What is the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)?
The Act provides federal money to protect women and children in abusive situations. That protection varies from support for kids in abusive homes, to help for women seeking restraining orders or divorces, to education for law enforcement. It was first passed in 1994 and has been re-authorized twice, with more or less bipartisan support.
Since it was passed into law in 1994, the Violence Against Women Act has provided life-saving assistance to millions of women and families across the nation. For battered women, the law has provided critical law enforcement protections and often a way out from a life of abuse.
Shortly after the holidays the House leadership decided to keep this bill from the floor. In its re-authorized form the bill would have extended domestic violence protections to 30 million LGBT individuals, undocumented immigrants and Native American women.
As stated in the above excerpt, this law was initially passed in 1994. Since then it has been re-authorized two times, typically with bipartisan support.
Before the House leaders shot down this bill the Senate had passed it with bipartisan support, 68-31 being the vote. This vote was conducted in April of 2012.