The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Thursday it is providing almost $700 million in grant funding to better support survivors of domestic violence and gender-based violence under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).
The funding, a part of the fiscal 2024 year budget, is administered by the Office on Violence Against Women. Part of the funding will be allocated for addressing online gender-based violence, assisting victims and survivors of domestic violence and dating violence, according to DOJ’s news release.
“Thirty years ago, VAWA transformed our national response to domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.
“Today, officers, prosecutors, judges, families, and society at large understand what should have always been clear: these crimes cannot be cast aside as somehow distinct or private,” Garland continued. “Instead, we recognize that they are among the most serious crimes that our society faces and that we must continue to improve access to justice, safety, and services for survivors.”
VAWA, federal legislation that was first passed in 1994, was championed by President Biden during his time in the Senate. Its signing represented the first law that addressed violence against women while including support for victims and survivors. The legislation was reauthorized by Congress in 2000, 2005, 2013 and 2022, according to the DOJ, each time providing more resources and broadening the law. The 30th anniversary of the law’s signing was commemorated Thursday by Biden at the White House.
As part of the $690 million, more than $171 million in grants would be allocated for the STOP — or Services, Training, Officers, and Prosecutors — program to enhance coordinated community response among victims, law enforcement and others, to better tackle sexual assault, dating violence and domestic violence. The grant program was first authorized in 1994.
More than $52 million will be given to states to help rape crisis centers along with tribal programs that aid sexual assault survivors, per the DOJ news release. More than $40 million in grant funding will be given to programs that give “transitional housing,” in a period between six and 24 months, for homeless survivors and other housing assistance. Approximately $5.5 million of funds will assist local police in prosecuting cybercrimes and allow additional training for law enforcement to help prevent future ones.