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HHS Announces $62 Million to Fund Battered Women's Shelters

HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala along with Vice President Gore today announced the release of $62 million in grants to help develop and support shelters for women who are victims of domestic violence.

The Battered Women Shelter grants, authorized by the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, will fund shelters and support counseling, legal advocacy, emergency transportation, child care, referrals for medical care and substance abuse, and other services for women and children who are victims of domestic violence. Grants will be awarded to all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories.

"The days of domestic violence being just 'a family matter' are over," said Secretary Shalala. "It's a community matter, it's a criminal justice matter, and it matters to our nation."

"Domestic violence threatens lives, destroys relationships, and breaks apart families," said Olivia A. Golden, HHS assistant secretary for children and families. "Among the most tragic effects of family violence is the cycle of abuse that may be perpetuated by children and teenagers who see and experience brutality at home."

HHS' FY 1999 budget includes a total of $190 million for programs that address violence against women. Among the items funded are $45 million for grants to states for rape prevention and education programs; $15 million for programs to reduce sexual abuse among runaway, homeless and street youth; $6 million for coordinated community action programs; and $1.2 million for the National Domestic Abuse Hotline. The hotline, which began its fourth year of operation last week, logs about 100,000 calls a year.

Each year, an estimated 2.1 million U.S. women are raped and/or physically assaulted. Because some of these women experience victimization more than once, this means that an estimated 876,000 rapes and 5.9 million physical assaults are perpetrated against U.S. women annually.

In addition to the personal burden domestic violence causes, the financial burdens run into the billions of dollars. A 1996 National Institute of Justice study estimates the costs at more than $100 billion a year, including $67 billion from domestic violence against adults and $32 billion from child abuse as well as additional costs for law enforcement and the judicial system.

Grants released today represent 70 percent of the $88.8 million total amount available for family violence prevention and services in 1999, a fourfold increase in funding since 1993. For FY 2000, the President has proposed a $13.5 million increase to $102.3 million, which is expected to serve an additional 40,000 survivors of domestic violence.

The grants are being distributed to each state and territory on the basis of its population. No state will receive less than $400,000; territories will receive amounts equal to one-eighth of one percent of the total amount available for the year ($88,800).

The state and territorial grant amounts released today follow.

Alabama $ 935,096 Alaska 400,000 Arizona 969,016 Arkansas 549,284 California 6,976,129 Colorado 836,619 Connecticut 716,477 Delaware 400,000 District of Columbia 400,000 Florida 3,151,272 Georgia 1,609,118 Hawaii 400,000 Idaho 400,000 Illinois 2,592,578 Indiana 1,278,235 Iowa 624,127 Kansas 562,852 Kentucky 849,968 Louisiana 952,166 Maine 400,000 Maryland 1,109,948 Massachusetts 1,333,163 Michigan 2,099,535 Minnesota 1,019,349 Mississippi 594,365 Missouri 1,172,755 Montana 400,000 Nebraska 400,000

Nevada $ 400,000 New Hampshire 400,000 New Jersey 1,748,081 New Mexico 400,000 New York 3,979,576 North Carolina 1,602,553 North Dakota 400,000 Ohio 2,445,081 Oklahoma 722,385 Oregon 701,158 Pennsylvania 2,638,315 Puerto Rico 837,494 Rhode Island 400,000 South Carolina 809,483 South Dakota 400,000 Tennessee 1,164,220 Texas 4,185,940 Utah 437,677 Vermont 400,000 Virginia 1,460,746 Washington 1,210,833 West Virginia 400,000 Wisconsin 1,129,206 Wyoming 400,000 American Samoa 88,800 Guam 88,800 Northern Marianna Is 88,800 Virgin Islands 88,800

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