[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 72 (Friday, May 18, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E865-E866]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2012

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. LAURA RICHARDSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 16, 2012

  Ms. RICHARDSON. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong and unyielding 
opposition to H.R. 4970, ``Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act 
of 2012.'' I urge my colleagues to reject this legislation and appeal 
to the Republican leadership to bring to the floor the Senate version 
of this bill which passed with a substantial bipartisan majority. Every 
Democratic Senator and 15 Senate Republicans, including all of the 
Senate GOP women, voted for the bill.
  H.R. 4970 reauthorizes the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) for five 
years. It provides federal resources authorized by VAWA directly to 
organizations and programs that help prevent violent crime and protect 
victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. It consolidates grant 
programs and requires more audits and direct grant applicants to 
disclose their sources of federal funding. It also includes new 
benchmarks for visa applicants who are the victims of violent crime.
  Madam Speaker, VAWA has never been a partisan issue until this 
Congress. Twice over the last 20 years, Democrats and Republicans have 
worked together to reauthorize VAWA and make necessary improvements. 
But just like on the Highway Bill, House Republicans are abandoning the 
bipartisan consensus that has always existed on VAWA reauthorizations. 
The bill rolls back important protections for immigrant victims that 
put them in a more vulnerable position than under current law by 
eliminating longstanding confidentiality of VAWA petitions for 
protection by allowing immigration officials to contact a battered 
woman's abusive spouse, tipping off the abuser to the victim's efforts 
to leave.
  H.R. 4970 also makes it more difficult for undocumented witnesses to 
work with law enforcement officials, and eliminates a pathway

[[Page E866]]

to permanent residency for victims of major crimes who cooperate with 
police on serious criminal cases. The bill also completely excludes 
vulnerable populations such as tribal women, and LGBT individuals.
  The House Republican bill removes the key provisions from the 
bipartisan passed Senate bill improving protections for Native American 
women and ensuring all victims are assisted regardless of religion or 
sexual orientation.
  The House Republican bill is opposed by hundreds of groups within the 
domestic violence community, as well as law enforcement, civil rights 
and faith-based groups.
  Drafting a VAWA bill without any input from Democrats and without any 
Democratic support in the Judiciary Committee goes against how these 
reauthorizations have been crafted for over two decades. And it has 
produced a bill that weakens, rather than strengthens, protections for 
women against domestic abuse.
  I oppose H.R. 4970 and urge my colleagues to do likewise.

                          ____________________