[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6869 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6869

 To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to improve the provision 
 of services and benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs for 
 veterans who experience domestic violence or sexual assault, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 25, 2018

 Ms. Velazquez (for herself, Mr. Coffman, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. 
 Meeks, Mr. Serrano, Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, Mr. Engel, 
  Mr. Suozzi, Mrs. Radewagen, Ms. Judy Chu of California, Ms. Roybal-
 Allard, Mr. Cohen, Ms. Wilson of Florida, Mr. DeSaulnier, Mr. Payne, 
Mr. Hastings, Mr. Jones, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Ms. Hanabusa, Mr. 
Khanna, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas, Ms. Norton, Mr. Sires, Mrs. 
 Torres, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Vela, Ms. McCollum, Mr. Takano, Ms. Moore, 
 Ms. Speier, Ms. Jayapal, Ms. Brownley of California, Mr. Pallone, Ms. 
  Lofgren, Ms. Shea-Porter, Mrs. Dingell, Ms. Bordallo, Ms. Wasserman 
 Schultz, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mrs. Demings, Ms. Michelle Lujan Grisham of 
 New Mexico, Mr. McEachin, Mr. Kilmer, Mr. McNerney, Mrs. Napolitano, 
  Mr. Soto, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. Carbajal, Mr. Sablan, Mrs. Carolyn B. 
    Maloney of New York, Mr. Richmond, Mr. Vargas, Ms. Matsui, Mr. 
Cartwright, Ms. Gabbard, Mr. Raskin, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Ms. Kuster of 
  New Hampshire, Mr. Quigley, Ms. Pingree, Mr. Bishop of Georgia, Mr. 
   Jeffries, Mr. Tonko, Mr. Panetta, Mr. Gutierrez, Mr. Moulton, Mr. 
    Crowley, Ms. Sanchez, Mr. Yarmuth, Ms. Esty of Connecticut, Ms. 
 DelBene, Mr. Ted Lieu of California, Mr. Brown of Maryland, Ms. Meng, 
 Ms. Rosen, Mr. Ruppersberger, Mr. Carson of Indiana, and Mr. Correa) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                           Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to improve the provision 
 of services and benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs for 
 veterans who experience domestic violence or sexual assault, and for 
                            other purposes.

    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 ``Violence Against Women Veterans 
Act''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to better integrate the medical, 
housing, mental health, and other benefits provided by the Department 
of Veterans Affairs with existing community-based domestic violence and 
sexual assault services--
            (1) to provide a more efficient and coordinated network of 
        support for veterans experiencing domestic violence or sexual 
        assault; and
            (2) to better understand the impact of domestic violence 
        and sexual assault on veterans, particularly female veterans.

SEC. 3. PROGRAM TO ASSIST VETERANS WHO EXPERIENCE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OR 
              SEXUAL ASSAULT.

    (a) Program Required.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
carry out a program to assist veterans that have experienced or are 
experiencing domestic violence or sexual assault in accessing benefits 
from the Department of Veterans Affairs, including coordinating access 
to medical treatment centers, housing assistance, and other benefits 
from the Department.
    (b) Partnership.--The Secretary shall carry out the program under 
subsection (a) in partnership with--
            (1) domestic violence shelters and programs;
            (2) rape crisis centers;
            (3) State domestic violence and sexual assault coalitions; 
        and
            (4) such other health care or other service providers that 
        serve domestic violence or sexual assault victims as determined 
        by the Secretary, particularly those providing emergency 
        services or housing assistance.
    (c) Authorized Activities.--In carrying out the program under 
subsection (a), the Secretary may conduct the following activities:
            (1) Training for community-based domestic violence or 
        sexual assault service providers on--
                    (A) identifying veterans who have been victims of 
                domestic violence or sexual assault;
                    (B) coordinating with local service providers of 
                the Department; and
                    (C) connecting veterans with appropriate housing, 
                mental health, medical, and other financial assistance 
                or benefits from the Department.
            (2) Assistance to service providers to ensure access of 
        veterans to domestic violence and sexual assault emergency 
        services, particularly in underserved areas, including services 
        for members of Indian tribes.
            (3) Such other outreach and assistance as the Secretary 
        determines necessary for the provision of assistance under 
        subsection (a).
    (d) Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Outreach Coordinators.--
            (1) In general.--In order to effectively assist veterans 
        who have experienced domestic violence or sexual assault, the 
        Secretary may establish local coordinators to provide outreach 
        under the program required by subsection (a).
            (2) Local coordinator knowledge.--The Secretary shall 
        ensure that each coordinator established under paragraph (1) is 
        knowledgeable about--
                    (A) the dynamics of domestic violence and sexual 
                assault, including safety concerns, legal protections, 
                and the need for the provision of confidential 
                services;
                    (B) the eligibility of veterans for services and 
                benefits from the Department that are relevant to 
                recovery from domestic violence and sexual assault, 
                particularly emergency housing assistance, mental 
                health care, other health care, and disability 
                benefits; and
                    (C) local community resources addressing domestic 
                violence and sexual assault.
            (3) Local coordinator assistance.--Each coordinator 
        established under paragraph (1) shall assist domestic violence 
        shelters and rape crisis centers in providing services to 
        veterans.

SEC. 4. NATIONAL TASK FORCE ON VETERANS EXPERIENCING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 
              OR SEXUAL ASSAULT.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in consultation 
with the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services, shall establish a national task force (in this section 
referred to as the ``Task Force'') to develop a comprehensive national 
program, including by integrating facilities, services, and benefits of 
the Department of Veterans Affairs into existing networks of community-
based domestic violence and sexual assault services, to address 
domestic violence and sexual assault among veterans.
    (b) Consultation With Stakeholders.--In carrying out this section, 
the Task Force shall consult with--
            (1) representatives from not fewer than three national 
        organizations or State coalitions with demonstrated expertise 
        in domestic violence prevention, response, or advocacy; and
            (2) representatives from not fewer than three national 
        organizations or State coalitions, particularly those 
        representing underserved or ethnic minority communities, with 
        demonstrated expertise in sexual assault prevention, response, 
        or advocacy.
    (c) Duties.--The duties of the Task Force shall include the 
following:
            (1) To review existing services and policies of the 
        Department and develop a comprehensive national program to 
        address domestic violence and sexual assault prevention, 
        response, and treatment.
            (2) To review the feasibility and advisability of 
        establishing an expedited process to secure emergency, 
        temporary benefits, including housing or other benefits, for 
        veterans who are experiencing domestic violence or sexual 
        assault.
            (3) To review and make recommendations regarding the 
        feasibility and advisability of establishing dedicated, 
        temporary housing assistance for veterans experiencing domestic 
        violence or sexual assault.
            (4) To identify any requirements regarding domestic 
        violence assistance or sexual assault response and services 
        that are not being met by the Department and make 
        recommendations on how the Department can meet such 
        requirements.
            (5) To review and make recommendations regarding the 
        feasibility and advisability of providing direct services or 
        contracting for community-based services for veterans in 
        response to a sexual assault, including through the use of 
        sexual assault nurse examiners, particularly in underserved or 
        remote areas, including services for members of Indian tribes.
            (6) To review the availability of counseling services 
        provided by the Department and through peer network support, 
        and to provide recommendations for the enhancement of such 
        services, to address--
                    (A) the perpetration of domestic violence and 
                sexual assault; and
                    (B) the recovery of veterans, particularly female 
                veterans, from domestic violence and sexual assault.
            (7) To review and make recommendations to expand services 
        available for veterans at risk of perpetrating domestic 
        violence.
    (d) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and not less frequently than annually 
thereafter, the Task Force shall submit to the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs and Congress a report on the activities of the Task Force, 
including any recommendations for legislative or administrative action.

SEC. 5. NATIONAL BASELINE STUDY ON PROBLEM OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND 
              SEXUAL ASSAULT AMONG VETERANS AND SPOUSES OF VETERANS.

    The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in consultation with the 
Attorney General, shall conduct a national baseline study to examine 
the scope of the problem of domestic violence and sexual assault among 
veterans and spouses of veterans.
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