| Program Brief
INTRODUCTION
Since the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) was enacted as Title
IV of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994,
groundbreaking work has taken place in communities as victim
advocates, police officers, prosecutors, and judges forge relationships
with each other to address violence against women. VAWA has
fundamentally changed the way that criminal justice agencies,
victim advocacy organizations, and service providers within
local communities address victim safety and offender accountability.
State sexual assault coalitions and state domestic violence coalitions
have played a critical role in the implementation of VAWA, serving
as a collective voice to end violence against women through collaboration
with federal, state, and local organizations. Statewide sexual
assault coalitions provide direct support to member rape crisis
centers through funding, training and technical assistance, public
awareness, and public policy advocacy. Statewide domestic violence
coalitions provide comparable support to member domestic violence
shelters and service providers. In some states and territories,
these support services are provided through one dual sexual assault
and domestic violence coalition. In a few other states, multiple
state sexual assault and/or domestic violence coalitions exist.
In the Violence Against Women Act of 2000, Public Law 106-386,
Congress authorized the Attorney General to award grants to state
sexual assault and domestic violence coalitions. The Grants to
State Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Coalitions Program is
intended to provide federal financial assistance to state coalitions
to support the coordination of state victim services activities,
and collaboration and coordination with federal, state, and local
entities engaged in violence against women activities.(1)
SCOPE OF PROGRAM
Grants to State Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Coalitions
Program funds may be used to:
- Coordinate state victim services activities; and
- Collaborate and coordinate with federal, state, and local entities
engaged in violence against women activities.
Grant funds may be used for, but are not limited to, the following
activities relating to the implementation of the Violence Against
Women Act:
- Providing technical assistance to member agencies
- Expanding the technological capacity of coalitions and/or member
programs
- Developing or enhancing appropriate standard of services for
member programs, including culturally appropriate services to
underserved populations
- Conducting statewide, regional and/or community-based meetings
or workshops for victim advocates, survivors, legal service
providers, and criminal justice representatives
- Bringing local programs together to identify gaps in services
and to coordinate activities
- Increasing the representation of underserved populations in
coordination activities, including providing financial assistance
to underserved communities to participate in planning meetings,
task forces, committees, etc.
- Engaging in activities that promote coalition building at the
local and/or state level
- Coordinating federal, state and/or local law enforcement agencies
to develop or enhance strategies to address identified problems
- Engaging in advocacy efforts with community organizations to
effect policy and/or procedural change in order to improve the
community’s responses to domestic violence and sexual
assault. For example, state coalitions might work with law enforcement,
prosecution, faith-based and other community agencies to enhance
their responses to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault.
(However, no federal funding made available under this grant
program may be used, directly or indirectly, to support the
enactment, repeal, modification, or adoption of any law, regulation,
or policy at any level of government without the express prior
written approval of OVW.)
PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY
State Sexual Assault Coalitions
- Awards will be made to each sexual assault coalition, as determined
by the Center for Injury Prevention and Control of the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention under the Public Health Service
Act (42 U.S.C.
§ 280b et seq.).
State Domestic Violence Coalitions
- Awards will be made to each domestic violence coalition, as
determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services through
the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (42 U.S.C. § 10410
et seq.).
Dual sexual assault and domestic violence coalitions that appear
on both of the above mentioned lists will receive the combined
allocation for the state.
Please see Domestic
Violence Coalitions and Sexual
Assault Coalitions for a list of eligible coalitions.
PROGRAM LIMITATIONS
Grant funds may not be used for certain activities. Prohibited
activities include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Engaging in lobbying-related activities, including the development
and/or distribution of materials and travel to a state or national
meeting for the sole purpose of lobbying (This prohibition pertains
to federal, state, local, and tribal lobbying.)
- Sub-contracting grant funds to member programs for the provision
of direct services
- Hiring a grant writer or paying any portion of staff salary
for this purpose
- Addressing child abuse outside the context of domestic violence
and/or sexual assault
For more information about the Grants to State Sexual
Assault and Domestic Violence Coalitions Program, please
contact:
Office on Violence Against Women (OVW)
800 K Street, N.W., Suite 920
Washington, D.C. 20530
Phone: 202-307-6026
Fax: 202-307-3911
TTY: 202-307-2277
Website: www.usdoj.gov/ovw
NOTES
1. Although both women and men
may be victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking,
women are the victims of the vast majority of these crimes.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, more than 85%
of violent victimizations by intimate partners between 1993
and 1998 were perpetrated against women. Women are between 13
and 14 times more likely than men to be raped or sexually assaulted;
for instance, in 1994, 93% of sexual assaults were perpetrated
against women. Four of five stalking victims are women. Data
on male victimization do not show that males experience comparable
victimizations and injury levels, do not account for women who
act in self defense, and do not measure financial control, intimidation,
and isolation used by perpetrators of domestic violence against
women. For these reasons, this application kit may refer to
victims as women and perpetrators as men. However, applicants
who receive grants under this program must serve all victims
regardless of gender. |
