO)DemocratLate Revised Requires a report to Congress on best practices for alternative programs as it relates to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.Revised
56Version 2Bush, Cori (MO)DemocratLate Revised Requires the Attorney General shall make publicly available on the Department of Justice website reports involving police sexual misconductMade in Order
57Version 1Omar (MN)DemocratLate Includes credit history in the GAO economic barrier study.Made in Order
58Version 2Omar (MN)DemocratLate Revised Clarifies that the protections provided in Title XI also apply to women in immigration detention.Revised
59Version 2Omar (MN)DemocratLate Revised Includes barriers of legal costs and jurisdictional challenges in the GAO economic study.Made in Order
60Version 1Omar (MN)DemocratLate Requires a report to Congress on the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on efforts to disperse funding and services to victims to domestic violence.Submitted
61Version 1Delgado (NY)DemocratLate Adds to the findings on Economic Security for Victims that individuals living in rural areas facing intimate partner violence often face barriers to accessing resources, ranging from health care to the criminal justice system.Made in Order
62Version 2Delgado (NY)DemocratLate Revised Requires an analysis of the unique barriers faced by survivors in rural communities in the study on barriers to survivors’ economic security.Made in Order
63Version 1Williams (GA)DemocratLate Ensures any study conducted under this bill includes an assessment, to the extent practicable, of any disparate impacts of the matter studied, by race, ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity.Made in Order
64Version 1Delgado (NY)DemocratLate Clarifies that veterans service organizations and other veteran nonprofit organizations are eligible for support under the Sexual Assault Services Program.Submitted
65Version 1Soto (FL)DemocratLate Amends the definition of female genital mutilation to include “injury to the female genital organs”.Submitted
66Version 1Soto (FL)DemocratLate Strikes the word “seriously” from “seriously injured” and ensures that victims of domestic violence who are at high risk of being injured or killed by an intimate partner are included in the Grants for Lethality Assessment Programs provided to states, local governments, Indian Tribes, domestic violence victim service providers, etc.Submitted
67Version 1Ross, Deborah (NC)DemocratLate Creates a statutory mandate that a victim’s safety should be central to the housing and housing-related decisions that covered housing providers make when implementing VAWA to not evict survivors, keep their information confidential, and do not deny assistance.Made in Order
68Version 1Green, Mark (TN)RepublicanLate Ensures that nothing in the Act may be construed to preclude or reduce the award of any grant to an entity that provides housing, meals, counseling, healthcare or any other emergency or crisis services based on the grantee’s provision of these services exclusively to women based on sex at birth, nor shall such sex-based accommodation provide grounds for legal action.Submitted
69Version 1Meng (NY)DemocratLate Withdrawn Requires the Secretary of Education to ensure that local educational agencies establish full-time Title IX coordinators in K-12 schools, to increase oversight and support for survivors of sexual harassment that occur in schools. Also requires these full-time Title IX coordinator to collect data through a climate survey in K-12 schools on sexual harassment, and the Department to collect and publish data on the prevalence, impact, and response to reports of sexual harassment.Withdrawn
70Version 1Jayapal (WA)DemocratLate Withdrawn Instructs USCIS to provide access to work authorization for individuals who have submitted a U-visa immigration application, if their cases are pending for over 180 days.Withdrawn
71Version 3Nadler (NY)DemocratMANAGER’S AMENDMENT Late Revised Makes a number of technical and conforming changes throughout the bill. Adds a Sense of Congress that sex trafficking victims experience sexual violence and assault and that Federal recognition of their recovery is important. Ensures the legislation adequately responds to challenges facing survivors and organizations that serve survivors, including amending Section 105 to strengthen the appropriate responsiveness of criminal and civil justice interventions by ensuring that training is population-specific; amending Section 105 to authorize the Outreach and Services to Underserved Populations grant program in the amount of $10 million; clarifying, in Section 601, that a tenant, program participant, or resident in a housing unit who has experienced sexual assault on the premises within the last 90 days of the request for an emergency transfer can be eligible to request an emergency transfer or be eligible to request a National VAWA Victim Relocation Pool voucher; and, in Section 706, ensuring that education and information programs for survivors are conducted in a manner that is equally effective for and accessible to people with disabilities and people without disabilities. Additionally, modifies Sec. 703 in accordance with technical assistance from the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to ensure that the changes in Unemployment Insurance (UI) and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program (TANF) can be implemented correctly and without unintended consequences. Streamlines the respective definitions of domestic violence, sexual harassment, sexual assault, and stalking within the context of each program to ensure that the personnel training for the new standards is specific to the program and modifies effective dates to include a clear and sequential timeline for steps required to avoid penalties under existing UI and TANF law.Considered as Adopted
72Version 1Lamb (PA)DemocratLate Adds training for sexual assault nurse examiners (SANE nurses) to VAWA's Rural Programs, to expand access to and retention of quality SANE nurses in rural areas.Made in Order
73Version 1Lamb (PA)DemocratLate Updates the cybercrime section of the bill to facilitate the use of AI/machine learning software designed to identify sex trafficking networks and to protect their victims.Submitted