Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “National Domestic Violence Prevention Action Plan Act of 2021”.
National Domestic Violence Prevention Action Plan Act of 2021
A BILL
To establish a National Domestic Violence Prevention Action Plan to expand, intensify, and coordinate domestic violence prevention efforts among Federal, State, local, and Tribal government agencies and with other relevant stakeholders, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Findings
Congress finds the following:
Domestic violence is a serious public health problem and more than 10 million individuals experience domestic violence in the United States each year.
According to the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey in the United States—
more than 1 in 4 women and nearly 1 in 10 men will experience contact sexual violence, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner and experience an intimate partner violence related impact in their lifetime; and
approximately 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men experience severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime.
More than half of female homicides are connected to intimate partner violence and in a domestic violence situation the presence of a gun increases the risk of homicide by 500 percent.
While domestic violence can affect anyone, research indicates that communities of color, individuals with disabilities, LGBTQ+ individuals, and other marginalized communities can be disproportionately impacted.
Domestic violence leads to the loss of nearly 8 million days of work each year the lifetime economic burden on victims is $3.6 trillion, in which the government pays approximately $1.3 trillion (37 percent) of the burden.
The United Nations has urged countries to adopt national action plans to combat gender-based violence and violence against women, including domestic violence, and approximately 50 countries, including Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Spain, and Ireland, have adopted such plans.
The United States does not have a national plan of action on domestic violence or gender-based violence, making it a global outlier.
While the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) enacted in 1984 and the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA) enacted in 1995 are the United States landmark pieces of domestic violence legislation and have many of the hallmarks of a national action plan on domestic violence prevention, from the public health and the enforcement perspectives, respectively, the United States does not have a whole-of-government, goal-oriented, community-informed, forward-looking national plan of action for domestic violence prevention.
In 1995, the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) was created within the Department of Justice (DOJ) to administer grants authorized under VAWA and offer financial and technical assistance to communities across the United States that are working to develop and maintain programs, policies, and practices geared towards responding to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.
In 2002, OVW was codified through Title IV of the 21st Century Department of Justice Appropriations Act (Public Law 107–273).
The FVPSA is the primary Federal resource dedicated to the provision of domestic violence shelters, supportive services, and related programming for victims of domestic/dating violence and their dependents.
The FVPSA Program administers State and Territorial Formula Grants, Native American Tribes Formula Grants, State and Territory Domestic Violence Coalitions Grants, Discretionary Grants, Specialized Services to Abused Parents and their Children, Training and Technical Assistance Resource Centers Grants, and the National Domestic Violence Hotline Grant. The FVPSA authorizes 4 major activities that:
Assist States and Tribes in efforts to prevent domestic violence and dating violence.
Provide immediate shelter and supportive services for victims of domestic violence and their dependents.
Provide for a National Domestic Violence Hotline.
Provide for technical assistance and training relating to domestic violence and domestic violence programs to States, Tribes, public agencies, community-based programs and the public.
Since 1996, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has awarded DELTA funding to State Domestic Violence Coalitions (SDVCs) to coordinate specific prevention activities.
Overall approximately 18 States have received DELTA funding at some point since the programs creation. However, only nine States currently benefit from this funding.
According to the CDC, DELTA focuses on implementing three strategies with the goal of addressing and decreasing community and societal level risk, identifying factors in communities that may lead to intimate partner violence and increasing protective factors that prevent it by—
engaging influential adults and peers;
creating protective environments; and
strengthening economic supports for families.
In 1993, the FVPSA established 4 national training and technical assistance resource centers to support, train, and assist domestic violence shelters, community-based organizations, victim advocates, and other professionals in the provision of safe housing and supportive services to domestic violence survivors and their dependents. These resource centers include the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence (NRCDV), the Health Resource Center on Domestic Violence, the Resource Center on Domestic Violence: Child Protection and Custody, and the Battered Women’s Justice Project (BWJP). In later years, additional resource centers were established to focus on culturally specific populations, Tribes and sovereign nations, American Indian/Alaska Natives, children exposed to domestic violence, mental and behavioral health services, housing, LGBTQ services, and other critical service intersections to meet the needs of survivors. With respect to these resource centers:
The purpose of these resource centers, known collectively as the Domestic Violence Resource Network (DVRN), is to engage in individual and collective strategic action to advance public policy, institutional change, community responses, and prevention initiatives that integrate and respond to the diverse realities and needs of survivors, their families, and their communities.
The individual advocacy efforts of DVRN members are informed by the wide range of expertise within the network and strengthened by opportunities for critical thinking and robust discussion of cross-cutting policy and practice issues.
In 2021, the FVPSA provides funding for two national resource centers, four special issue resource centers, three culturally specific resource centers, five emerging issue resource centers, one statewide Alaska Native resource center, and the National Domestic Violence Hotline and StrongHearts Native Helpline.
The National Indian Women’s Resource Center (NIWRC) is dedicated to restoring sovereignty to Native nations and safeguarding Native survivors and families from domestic, sexual, and intersecting violence.
The NRCDV believes that domestic violence is preventable. NRCDV builds the capacity of individuals, organizations, systems, and communities to strengthen and transform their efforts to end domestic violence through comprehensive technical assistance, training, resource development, and research.
The Special Issue Resource Centers are national in scope and enhance domestic violence and dating violence intervention and prevention efforts in:
Criminal and civil justice systems.
Child protective services and child custody.
Health care systems.
Mental health systems.
The Culturally Specific Special Issue Resource Centers enhance intervention and prevention efforts for victims of domestic violence for members of racial and ethnic minority groups, including: African American, Asian American/Pacific Islander, and Latino/Latina.
FVPSA’s emerging issue resource centers expand the capacity of domestic violence organizations, Tribes and Tribal organizations, and other professionals to provide evidence informed promising practices, policy changes, resources, and research to ensure effective services to victims of domestic violence and their dependents at the intersections of housing, gender identity and sexual orientation, organizational capacity building, and children’s exposure to trauma.
The statewide Alaska Native Women’s Resource Center strengthens local Tribal governments’ responses through community organizing efforts to advocate for the safety of women and children in their communities and homes through the voices, languages, and teachings of Tribes at statewide, national, and international levels for life-saving changes needed in laws, policies, and social norms.
The national hotlines are vital services designed to provide healthy relationship education, tools, and support to help survivors of domestic violence live their lives free of abuse— 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, including a helpline for American Indians and Alaska Natives, offering culturally appropriate support and advocacy.
Many Federal agencies respond to domestic violence by providing formula-based and discretionary grants to local, State, and Tribal governments, courts, nonprofits organizations, community-based organizations, schools, institutions of higher education, special-issue resource centers and State and Tribal coalitions for the purpose of supporting victims and holding perpetrators accountable for their actions associated with domestic violence. These Federal agencies include the following:
The Department of Defense administers the congressionally mandated Family Advocacy Program (FAP) which is devoted to providing clinical assessment, supportive services, and treatment in response to domestic violence, as well as reporting domestic abuse in military families annually to Congress.
The Department of State supports numerous programs that address domestic violence globally through its human rights and humanitarian activities, including those housed in the Office of Global Women’s Issues that supports anti-gender-based violence (GBV) programs and promotes awareness.
Through their agency-wide efforts to address gender inequality and gender-based violence, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) supports programs that aim to prevent and respond to domestic violence globally through its work in development, global health, and humanitarian assistance.
The Indian Country Crimes Unit (ICCU) at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is responsible for developing and implementing strategies, programs, and policies to address identified crimes problems in Indian country, including but not limited to, initiatives related to domestic violence and sex offenses, program management, and support for the Safe Trails Task Force.
The Office of Justice Services at the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA–OJS), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Tribal governments share jurisdiction in handling crimes, including domestic violence, on Tribal lands.
The FBI collects data on victim-offender relationships, including through the National-Incident Based Reporting System.
The Department of Education administers the Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grant program, authorized under Title IV–A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, which provides formula grants to State educational agencies and local educational agencies that may be used to support violence prevention programs and activities.
The Higher Education Act (HEA) requires institutions of higher education (IHE) to include in their annual security report (ASR) a statement of policy regarding the IHE’s programs to prevent domestic violence, dating violence, and other related crimes, and procedures that the IHE will follow once an incident of domestic or dating violence has been reported.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), in conjunction with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ), funds housing programs for individuals and families who are fleeing or attempting to flee their home due to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, as well as oversees the Domestic Violence Housing Technical Assistance Consortium through the Safe Housing Partnership that provides technical assistance to community providers on housing and domestic violence.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) accepts applications and assist survivors of domestic violence in becoming lawful permanent residents through VAWA self-petitions.
Survivors of domestic violence are affected by the programs of all Federal agencies, even if those agencies have not currently put into place specific programs to support survivors.
Responses to domestic violence have focused, to date, primarily on intervention after the problem has already been identified and harm has occurred. However, there are prevention strategies and prevention approaches from the public health field that can serve as models for further development of domestic violence prevention, such as a public health campaign that identifies and addresses the underlying causes of the issues.
Domestic violence prevention should be addressed along a continuum of possible harm:
Primary prevention to reduce the incidence of domestic violence before it occurs.
Secondary prevention to decrease the prevalence of domestic violence after early signs of such violence.
Tertiary prevention to intervene once domestic violence is already clearly evident and causing harm.
Early evaluations of existing prevention programs show promise, but results are still preliminary and programs remain small, locally based, and scattered throughout the United States.
The United States needs a broadly based, comprehensive prevention strategy that is supported by sound research and evaluation, receives adequate public backing, and is based on a policy of zero tolerance for domestic violence.
Sec. 3 National domestic violence prevention action plan steering committee
Establishment— Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish a national domestic violence prevention action plan steering committee (referred to in this Act as the “Steering Committee”).
Duties— The Steering Committee shall—
create the “National Domestic Violence Prevention Action Plan” (referred to in this Act as the “Action Plan”) to expand, intensify, and coordinate domestic violence prevention efforts among Federal, State, local, and Tribal government agencies and with other relevant stakeholders to ensure a whole-of-government, goal-oriented, community-informed, forward-looking approach in addressing domestic violence prevention pursuant to section 4;
develop methods and recommendations of programs needed to effectively implement the Action Plan;
establish goals for implementation of the Action Plan and evaluation methods for ensuring that such goals are met;
identify resources needed from Congress necessary to implement the Action Plan;
coordinate stakeholders pursuant to subsection (d);
as necessary, develop a program of activities pursuant to section 4(c); and
develop a national media campaign pursuant to section 4(d), to be included in the Action Plan, to promote a whole-of-government, goal-oriented, community-informed, forward-looking approach toward domestic violence prevention in the United States.
Chair; composition—
Chair— The Steering Committee shall be chaired by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The Chair of the Steering Committee—
shall convene and preside over any meeting of the Steering Committee;
shall set the meeting agenda for the Steering Committee;
shall coordinate the Steering Committee’s work;
may appoint subject matter experts, including experts from nongovernmental organizations, as determined necessary to carry out the duties of the Steering Committee; and
may as appropriate to deal with particular subject matters, establish subcommittees of the Steering Committee.
Composition— The Steering Committee shall be composed of the following individuals or a designee made by such individual:
The Attorney General.
The Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation at the Department of Health and Human Services.
The Director of the Office on Women’s Health at the Department of Health and Human Services.
The Administrator of the Office on Violence Against Women at the Department of Justice.
The Administrator of the Division of Violence Prevention at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Administrator of the Division of Injury Prevention at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention at the Department of Justice.
The Administrator of the Office of Victim of Crimes at the Department of Justice.
The Secretary of Education at the Department of Education.
The Deputy Bureau Director for Justice Service at the Bureau of Indian Affairs within the Department of Interior.
Any other subject matter experts, including experts from nongovernmental organizations, the Chair determines necessary to carry out the duties of the Steering Committee.
Coordination of stakeholders— In creating the Action Plan, the Steering Committee shall identify and collaborate with government and non-government stakeholders to create the Action Plan. Stakeholders shall include those who may be affected by the Action Plan, including Federal, State, local, Tribal government officials, public health agencies, health care providers, early childhood and child care providers, domestic violence advocacy groups, faith-based organizations, educational agencies, military branches, community-based and culturally specific child, and family serving organizations.
Existing authorities and responsibilities— The duties of the Steering Committee shall not be construed to diminish, supersede, or replace any other responsibility, authority, or role of any member of the Steering Committee.
Sec. 4 National Domestic Violence Prevention Action Plan
Creation of action plan— The Steering Committee shall create the Action Plan, setting forth a comprehensive plan to expand, intensify, and coordinate domestic violence prevention efforts among Federal, State, local, and Tribal government agencies and with other relevant stakeholders to ensure a whole-of-government, goal-oriented, community-informed, forward-looking approach in addressing domestic violence prevention in the United States.
Content of action plan— The Action Plan shall include:
A mission statement detailing the desired outcome and goals of major objectives of the Action Plan.
A list of objectives to:
Expand, intensify, and coordinate domestic violence prevention efforts among Federal, State, local, and Tribal government agencies and with other relevant stakeholders to ensure a whole-of-government, goal-oriented, community-informed, forward-looking approach in addressing domestic violence prevention in the United States.
Intensify domestic violence prevention efforts by addressing the continuum of possible harm, including encouraging recognition of the following:
Primary prevention to reduce the incidence of domestic violence before it occurs.
Secondary prevention to decrease the prevalence of domestic violence after early signs of such violence.
Tertiary prevention to intervene once domestic violence is already clearly evident and causing harm.
Encourage the implementation of existing domestic violence prevention efforts throughout Federal, State, local, and Tribal government agencies, as well as public health agencies, health care providers, early childhood and child care providers, domestic violence advocacy groups, faith-based organizations, educational agencies, military branches, and community-based and culturally specific child and family serving organizations.
Improve the methods of evaluation for domestic violence prevention through targeted data collection and analysis of such data.
Increase research opportunities to enhance the effectiveness and long-term benefits of domestic violence prevention programs and efforts.
Enhance public awareness of domestic violence prevention programs by establishing a national media awareness campaign focused primarily on education and prevention.
A description of the current prevalence and severity of any and all forms of domestic violence in the United States.
A description of the current prevalence of domestic violence prevention programs in the United States.
A description of other statistical data and information as the Steering Committee considers appropriate to demonstrate and assess trends relating to any and all forms of domestic violence and domestic violence prevention, and the implementation of the Action Plan.
Comprehensive, research-based, long-term, quantifiable goals for expanding, intensifying, and coordinating domestic violence prevention efforts among Federal, State, local, and Tribal government agencies and with other relevant stakeholders to ensure a whole-of-government, goal-oriented, community-informed, forward-looking approach in addressing domestic violence prevention in the United States.
Five-year projections and recommendations for Federal funding needed to achieve the objectives of the Action Plan.
Clear descriptions of the role of the Steering Committee and the role of each member of the Steering Committee in facilitating the development and fulfilling the objectives of the Action Plan.
A review of international, Federal, State, local, Tribal, and private sector domestic violence prevention programs and activities to ensure that the United States pursues coordinated and effective domestic violence prevention programs and activities at all levels of government.
A description of how each objective under paragraph (2) was determined, including the following:
A description of each required consultation pursuant to Section 3(d) and a description of how such consultation was incorporated.
Provision of data, research, or other information used to inform the determination to establish each goal.
A description of how each objective under paragraph (2) will be achieved, including for each goal the following:
A list of relevant professional groups, such as public health leaders, health care providers, early childhood and child care providers, domestic violence service providers and prevention specialists, faith-based leaders, educators, leaders of the Armed Forces, and community-based and culturally specific child and family serving organizations, and related programs, activities, that each group operates.
A list of relevant Federal, State, local, and Tribal programs and activities with respect to domestic violence prevention.
A list of the role that programs and activities identified in subparagraphs (A) and (B) have in meeting the objectives under paragraph (2).
An estimate of Federal funding and other resources needed to achieve each objective.
A list of each existing or needed coordination between government and nongovernment stakeholders for each objective.
A description of the Steering Committee’s role in facilitating the achievement of each objective.
A list identifying existing data sources, and a description of data collection needed to evaluate the effectiveness of domestic violence prevention efforts, including a description of how the Steering Committee will obtain such data.
A list of any anticipated challenges to achieving the goals of the Action Plan and planned actions to address such challenges.
Identification of methods to implement the Action Plan.
Recommendations on research, programs, activities, and resources necessary to achieve the goals of the Action Plan.
Program of activities— As necessary, the Steering Committee may include in the Action Plan a coherent, comprehensive, and sustained program of activities that includes actions to expand, intensify, and coordinate domestic violence prevention efforts among Federal, State, local, and Tribal government agencies and all States and Tribal communities to ensure a whole-of-government, goal-oriented, community-informed, forward-looking approach in addressing domestic violence prevention in the United States. Such programs may—
embrace a human rights-based approach that acknowledges that domestic violence is a violation of human rights and accounts for the disparate impact of domestic violence on marginalized communities;
address prevention of any and all forms of domestic violence, including all violence that happens across the life course, including violence in public and private spheres, violence in the workplace, including within the Armed Forces of the United States, and violence in other contexts;
address the root causes, prevalence, and impact of any and all forms of domestic violence, including social and cultural norms and other associated factors;
tailor strategies to address factors, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, national or social origin, marital status, housing status, sexual orientation, HIV/AIDS status, migrant or refugee status, age, disability, or any other relevant characteristics and any of these in combination that contribute to higher rates of any and all forms of domestic violence;
identify gaps in any and all existing domestic violence prevention programs with the goal of addressing the gaps in future work;
support government and non-government organizations and community networks to drive activity at the State and local level and ensure coordinated action across all States and localities;
support independent research on emerging issues that impact any and all forms of domestic violence;
collect, analyze, and communicate comprehensive qualitative and quantitative data, disaggregated by sex, race, age, ethnicity, and other relevant characteristics, on the nature, prevalence, and impact of any and all forms of domestic violence;
increase the number and quality of professional relationships involved in the prevention of any and all forms of domestic violence; and
support broader efforts to ensure gender equality and engage people of all genders and sexualities in combating any and all forms of domestic violence.
Media campaign—
In general— The Steering Committee shall include in the action plan a media campaign to facilitate and direct an ongoing and meaningful engagement with the public with respect to domestic violence prevention.
Purpose— The purpose of the media campaign shall be to:
Educate the public on prevention of any and all forms of domestic violence.
Engage with the public on bystander empowerment and education.
Teach safe and healthy relationship skills through social-emotional learning.
Create protective environments through improved school climate, workplace climate, community climate, as well as Federal, State, local, and Tribal policies.
Disrupt the developmental pathways towards domestic violence through parenting and family relationship programs, treatment for at-risk children, faith-based programs, and other culturally specific programming.
Combat the stigmas associated with any and all forms of domestic violence.
Content of media campaign— The media campaign shall include:
The development of national, local, regional, or population specific messaging, including messaging specific to professional groups, such as public health leaders, health care providers, early childhood and child care providers, domestic violence providers, faith-based leaders, educators, military leaders, and community-based and culturally specific child and family serving organizations.
The development of social media campaigns to reach targeted populations.
The development of a website to publicize and disseminate information.
The development of informational and educational pamphlets and brochures.
The development of webinars to educate and provide support.
Reporting— Not later than the first Monday in October two years after the date of enactment, and biannually thereafter, the Steering Committee shall submit to Congress in written form the Action Plan and as applicable any updates of the implementation of the Action Plan.
Sec. 5 Authorization of appropriations
There is authorized to be appropriated $25 million for each of the fiscal years 2021 through 2025 to the Department of Health and Human Services, of which—
$20 million, each fiscal year, to carry out this Act; and
$5 million, each fiscal year, for administrative services, facilities, staff, and other support services necessary to complete the duties of the Steering Committee.
Sec. 6 Definitions
In this Act:
Domestic violence— The term “domestic violence” includes felony or misdemeanor crimes of violence committed by a current or former spouse or intimate partner of the victim, by a person with whom the victim shares a child in common, by a person who is cohabitation with or has cohabitated with the victim as a spouse or intimate partner, by a person similarly situated to a spouse of the victim under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction receiving grant monies, or by any other person against an adult or youth victim who is protected from that person's acts under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction.
State— The term “State” means each of the several States and the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands.