On March 26, the House passed, by voice vote, legislation (H.R. 14) aimed at protecting children from abuse and abandonment, and encouraging adoption. A similar bill (S. 342) passed the Senate by voice vote March 12. The bill would reauthorize for five years the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), the Adoption Reform Act, the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act, and the Abandoned Infants Act.
“It’s fitting that we are considering this bill today,” said Education and Workforce Committee Chair John Boehner (R-OH), “as next week marks the beginning of National Child Abuse Prevention Month. This bill reflects our strong belief that every child in America deserves to be part of a safe, permanent, caring family.”
Two similar bills passed the House during the 107th Congress (see The Source, 4/26/02 and 10/11/02). The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee also approved similar legislation, but it was never considered before the full Senate (see The Source, 9/27/02).
Both the Senate and House bills would authorize $200 million in FY2004 for child abuse programs, $40 million for adoption programs, $45 million for abandoned infants programs, and such sums as may be necessary for all programs in FY2005 through FY2008 (see The Source, 2/14/03).
Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) praised provisions for transitional housing for victims of domestic violence, and urged that the proposed $25 million in funding for each of the fiscal years 2004 through 2008 be appropriated as soon as possible. “Transitional housing has been shown to prevent domestic violence and mitigate its effects. Unfortunately, many women who leave their abusers lack adequate resources and, with a shortage of emergency shelter and transitional housing options, are forced to choose between abuse at home or life on the streets,” said Rep. Schakowsky. “It is critical that transitional housing be available to all those fleeing domestic abuse if we want to see an end to this violence. Transitional housing resources and services provide a continuum between emergency shelter provisions and independent living. A stable, sustainable home base for women and their children in transitional housing allows women the opportunities to learn new job skills, participate in educational programs, work full-time jobs, and search for adequate child care in order to gain self-sufficiency.”
