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Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Friday, February 15, 2013
House budget bill includes $1.9 milliondomestic violence fundingincrease *
$1.9 million federal funding increase for domestic violence services
included in Department of Social Services budget bill
Appropriations Overview: House budget bills filed on 2-14-13
· Increased funding for domestic violence services included
in Department of Social Services
· Level funding for VOCA and STOP grants, reduction in SSVF
grant funding in Department of Public Safety
· Level funding for Rape Prevention and Education grants in
Department of Health and Senior Services
The budget bills for the coming fiscal year were filed on Thursday,
2-14-13, by the House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Rick Stream
(R-Kirkwood). An increase of $1.9 million in federal funds for
domestic violence services was included in House Bill 11, the Fiscal
Year 2014 budget for the Department of Social Services. The funding
increase is a budget priority first proposed by Governor Jay Nixon in
his budget for the state fiscal year that begins July 1, 2013.
The appropriations bills, as filed by Rep. Stream, do not contain nearly
$1 billion in federal funds for Medicaid expansion and subsequently do not
distribute state funding savings throughout the budget as was proposed by
Gov. Nixon.
· Link here to view bills under the Joint Information menu, then
Joint Bill information tab on the Missouri General Assembly website (
www.moga.mo.gov).
Primary budget bills of interest to MCADSV members
Below are the primary appropriations bills of interest to MCADSV and its
members:
· House Bill 11 :Department of Social Services (DSS)
This bill contains the $1.9 million increase in federal funding for
domestic violence services in the Family Support Division of DSS. These
federal dollars are drawn from the state's block grant of Temporary
Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) funds. HB 11 provides state funding for
domestic violence services at $4.75 million, federal funding of $3,716,524
(includes the increase), for a total of $8,466,524 for FY2014.
· House Bill 8 : Department of Public Safety (DPS)
This bill does not make any funding changes to two grant programs in DPS:
Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grants remain at $7.5 million in federal funds;
and Services, Training, Officers and Prosecution (STOP) grants remain at
$2.49 million in federal funds, which includes Sexual Assault Services
Program (SASP) grants. There is a $1 million reduction from current funding
in the line item for the State Services to Victims Fund (SSVF) grants, for
a total of $4 million. The SSVF grant reduction reflects a reduced
collection of crime fines, which are the source of the grant funds. The
Crime Victims Compensation funding, which includes the Sexual Assault
Forensic Examination (SAFE) program, also was reduced by $1 million for a
total of $9.83 million.
· House Bill 10: Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS)
and Department of Mental Health (DMH)
This bill retains current funding for the Rape Prevention and Education
(RPE) grants at $889,134. This includes a small amount of federal funding
for sexual assault services grants.
· House Bill 9: Department of Corrections (DOC)
Funding to implement the federal Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) is not
broken out as a specific line item in HB 9, but that detailed budget
information should be available in the coming weeks.
Next Steps: MCADSV will continue to alert members to needed actions on
appropriations
House appropriations committees for each state department will make their
recommendations during the week of February 18 for any budget changes in
appropriations bills filed by Rep. Stream. Those amendments will be
reviewed and voted on by the full House Budget Committee. Bills passed by
the House Budget Committee then proceed to the full House for floor debate
and passage. Appropriations bills move next to the Senate for its
Appropriations Committee review, amendment and passage prior to full Senate
debate. The final state budget must be passed in the exact form by both the
House and the Senate by May 10, 2013.
The February edition of The MCADSV Legislative Update soon will be sent to
members with full details on legislation, and needed advocacy with
lawmakers, to address rape and domestic violence.
Hope this state budget news gets your weekend off to a good start!
Atara of Sound the Alarm Outreach/STAO Radio
included in Department of Social Services budget bill
Appropriations Overview: House budget bills filed on 2-14-13
· Increased funding for domestic violence services included
in Department of Social Services
· Level funding for VOCA and STOP grants, reduction in SSVF
grant funding in Department of Public Safety
· Level funding for Rape Prevention and Education grants in
Department of Health and Senior Services
The budget bills for the coming fiscal year were filed on Thursday,
2-14-13, by the House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Rick Stream
(R-Kirkwood). An increase of $1.9 million in federal funds for
domestic violence services was included in House Bill 11, the Fiscal
Year 2014 budget for the Department of Social Services. The funding
increase is a budget priority first proposed by Governor Jay Nixon in
his budget for the state fiscal year that begins July 1, 2013.
The appropriations bills, as filed by Rep. Stream, do not contain nearly
$1 billion in federal funds for Medicaid expansion and subsequently do not
distribute state funding savings throughout the budget as was proposed by
Gov. Nixon.
· Link here to view bills under the Joint Information menu, then
Joint Bill information tab on the Missouri General Assembly website (
www.moga.mo.gov).
Primary budget bills of interest to MCADSV members
Below are the primary appropriations bills of interest to MCADSV and its
members:
· House Bill 11 :Department of Social Services (DSS)
This bill contains the $1.9 million increase in federal funding for
domestic violence services in the Family Support Division of DSS. These
federal dollars are drawn from the state's block grant of Temporary
Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) funds. HB 11 provides state funding for
domestic violence services at $4.75 million, federal funding of $3,716,524
(includes the increase), for a total of $8,466,524 for FY2014.
· House Bill 8 : Department of Public Safety (DPS)
This bill does not make any funding changes to two grant programs in DPS:
Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grants remain at $7.5 million in federal funds;
and Services, Training, Officers and Prosecution (STOP) grants remain at
$2.49 million in federal funds, which includes Sexual Assault Services
Program (SASP) grants. There is a $1 million reduction from current funding
in the line item for the State Services to Victims Fund (SSVF) grants, for
a total of $4 million. The SSVF grant reduction reflects a reduced
collection of crime fines, which are the source of the grant funds. The
Crime Victims Compensation funding, which includes the Sexual Assault
Forensic Examination (SAFE) program, also was reduced by $1 million for a
total of $9.83 million.
· House Bill 10: Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS)
and Department of Mental Health (DMH)
This bill retains current funding for the Rape Prevention and Education
(RPE) grants at $889,134. This includes a small amount of federal funding
for sexual assault services grants.
· House Bill 9: Department of Corrections (DOC)
Funding to implement the federal Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) is not
broken out as a specific line item in HB 9, but that detailed budget
information should be available in the coming weeks.
Next Steps: MCADSV will continue to alert members to needed actions on
appropriations
House appropriations committees for each state department will make their
recommendations during the week of February 18 for any budget changes in
appropriations bills filed by Rep. Stream. Those amendments will be
reviewed and voted on by the full House Budget Committee. Bills passed by
the House Budget Committee then proceed to the full House for floor debate
and passage. Appropriations bills move next to the Senate for its
Appropriations Committee review, amendment and passage prior to full Senate
debate. The final state budget must be passed in the exact form by both the
House and the Senate by May 10, 2013.
The February edition of The MCADSV Legislative Update soon will be sent to
members with full details on legislation, and needed advocacy with
lawmakers, to address rape and domestic violence.
Hope this state budget news gets your weekend off to a good start!
Atara of Sound the Alarm Outreach/STAO Radio
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Free of the shackles
http://act.humanitysteam.org/images/butterfly%20hands.jpg
Now is the time to break free of the shackles from the past that have
prevented you from achieving your full potential. What are those shackles?
We all create limiting beliefs, usually at a very young age, that cause us
to judge ourselves and others in a less than empowering way. We have been
brought up in a society that tends educate us in a way that makes us feel
inadequate and powerless. Once you stop and consider your past, isn't it
quite easy to recognize how these limiting beliefs have held you back from
living in a way that creates tremendous benefit for you and everyone you
touch.
What if you were able to free yourself from all of those limiting beliefs?
What if instead you recognized your true nature as a perfect and powerful
being that is eternally connected to the source of all intelligence? That
loving intelligence is always available. The illustrious beings who have
changed history by bringing more love and light into the world have been
directly connected to this unlimited creative power. What is preventing you
from connecting in the same way? The invitation is always open to everyone.
It is simply a matter of deciding to live in the most empowered and
enlightened manner so that your life can become completely fulfilling, for
you and for the world.
Monday, February 11, 2013
U.S. Senate to vote today on VAWA--still time to ask your Senators to VOTE YES on VAWA, without harmful amendments * Missour's Senators
The U.S. Senate is scheduled to vote on S.47 today, the bill to reauthorize
the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Debate is liely to begin this
afternoon.
If you have ot already made calls to Missouri's Senators, below is
information from the National Network to End Domestic Violence that
provides details on how you can quickly connect with them to urge passage
of VAWA reauthorization—call the toll-free U.S. Capitol switchboard and you
will be connected.
·Missouri Senator Roy Blunt needs to hear from advocates in Missouri that
we need his vote in support of S.47 without amendments.
·Missouri's Senator Claire McCaskill is a co-sponsor of S.47, so calls to
her office are Thank You calls
Also below is a link to C-Span2 if you are interested to watch and listen
to the U.S. Senate debate on VAWA this afternoon.
Ask your Senators to VOTE YES on VAWA, without
harmful amendments
UPDATE: The Senate vote on VAWA was postponed until
TODAY, Monday, February 11. You still have time to
call your Senators!
S. 47 now has 62 co-sponsors – due in large part to
all of your calls! This should guarantee VAWA's
passage in the Senate. However, there is a
possibility that amendments could be introduced that
could slow down forward movement on the bill. Please
call your Senators TODAY and urge them to vote yes on
S. 47, without harmful amendments!
Call the Capitol switchboard at 888.269.5702 and ask
the operator to connect you to your Senators. If you
don't know who your Senators are, you can look them
up here. When you're connected to their offices,
tell the person who answers the phone:
1) I am a constituent from (city and
state) and my name is _________.
2) I urge Senator____ to vote yes on S.
47, a strong, bipartisan bill that would reauthorize
the
Violence Against Women Act – and to oppose any
harmful amendments that are introduced.
3) Thank you and I look forward to hearing
that the Senator has voted for VAWA.
You can also watch the vote unfold live on CSPAN at
http://www.c-span.org/Live-Video/C-SPAN2/
We are optimistic that a strong bill will be passed
out of the Senate – and then we can turn our
attention to the House and to getting a final VAWA
that safely and effectively protects all victims!
Thanks for all that you do!
the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Debate is liely to begin this
afternoon.
If you have ot already made calls to Missouri's Senators, below is
information from the National Network to End Domestic Violence that
provides details on how you can quickly connect with them to urge passage
of VAWA reauthorization—call the toll-free U.S. Capitol switchboard and you
will be connected.
·Missouri Senator Roy Blunt needs to hear from advocates in Missouri that
we need his vote in support of S.47 without amendments.
·Missouri's Senator Claire McCaskill is a co-sponsor of S.47, so calls to
her office are Thank You calls
Also below is a link to C-Span2 if you are interested to watch and listen
to the U.S. Senate debate on VAWA this afternoon.
Ask your Senators to VOTE YES on VAWA, without
harmful amendments
UPDATE: The Senate vote on VAWA was postponed until
TODAY, Monday, February 11. You still have time to
call your Senators!
S. 47 now has 62 co-sponsors – due in large part to
all of your calls! This should guarantee VAWA's
passage in the Senate. However, there is a
possibility that amendments could be introduced that
could slow down forward movement on the bill. Please
call your Senators TODAY and urge them to vote yes on
S. 47, without harmful amendments!
Call the Capitol switchboard at 888.269.5702 and ask
the operator to connect you to your Senators. If you
don't know who your Senators are, you can look them
up here. When you're connected to their offices,
tell the person who answers the phone:
1) I am a constituent from (city and
state) and my name is _________.
2) I urge Senator____ to vote yes on S.
47, a strong, bipartisan bill that would reauthorize
the
Violence Against Women Act – and to oppose any
harmful amendments that are introduced.
3) Thank you and I look forward to hearing
that the Senator has voted for VAWA.
You can also watch the vote unfold live on CSPAN at
http://www.c-span.org/Live-Video/C-SPAN2/
We are optimistic that a strong bill will be passed
out of the Senate – and then we can turn our
attention to the House and to getting a final VAWA
that safely and effectively protects all victims!
Thanks for all that you do!
Friday, February 1, 2013
Action Alert: Call Sen. Blunt to vote for VAWAreauthorization on Monday, Feb 4
VAWA 2013 Reauthorization bill to be considered in U.S. Senate on
Monday, February 4
· Call or email Missouri U.S. Senator Roy Blunt to
ask him to vote for S.47, VAWA reauthorization, without
amendments
The U.S. Senate is scheduled to consider the reauthorization of the
federal Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), S. 47, on Monday, February 4
· Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) has scheduled the
VAWA debate for 5:30 p.m. (Eastern). A vote will likely occur Thursday,
February 7.
· Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill (D) is a co-sponsor of S.47;
Missouri Senator Roy Blunt (R) is not.
Action Alert for Missouri advocates—Please forward to your supporters,
colleagues, families and friends
Call or email Missouri Senator Roy Blunt and ask him to vote for S. 47,
without amendments, to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.
· Reach Sen. Blunt at 202-224-5721 or by email at
http://www.blunt.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contact-roy
· Or, you can call the Capitol switchboard toll-free at
888.269.5702 and ask the operator to connect you to Senator Blunt.
1. Introduce yourself as a constituent from (city) and the domestic
violence/sexual assault program you are affiliated with or support;
2. Ask for Sen. Blunt's vote to pass S.47, the bipartisan Violence
Against Women Act reauthorization bill, without amendments;
3. Say thank you and that you look forward to hearing that the
Senator has voted for VAWA.
If asked, briefly say why, in your own words, VAWA must be reauthorized:
a. VAWA is the cornerstone of our nation's response to
domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and
stalking, and because of VAWA, millions of victims have
received lifesaving services and support. We need to continue
and strengthen the work to end violence against women, and S.47
gives us the tools we need in Missouri and nationwide.
VAWA Reauthorization Basic Facts
S.47 has two primary sponsors, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Sen. Mike
Crapo (R-ID). The bill now has 60 bipartisan co-sponsors, which should
guarantee its passage. However, there is a possibility that amendments
could be introduced on the floor next week that would attach non-germane
provisions to VAWA and could slow down forward movement on the bill. This
is why we are asking that no amendments be passed on S.47.
The Leahy/Crapo bill, S. 47, combines some VAWA programs and reduces the
total authorized for VAWA funding. The Leahy/Crapo bill does not
constitute a cut to current funding. S.47 does not include the U-Visa
increase that created procedural difficulties in 2012. It is hoped that
this issue will be included in comprehensive immigration reform legislation
later this year. The bill also includes the bipartisan version of the SAFER
Act that passed the Senate last year and addresses the backlog of sexual
assault evidence. The bill excludes some amendments added by the Judiciary
committee after introduction last year that did not relate directly to
VAWA.
Fact Sheets on specific VAWA provisions
The following resource materials are available from the website of the
National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV):
· Immigration:
http://www.nnedv.org/docs/Policy/VAWA_Immigration_Factsheet_S47.pdf
· International Marriage Broker Amendments:
http://www.nnedv.org/docs/Policy/IMBRA_Factsheet_2013.pdf
· Tribal:
http://www.nnedv.org/docs/Policy/VAWA_113th_TribalProvisions_Factsheet.pdf
A list of the current VAWA reauthorization co-sponsors is available here :
http://nnedv.org/docs/Policy/2013_VAWA_S47_CoSponsors.pdf
LET'S GET VAWA REAUTHORIZED!!
Atara Estes, CEO/Founder/Mentor/Motivational Speaker of Sound the Alarm
Outreach
Monday, February 4
· Call or email Missouri U.S. Senator Roy Blunt to
ask him to vote for S.47, VAWA reauthorization, without
amendments
The U.S. Senate is scheduled to consider the reauthorization of the
federal Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), S. 47, on Monday, February 4
· Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) has scheduled the
VAWA debate for 5:30 p.m. (Eastern). A vote will likely occur Thursday,
February 7.
· Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill (D) is a co-sponsor of S.47;
Missouri Senator Roy Blunt (R) is not.
Action Alert for Missouri advocates—Please forward to your supporters,
colleagues, families and friends
Call or email Missouri Senator Roy Blunt and ask him to vote for S. 47,
without amendments, to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.
· Reach Sen. Blunt at 202-224-5721 or by email at
http://www.blunt.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contact-roy
· Or, you can call the Capitol switchboard toll-free at
888.269.5702 and ask the operator to connect you to Senator Blunt.
1. Introduce yourself as a constituent from (city) and the domestic
violence/sexual assault program you are affiliated with or support;
2. Ask for Sen. Blunt's vote to pass S.47, the bipartisan Violence
Against Women Act reauthorization bill, without amendments;
3. Say thank you and that you look forward to hearing that the
Senator has voted for VAWA.
If asked, briefly say why, in your own words, VAWA must be reauthorized:
a. VAWA is the cornerstone of our nation's response to
domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and
stalking, and because of VAWA, millions of victims have
received lifesaving services and support. We need to continue
and strengthen the work to end violence against women, and S.47
gives us the tools we need in Missouri and nationwide.
VAWA Reauthorization Basic Facts
S.47 has two primary sponsors, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Sen. Mike
Crapo (R-ID). The bill now has 60 bipartisan co-sponsors, which should
guarantee its passage. However, there is a possibility that amendments
could be introduced on the floor next week that would attach non-germane
provisions to VAWA and could slow down forward movement on the bill. This
is why we are asking that no amendments be passed on S.47.
The Leahy/Crapo bill, S. 47, combines some VAWA programs and reduces the
total authorized for VAWA funding. The Leahy/Crapo bill does not
constitute a cut to current funding. S.47 does not include the U-Visa
increase that created procedural difficulties in 2012. It is hoped that
this issue will be included in comprehensive immigration reform legislation
later this year. The bill also includes the bipartisan version of the SAFER
Act that passed the Senate last year and addresses the backlog of sexual
assault evidence. The bill excludes some amendments added by the Judiciary
committee after introduction last year that did not relate directly to
VAWA.
Fact Sheets on specific VAWA provisions
The following resource materials are available from the website of the
National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV):
· Immigration:
http://www.nnedv.org/docs/Policy/VAWA_Immigration_Factsheet_S47.pdf
· International Marriage Broker Amendments:
http://www.nnedv.org/docs/Policy/IMBRA_Factsheet_2013.pdf
· Tribal:
http://www.nnedv.org/docs/Policy/VAWA_113th_TribalProvisions_Factsheet.pdf
A list of the current VAWA reauthorization co-sponsors is available here :
http://nnedv.org/docs/Policy/2013_VAWA_S47_CoSponsors.pdf
LET'S GET VAWA REAUTHORIZED!!
Atara Estes, CEO/Founder/Mentor/Motivational Speaker of Sound the Alarm
Outreach
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