Tom Udall: “I would like to take this opportunity to call attention to key legislation that addresses violence, and this piece of…”

“I would like to take this opportunity to call attention to key legislation that addresses violence, and this piece of legislation should come to the floor. That is the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act. VAWA reauthorization expired over a year and a half ago, on February 15, 2019. Funding continues, but key improvements are being delayed by the lack of reauthorization. The Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2019 is supported by all 47 Democratic Senators. The House passed the bill 236 to 158. Thirty-three House Republicans voted yes on that bill. The bill would extend VAWA for 5 years, through 2024, while making key improvements. As the vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, I know how critical VAWA reauthorization is to Indian Country. Data from the U.S. Department of Justice indicates that Native women face murder rates that are more than 10 times the national average murder rate. There are more than 5,000 cases of missing American Indian and Alaska Native women, and 55 percent of Native women have experienced domestic violence. More than four in five American Indian and Alaska Native women experience violence in their lifetime. Without the enactment of a VAWA reauthorization, these Tribes will lack the jurisdictional tools they need to keep their communities safe.…”