[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Con. Res. 66 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
104th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. CON. RES. 66
To express the sense of the Congress that any welfare reform
legislation enacted by the Congress should include provisions
addressing domestic violence.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 27, 1996
Mr. Wellstone (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Wyden, Mr.
Feingold, Mr. Akaka, Mr. Simon, and Mr. Sarbanes) submitted the
following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on
Finance
_______________________________________________________________________
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
To express the sense of the Congress that any welfare reform
legislation enacted by the Congress should include provisions
addressing domestic violence.
Whereas, in enacting the Violence Against Women Act, the Congress recognized the
epidemic of violence that affects all aspects of women's lives;
Whereas violence against women is the leading cause of physical injury to women,
and the Department of Justice estimates that every year more than
1,000,000 violent crimes against women, including assault, rape, and
murder, are committed by intimate partners of the women;
Whereas the American Psychological Association has reported that violence
against women is usually witnessed by the children of the direct
victims, and that such child witnesses suffer severe psychological,
cognitive, and physical damage, and studies have shown that children
residing in battered mothers' homes are 15 times more likely to be
physically abused or neglected, and male children residing in such homes
are 3 times more likely to be violent with their female partners when
they reach adulthood;
Whereas violence against women dramatically affects women's workforce
participation, insofar as \1/4\ of battered women surveyed reported that
they had lost a job due, at least in part, to the effects of domestic
violence, and that over \1/2\ of battered women reported that they had
been harassed by their abuser at work;
Whereas violence against women is often exacerbated as women seek to gain
economic independence, and often increases when women attend school or
training programs, and batterers often prevent women from attending such
programs, and often sabotage their efforts at self-improvement;
Whereas numerous studies have shown that at least 60 percent of battered women
suffer from some or all of the following symptoms: terrifying
flashbacks, sleep disorders, inability to concentrate, as well as other
symptoms, all of which can impair a victim's ability to obtain and
retain employment;
Whereas several recent studies indicate that over 50 percent of women in
welfare-to-work programs have been or currently are victims of domestic
violence, and a study by the State of Washington indicates that over 50
percent of recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)
in that State have been so victimized;
Whereas the availability of economic support is a critical factor in a woman's
ability to leave abusive situations that threaten themselves and their
children, and over \1/2\ of battered women surveyed reported that they
stayed with their batterers because they lacked resources to support
themselves and their children;
Whereas proposals to restructure the AFDC program may impact the availability of
the economic support and the safety net necessary to enable poor women
to flee abuse without risking homelessness and starvation for their
families; and
Whereas proposals to restructure the AFDC program by imposing time limits and
increasing emphasis on work and job training should be evaluated in
light of data demonstrating the extent to which domestic violence
affects women's participation in such programs, and in light of the
Congress' commitment to seriously address the issue of violence against
women as evidenced by the enactment of the Violence Against Women Act:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring),
That--
(1) when the Congress considers proposed welfare
legislation, it should seriously evaluate whether such welfare
measure would exacerbate violence against women, make it more
difficult for women and children to escape domestic violence,
or would unfairly penalize women and children victimized by or
at risk of violence;
(2) any welfare legislation enacted by the Congress should
require that any welfare-to-work, education, or job placement
program implemented by the States should take domestic violence
into account, by providing, among other things, mechanisms
for--
(A) screening and identifying recipients with a
history of domestic violence;
(B) referring such recipients to counseling and
supportive services;
(C) tolling time limits for recipients victimized
by domestic violence; and
(D) waiving, pursuant to a determination of good
cause, other program requirements such as residency
requirements, child support cooperation requirements,
and family cap provisions, in cases where compliance
with such requirements would make it more difficult for
the recipients to escape domestic violence or unfairly
penalize recipients victimized by or at risk of further
violence;
(3) any welfare legislation enacted by the Congress should
include a provision requiring that the Comptroller General
should develop and implement a comprehensive study of the
incidence and effect of domestic violence on AFDC recipients,
including a study of the extent to which domestic violence both
precipitates and prolongs women's and children's poverty and
the need for AFDC; and
(4) any welfare reform legislation adopted by the States
that contains a welfare-to-work, education, or job placement
program should take domestic violence into account, by
providing, among other things, mechanisms for--
(A) screening and identifying recipients with a
history of domestic violence;
(B) referring such recipients to counseling and
supportive services;
(C) tolling time limits for recipients victimized
by domestic violence; and
(D) waiving other program requirements, pursuant to
a determination of good cause, such as residency
requirements, child support cooperation requirements,
and family cap provisions, in cases where compliance
with such requirements would make it more difficult for
the recipients and their children to escape domestic
violence or unfairly penalize recipients victimized by
or at risk of further violence.
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