U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut says the federal budget deal signed into law this month includes $500 million in funding to assist law enforcement handle domestic violence.
Blumenthal says the Violence Against Women Act has been reauthorized by the Democrat-controlled U.S. House but is awaiting action in the Republican-controlled Senate. So, it was a tough fight to get money in the budget appropriated.
“This funding is significant because it represents a response to the cries for help that come every day to agencies in Connecticut that provide services and relief to victims and survivors of domestic violence.”
Karen Jarmoc, president and CEO of the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence, says her members receive about $18 million a year in federal support, and the additional federal dollars would be critical to help provide training for law enforcement who handle domestic violence cases.
“Knowing on average that there are 17,000 family violence incidents in the state of Connecticut where law enforcement is first on the scene to respond.”
Jarmoc hopes the U.S. Senate will eventually pass the reauthorization of the 25-year-old Violence Against Women Act in 2020.
