WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp along with Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK) today announced that their bipartisan bill, the Pro Bono Work to Empower and Represent (POWER) Act, to help provide access to pro bono legal services and information to victims of domestic and sexual violence victims has been signed into law.

“Domestic violence continues to be a major problem in too many homes across North Dakota and around the country,” said Heitkamp. “Since my time as Attorney General for North Dakota in the 1990s, I have been working to treat it like the serious crime that it is – while also working to make people more aware of what’s happening, what services are needed and available, and how to stop it from happening in the first place.  I have been on the front lines since day one on this issue, leading the implementation of the original Violence Against Women Act in North Dakota as attorney general. I have continued my fierce advocacy on this issue in the United State Senate, and the POWER Act continues to build upon this work by making sure information of free legal services are readily available to victim of domestic, dating, or sexual violence, especially for those in Indian Country who face staggering rates of sexual and domestic violence. Years ago I told a county sheriff that as long as people continue to beat and abuse their partners that I was going to continue working to try and stop it – and I will continue to keep that promise by fighting for victims and pushing to arrest the cowards who commit these crimes.”

“We must get serious about reducing the rates of sexual assault and domestic violence in Alaska and across the country,” Senator Sullivan said. “The statistics are horrific. Roughly 25 percent of American women will be victims of domestic assault in their lifetime. On average, every day in our country, three women are killed by a current or former partner. Research has shown that when abused victims are represented by an attorney, their ability to break out of the cycle of violence increases dramatically. Our hope is that the POWER Act will help create an army of lawyers to defend victims and survivors of abuse. I’m thankful to my colleagues in both chambers on both sides of the aisle for working with me to get this bill passed and I’m grateful to the president for signing it into law.”

The Power Act would require the chief judge in each federal judicial district across the country to host an information session for those who are impacted by domestic, dating, or sexual violence about pro bono legal work. For victims of domestic, dating, or sexual violence legal assistance can make the difference as they try to get away and move forward with their lives. Additionally, Heitkamp and Sullivan make sure to address the high rates for domestic and sexual violence in Indian Country with the inclusion of a provision requiring that ever few years that these information sessions are made readily accessible in tribal communities.

Heitkamp has long worked to combat domestic violence in North Dakota and across the country. As North Dakota Attorney General in the 1990s, she implemented the original Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) across the state, and worked to change the perception of domestic violence as a public health issue, so it would be treated and viewed as what it is – a criminal act. As a result, Heitkamp saw firsthand the dramatic changes in the number of incidents that followed after domestic violence was criminalized. Largely due to VAWA, according to the Justice Department, the annual incidences of domestic violence have fallen more than 60 percent since 1993.

Since joining the Senate, Heitkamp has built on her work as Attorney General to combat domestic violence and stop those who seek to harm adults and children:

• Successfully fighting for greater protections for tribal communities in Violence Against Women Act reauthorization. The first bill Heitkamp cosponsored in the U.S. Senate was the reauthorization of VAWA, which she then played a key role in pushing through Congress. Heitkamp worked to include a key provision in VAWA to address the continuing crisis of violence against women in tribal communities. The provision strengthens the existing programs and provides tribal governments the force they need to prosecute non-Indian perpetrators who commit these crimes on tribal land. In 2015, Heitkamp supported a year-end spending deal that included a significant increase in federal funding to support domestic violence victims. The $480 million in federal support from the Office on Violence Against Women was a $50 million increase from the previous year, to be used for victims’ services, legal, training and technical assistance, as well as research and analysis on violence against Native women. 

• Raising awareness of domestic violence resources in North Dakota. During Domestic Violence Awareness Month last October, Heitkamp met with staff and board members at Fargo’s Rape and Abuse Crisis Center which offers resources for domestic, sexual, and dating violence survivors. In October 2014, Heitkamp met with community leaders, advocates, and victims services in Fargo and Minot to highlight the need to address domestic violence as a public health crisis. Heitkamp also toured the Community Violence Intervention Center (CVIC) in Grand Forks and in Minot in 2015 to see programs supporting victims and combatting domestic violence in each region.

• Addressing emerging challenges in North Dakota to better combat domestic violence. In 2014, Heitkamp convened a task force of experts, law enforcement and leaders across the state in launching her Strong & Safe Communities Initiative to address emerging challenges – including a rise in domestic violence – in the wake of the oil and gas boom. In August 2016, Heitkamp released her Strong & Safe Communities Report offering a comprehensive set of proposals to address challenges facing North Dakota, including solutions on domestic violence and a host of other issues facing the state.

###