[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4979 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4979

   To establish a grant program to enhance training and services to 
                      prevent abuse in later life.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 27, 2012

 Ms. Baldwin introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To establish a grant program to enhance training and services to 
                      prevent abuse in later life.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``End Abuse in Later Life Act of 
2012''.

SEC. 2. ENHANCED TRAINING AND SERVICES TO END ABUSE IN LATER LIFE.

    (a) In General.--Subtitle H of the Violence Against Women Act of 
1994 (42 U.S.C. 14041 et seq.) is amended to read as follows:

``Subtitle H--Enhanced Training and Services to End Abuse Later in Life

``SEC. 40801. ENHANCED TRAINING AND SERVICES TO END ABUSE IN LATER 
              LIFE.

    ``(a) Purposes.--The purposes of this section are to--
            ``(1) provide training, consultation, and information on 
        abuse in later life, including domestic violence, dating 
        violence, sexual assault, stalking, exploitation, and neglect;
            ``(2) create or enhance direct services to victims of abuse 
        in later life, including domestic violence, dating violence, 
        sexual assault, stalking, exploitation, and neglect; and
            ``(3) create or support coordinated community response to 
        abuse in later life, including domestic violence, dating 
        violence, sexual assault, stalking, exploitation, and neglect.
    ``(b) Definitions.--In this section--
            ``(1) the term `exploitation' has the meaning given the 
        term in the section 2011 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
        1397j);
            ``(2) the term `later life', relating to an individual, 
        means the individual is 50 years of age or older; and
            ``(3) the term `neglect' means the failure of a caregiver 
        or fiduciary to provide the goods or services that are 
        necessary to maintain the health or safety of an individual in 
        later life.
    ``(c) Grant Program.--
            ``(1) Grants authorized.--The Attorney General, through the 
        Director of the Office on Violence Against Women, may make 
        grants to eligible entities to carry out the activities 
        described in paragraph (2).
            ``(2) Mandatory and permissible activities.--
                    ``(A) Mandatory activities.--An eligible entity 
                receiving a grant under this section shall use the 
                funds received under the grant to--
                            ``(i) provide training programs to assist 
                        law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, agencies 
                        of States or units of local government, 
                        population-specific organizations, victims 
                        service providers, victim advocates, and 
                        relevant officers in Federal, Tribal, State, 
                        Territorial, and local courts in recognizing 
                        and addressing instances of abuse in later 
                        life, including domestic violence, dating 
                        violence, sexual assault, stalking, 
                        exploitation, and neglect;
                            ``(ii) provide or enhance services for 
                        victims of abuse in later life, including 
                        domestic violence, dating violence, sexual 
                        assault, stalking, exploitation, and neglect;
                            ``(iii) establish or support 
                        multidisciplinary collaborative community 
                        responses to victims of abuse in later life, 
                        including domestic violence, dating violence, 
                        sexual assault, stalking, exploitation, and 
                        neglect; and
                            ``(iv) conduct cross-training for law 
                        enforcement agencies, prosecutors, agencies of 
                        States or units of local government, attorneys, 
                        health care providers, population-specific 
                        organizations, faith-based advocates, victims 
                        service providers, and courts to better serve 
                        victims of abuse in later life, domestic 
                        violence, dating violence, sexual assault, 
                        stalking, exploitation, and neglect.
                    ``(B) Permissible activities.--An eligible entity 
                receiving a grant under this section may use the funds 
                received under the grant to--
                            ``(i) provide training programs to assist 
                        attorneys, health care providers, faith-based 
                        leaders, or other community-based organizations 
                        in recognizing and addressing instances of 
                        abuse in later life, including domestic 
                        violence, dating violence, sexual assault, 
                        stalking, exploitation, and neglect; and
                            ``(ii) conducting outreach activities and 
                        public awareness campaigns to ensure that 
                        victims of abuse in later life (including 
                        domestic violence, dating violence, sexual 
                        assault, stalking, exploitation, and neglect) 
                        receive appropriate assistance.
                    ``(C) Limitation.--An eligible entity receiving a 
                grant under this section may use not more than 10 
                percent of the total funds received under the grant for 
                an activity described in subparagraph (B)(ii).
            ``(3) Eligible entities.--An entity shall be eligible to 
        receive a grant under this section if--
                    ``(A) the entity is--
                            ``(i) a State;
                            ``(ii) a unit of local government;
                            ``(iii) an Indian Tribal government or 
                        Tribal organization;
                            ``(iv) a population-specific organization 
                        with demonstrated experience in assisting 
                        individuals over 50 years of age;
                            ``(v) a victim service provider with 
                        demonstrated experience in addressing domestic 
                        violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and 
                        stalking; or
                            ``(vi) a State, Tribal, or Territorial 
                        domestic violence or sexual assault coalition; 
                        and
                    ``(B) the entity demonstrates that the entity is a 
                part of a multidisciplinary partnership that includes, 
                at a minimum--
                            ``(i) a law enforcement agency;
                            ``(ii) a prosecutor's office;
                            ``(iii) a victim service provider; and
                            ``(iv) a nonprofit program or government 
                        agency with demonstrated experience in 
                        assisting individuals in later life.
            ``(4) Underserved populations.--In making grants under this 
        section, the Attorney General shall give priority to proposals 
        providing population-specific services to racial and ethnic 
        minorities and other underserved populations.
            ``(5) Authorization of appropriations.--
                    ``(A) In general.--There are authorized to be 
                appropriated to carry out this subsection $10,000,000 
                for each of fiscal years 2013 through 2017.
                    ``(B) Requirement.--Amounts appropriated pursuant 
                to subparagraph (A) shall remain available until 
                expended and may only be used for the activities 
                described in this subsection.
                    ``(C) Allocation of funds.--
                            ``(i) Administrative costs.--Of the amount 
                        appropriated pursuant to subparagraph (A) in 
                        each fiscal year, the Attorney General may use 
                        not more than 2.5 percent for administration 
                        and monitoring of grants made under this 
                        subsection.
                            ``(ii) Evaluation.--Of the amount 
                        appropriated pursuant to subparagraph (A) in 
                        each fiscal year the Attorney General may use 
                        not more than 5 percent for contracts or 
                        cooperative agreements with entities with 
                        demonstrated expertise in program evaluation, 
                        to evaluate programs under this subsection.''.
    (b) Definition.--Section 40002(a) of the Violence Against Women Act 
of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 13925(a)) is amended--
            (1) by striking paragraph (9);
            (2) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (8) as 
        paragraphs (2) through (9), respectively; and
            (3) by inserting before paragraph (2), as redesignated, the 
        following:
            ``(1) Abuse in later life.--The term `abuse in later life' 
        means any action against a person who is 50 years of age or 
        older that constitutes the willful--
                    ``(A) infliction of injury, unreasonable 
                confinement, intimidation, or cruel punishment with 
                resulting physical harm, pain, or mental anguish; or
                    ``(B) deprivation by a person, including a 
                caregiver, of goods or services with intent to cause 
                physical harm, mental anguish, or mental illness.''.
    (c) Technical and Conforming Correction.--The table of contents in 
section 2 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 
(Public Law 103-322; 108 Stat. 1796) is amended in the table of 
contents by inserting after the item relating to section 40703 the 
following:

``Subtitle H--Enhanced Training and Services to End Abuse Later in Life

``Sec. 40801. Enhance training and services to end abuse later in 
                            life.''.
                                 <all>