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Congressman Watkins Addresses Concerns with House Democrats' VAWA Legislation

September 9, 2019
Press Release

 

 

Press Contact: Dylan.Jones@mail.house.gov

 

For Immediate Release:

September 9th, 2019

 

Congressman Watkins Addresses Concerns with House Democrats’ VAWA Legislation 

 

Topeka, Kansas – Congressman Steve Watkins issued the following statement regarding his concerns with the House Democrats’ VAWA legislation:

 

The mission of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) is critically important - preventing violent crime and responding to the needs of crime victims. I agree wholeheartedly with this mission, which is why I am a cosponsor of H.R. 1741, Violence Against Women Extension Act of 2019. This bill would provide a one-year clean extension of VAWA in order to continue critical services to survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence while Congress works on a bipartisan reauthorization of VAWA.

 

Unfortunately, the House Democrats’ decision to politicize H.R. 1585, VAWA’s most recent reauthorization proposal, has caused this critical legislation to expire.

 

My main concerns with House Democrats’ H.R. 1585 include:

 

  • Rolls back provisions related to child sex trafficking from current law.
  • Endangers female prisoners by allowing biological males to be housed in women’s prisons. This legislation also continues Obama-era policy that allows biological males to access and use female-only domestic violence shelters, jeopardizing both the safety and privacy of women and girls in the shelter.
  • Promotes “alternative justice responses” – an unproven method that could force a victim to confront their abuser face to face, potentially risking emotional and physical trauma.
  • Weakens 2nd Amendment rights, denying due process protections by prohibiting firearm possession for those under ex parte restraining orders.

 

House Speaker Pelosi and her House Democrat colleagues allowed VAWA to expire in February by stripping the noncontroversial VAWA extension from a government funding deal signed into law earlier this year. There was and is a real opportunity to pass strong bipartisan legislation that extends and strengthens protections for women, and instead Democrats choose to play politics.

 

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