House passes Violence Against Women Act with tribal provisions
March 01, 2013 | 03:34 PM
The House on Thursday passed the Violence Against Women Act, a measure that could have a significant impact on law enforcement in rural America because it provides significant additional protections for American Indian women.
The measure was also remarkable because it marked the third time that House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has broken the “Hastert rule” and allowed a bill to come to the floor that passed with more support from Democrats than Republicans.
The other bills were the fiscal cliff bill that also reauthorized most of the 2008 farm bill for fiscal year 2013 and the Superstorm Sandy relief bill.
Ken Salazar
“This legislation is especially significant for the First Americans because it closes a gaping legal loophole that prevented the arrest and prosecution of non-Indian men who commit domestic violence against Indian women on federal Indian lands,” Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a news release.
“This historic legislation, which recognizes and affirms inherent tribal jurisdiction over non-Indians in domestic violence cases, will provide much needed tools to tribal justice systems to effectively protect Indian women from abuse.”
Kevin Washburn
Interior Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn added, “It is shameful that for far too long, many American Indian women victims came to accept that there was nothing they could do when their abuser was non-Indian.”
“Now, tribal courts have the ability to enforce protection orders again non-Indians, regardless of where the order originated, and to prosecute any individual who stands accused of domestic violence on a federal Indian reservation,” Washburn said. “American Indian women are now safer with the passage of this law.”
Washburn also noted that the Senate last week voted for a broadened version of the landmark law, first enacted in 1994, which provides a comprehensive approach to violence against women by combining tough new provisions to hold offenders accountable with programs to provide services for the victims of such violence.
The Senate version approved by the House also enhances protections for other vulnerable populations, such as American Indians and gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender victims.
Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D.
Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., who had strong support in Indian Country in her 2012 election and who co-sponsored the measure in the Senate, praised the bipartisan support for the bill in the House.
“Last week, I traveled across North Dakota and heard firsthand from law enforcement officials, domestic violence victims and Native Americans about their experiences with the Violence Against Women Act,” Heitkamp said. “There was unanimous agreement that VAWA has helped improve the lives of North Dakota families.”
The measure was controversial in the House. Conservatives attempted to propose their own bill that they said would have prevented potential challenges due to tribal sovereignty, but Democrats said it was weaker than the Senate version because it left out references to sexual orientation and gender identity and other provisions.
After the Republican alternative failed, the Housed passed the Senate version.
Rep. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., said he voted for the Senate version “even though it is not ideal” because he is “dedicated to promoting policies to ensure a safeguard for victims of domestic abuse.”
The measure was also remarkable because it marked the third time that House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has broken the “Hastert rule” and allowed a bill to come to the floor that passed with more support from Democrats than Republicans.
The other bills were the fiscal cliff bill that also reauthorized most of the 2008 farm bill for fiscal year 2013 and the Superstorm Sandy relief bill.
“This legislation is especially significant for the First Americans because it closes a gaping legal loophole that prevented the arrest and prosecution of non-Indian men who commit domestic violence against Indian women on federal Indian lands,” Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a news release.
“This historic legislation, which recognizes and affirms inherent tribal jurisdiction over non-Indians in domestic violence cases, will provide much needed tools to tribal justice systems to effectively protect Indian women from abuse.”
Interior Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn added, “It is shameful that for far too long, many American Indian women victims came to accept that there was nothing they could do when their abuser was non-Indian.”
“Now, tribal courts have the ability to enforce protection orders again non-Indians, regardless of where the order originated, and to prosecute any individual who stands accused of domestic violence on a federal Indian reservation,” Washburn said. “American Indian women are now safer with the passage of this law.”
Washburn also noted that the Senate last week voted for a broadened version of the landmark law, first enacted in 1994, which provides a comprehensive approach to violence against women by combining tough new provisions to hold offenders accountable with programs to provide services for the victims of such violence.
The Senate version approved by the House also enhances protections for other vulnerable populations, such as American Indians and gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender victims.
Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., who had strong support in Indian Country in her 2012 election and who co-sponsored the measure in the Senate, praised the bipartisan support for the bill in the House.
“Last week, I traveled across North Dakota and heard firsthand from law enforcement officials, domestic violence victims and Native Americans about their experiences with the Violence Against Women Act,” Heitkamp said. “There was unanimous agreement that VAWA has helped improve the lives of North Dakota families.”
The measure was controversial in the House. Conservatives attempted to propose their own bill that they said would have prevented potential challenges due to tribal sovereignty, but Democrats said it was weaker than the Senate version because it left out references to sexual orientation and gender identity and other provisions.
After the Republican alternative failed, the Housed passed the Senate version.
Rep. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., said he voted for the Senate version “even though it is not ideal” because he is “dedicated to promoting policies to ensure a safeguard for victims of domestic abuse.”
