Senate’s Proposed Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act Includes Modest Improvements But Fails to Close Dangerous Boyfriend Loophole
S. 3623 would enshrine protections for victims of gender-based abuse, but lacks many of the strong provisions found in the version of the bill that passed the House last year
WASHINGTON, DC – Giffords, the gun violence prevention organization led by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, published a memo outlining the gun provisions included in S. 3623, the bill that would reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act of 1994. Led by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), 19 senators introduced the bill last week.
“Reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act remains one of the most fundamental ways we can protect victims from gender-based abuse, especially when guns are involved. The presence of a firearm in a domestic violence situation makes it five times more likely the victim will die,” said Adzi Vokhiwa, Federal Affairs Director at Giffords. “The Violence Against Women Act has the potential to help prevent violence before it’s too late. We applaud the senators for introducing the bill to reauthorize this important legislation, and look forward to seeing it passed in the Senate.”
Although the bill provides much-needed protections for victims of gender-based violence and abuse, including further enforcement of gun laws and requiring the Attorney General to notify state or Tribal law enforcement whenever a person fails a background check, it makes only modest improvements compared to its House counterpart, which passed last year with the support of all of the Democrats and 29 Republicans. Most importantly, the Senate bill fails to close a dangerous loophole that prohibits abusive dating partners or former dating partners from accessing firearms, known as the “boyfriend loophole.”
Giffords will continue to work with Congress to enact the strongest possible laws to reduce gun violence and provide the necessary protections for victims of domestic violence.