Washington, DC—U.S. Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) urged both parties to come together and immediately pass a long-term reauthorization of Violence Against Women Act to ensure protections for women and families across Pennsylvania before Congress runs out of time.

“Congress must continue to aggressively combat domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking by swiftly reauthorizing the bipartisan Violence Against Women Act (VAWA),” said Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick. “While there is still considerable work to be done, VAWA has drastically improved our nation’s response to safeguarding women and children from abuse and anguish. Congress has historically reauthorized VAWA with broad bipartisan agreement. Congresswoman Sinema and I are urging House leaders to take up a bipartisan long-term reauthorization of these critical programs.”

 “Women and children across Arizona are counting on Congress to put aside the partisan games and stand up for the Violence Against Women Act,” said Congresswoman Sinema. “In my first year in Congress, I helped lead a bipartisan effort to strengthen VAWA with crucial protections for tribal, immigrant, and LBGTQ women. We also helped provide law enforcement with more tools to protect survivors and innocent children from abusers. Today we continue to defend women and their families by working across the aisle to help extend these critical protections for years to come.”

VAWA has helped millions of women and their families by improving the criminal justice system response to domestic violence and ensuring survivors and their families have access to the services they need to safely rebuild their lives. The law is currently set to expire on September 30, 2018.

Fitzpatrick and Sinema called on House leaders to immediately pass bipartisan, long-term VAWA reauthorization. Read a copy of the letter here.

Fitzpatrick introduced the Violence Against Women Extension Act – a six-month clean extension of the expiring provisions of the Violence Against Women Act. This would give Congress the opportunity to hold hearings and make bipartisan improvements to VAWA without threatening critical existing programs.

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