News Home

FOXX Statement Supporting House VAWA Reauthorization Proposal

Congresswoman Virginia Foxx issued the following statement regarding her support for the House Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) reauthorization proposal today:  

“Today I supported the House of Representatives’ Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) reauthorization proposal because it included reforms to best serve all victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, crimes which inflict pain and trauma on women and leave no community untouched.

“Violence against women is a tragedy and I had hoped to see the House VAWA reauthorization bill pass today to bolster prevention initiatives and ensure that every victim of sexual assault and domestic violence in this country receives the greatest protection in the future.

“The House VAWA reauthorization was better than the Senate proposal (S. 47) and would have maximized protection for all who face the threat of domestic and sexual violence. It would have increased accountability for how VAWA grant dollars are administered to ensure that money goes to helping victims and reducing violence, not padding bureaucracy; it would have distributed funds more equitably between rape prevention and sexual assault services; and it would have improved the ability for law enforcement to prosecute abusers.  

“Additionally, the House VAWA reauthorization would have provided a constitutional route to ensuring justice for Native American and Alaskan Native women who are victims of assault on tribal lands. The House bill sought to enable tribal governments to prosecute, within a constitutional framework, domestic violence and sexual assault crimes perpetrated by non-Native Americans on tribal land. The House proposal also enhanced immigration laws to protect victims of violence.

“Both the House and Senate VAWA reauthorization proposals contained legislation I cosponsored, the STALKER Act, that will strengthen protections for any victim of online cyber-stalking.”

# # #