LEGISLATIVE
UPDATE LEGISLATIVE
UPDATE
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Abortion Opponents Adopt Hardball Tactics |
Right wing leaders in Congress who oppose abortion rights engaged in
an unprecedented effort to punish the Clinton administration when it appeared
that the President would not back down in his opposition to the global
gag rule. The story behind the move is illustrative of a new 'hardball'
strategy that the opposition has adopted, employing punitive tactics which
may make it even more difficult to successfully advocate for women's reproductive
rights.
Just prior to adjournment, when the House was deliberating fast track trade authority, abortion opponents attempted once again to impose language which would have prohibited foreign non–governmental organizations (who receive U.S. family planning funds) from discussing abortion or lobbying their own country's government on abortion policy, Republicans threatened to withhold votes for fast track if President Clinton did not accept the gag rule. Advocates briefly feared that the President might bend and organized an intensified lobbying effort. Reps. Nancy Pelosi (D–CA), Nita Lowey (D–NY) and Rosa DeLauro (D–CT) held a press conference to protest this possibility. But the President held firm on the question and fast track trade authority failed –– mainly because a majority of House democrats did not support the expanded trade authority. Anti–abortion rights leaders Reps. Christopher Smith (R–NJ) and Steven Largent (R–OK) pressed the issue onto the $13 billion FY 98 Foreign Operations spending bill (H.R. 2159) where Republicans became frustrated by a veto threat if the bill contained the global gag rule. In retaliation, the leadership stripped out funding for the $926 million in United Nations arrears and a $3.5 billion credit line for the International Monetary Fund, among other administration high priority items. These actions could have far reaching implications in U.S. foreign policy matters and have left the administration and abortion rights supporters smarting. Ultimately, the Foreign Operations bill was passed, including $385 million for international family planning programs and no global gag rule language. However, metering of the planning funds, released in 8% monthly increments, as was imposed last fiscal year is extended. Family planning program administrators have indicated that this metering is creating serious difficulties for operations; it appears that the policy is having the intended effect of slowly strangling international family planning/population assistance programs. Republican leaders have told administration officials that they intend to tie reproductive rights and other controversial matters to unrelated administration priority measures. The Foreign Aid/global gag rule retribution experience may be the model for further attacks on domestic family planning programs and other abortion issues to come before the 2nd session of the 105th Congress. Opponents, of course, would love to eliminate federal funds for both domestic and international family planning, in manner not unlike the way that they have nearly eliminated federal funds for abortion services. |
Other Reproductive Rights Losses |
Multiple bills eroding reproductive rights moved forward in this past
session. Among them:
Note: an amendment offered by Rep. Ernest Istook (R-OK) and others to deny minors access to Title X services was roundly defeated -- one of the very few victories that family planning supporters can savor. |
ACTION NEEDED |
Be sure to thank President Clinton for "hanging tough" on the global gag rule and thank members of Congress who fought back abortion opponents on this issue. For the longer term, reproductive rights activists should take note of continuing losses in access to abortion services, family planning funding, reproductive health research and information and assess what is needed to turn the anti-reproductive rights majority out of power. The coming year offers an unparalleled opportunity to organize against those who are carrying out this campaign of undermining women's rights. The upcoming Roe V. Wade 25th anniversary observance (January 20 through 22nd) provides an opportunity to network with other activists and plan for action in 1998. Continuation of the current leadership in Congress for many more terms may make the right to abortion and contraception under Roe, and related cases, a nearly meaningless guarantee. |
Teen Victims of Rape, Incest Denied Abortions |
Abortion rights advocates were appalled recently to hear more reports
of teen–agers who have been raped being denied Medicaid
coverage for abortion services. In one case in Tennessee, a 12 year rape
victim was referred to a clinic by a victims' assistance agency, pre–approved
by her Medicaid health maintenance organization and then given an authorization
number. However, when the family submitted the payment claim, the request
was denied. Another case involved a learning disabled 12 year old in Michigan,
raped by an intruder, went to a clinic to obtain the service which had
to be covered by contributions from churches and non–profits. According
to local reports, the clinic has repeatedly experienced delays and non–payment
by the state Medicaid program for abortions in rape cases.
These two stories are just a sampling of a growing list of incidents around the country where state Medicaid agencies are giving teen victims of rape and incest the run–around on payment for abortion services. Under federal Medicaid law, states are required to provide coverage for abortion services in cases of rape, incest and life endangerment. Advocates have written HHS Secretary Donna Shalala to protest this apparent trend; Rep. Nita Lowey is circulating a letter to members of the House condemning the practice and urging federal authorities to remind the states of their obligation under the law. |
ACTION NEEDED |
If you know of similar cases in your area, please report these to Secretary Donna Shalala at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201 and please send NOW a copy of your letter. You may also want to pass on the information to Rep. Nita Lowey (D–NY) at (202) 225-6506, fax - 225-0546 and e-mail at nitamail@hr.house.gov . |
Victory! – Wellstone Aids Battered Women's Legal Needs |
An amendment, promoted by Sen. Paul Wellstone (D–MN), to the Commerce/State/Justice FY 98 Appropriations bill establishes eligibility requirements that will allow many low income battered women to access Legal Services assistance. Now, their eligibility will be determined on the women's income –– not their abusers'. Previously, domestic violence victims were not able to receive legal assistance when attempting to escape their batterer because Legal Services counted both spousal incomes and or assets held in common (which often exceeded the low income threshold). Understandably, this created an impossible barrier for many women. House members who assisted in the adoption of this important measure were Reps. Harold Rogers (R-KY) and Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). |
ACTION NEEDED |
Please thank Sen. Wellstone and Reps. Rogers and Pelosi for their dedication to helping low income domestic violence survivors. They can be reached through the main switchboard in Congress: (202) 224-3121 or at their district offices during the holiday break. It may be useful to call your local Legal Services office to notify them of the change in eligibility and to let your local battered women's shelter know that this is available, as well. Further details are available from Terri McCullough in Rep. Pelosi's Washington office, (202) 225-4965. |
Partial Victory! HHS Regulations Clarify Family Violence Option |
The U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services (HHS) issued proposed
regulations in late November which partly clarify for states the Family
Violence Option (FVO). Most importantly, the proposed regulations indicate
that when states provide temporary waivers for battered women they will
not be penalized. BUT THEY MUST FIRST FORMALLY ADOPT THE FVO IN THEIR WELFARE
PLANS SUBMITTED TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. Other requirements are specified
in the draft regulations to implement the Temporary Assistance to Needy
Families (TANF) which are subject to public review and comment until February
18, 1998.
New welfare laws require states to meet certain work participation rates for welfare recipients and offers bonuses to states which meet those goals. Some states have hesitated in adopting the FVO because of the lack of clarity on this point fearing that exemptions for batteredwomen would cause them to lose bonuses; others have adopted language expressing their intention to address the problem of family violence but have not fully embraced the Family Violence Option. The HHS proposed regulation says that a state will not suffer a penalty for failure to comply with that requirement (that no more than 20% of the TANF caseload can receive assistance for more than 60 months) if the state demonstrates that it exceeded the 20% limit only due to good cause domestic violence exemptions given under the FVO. Thus far, at least 21 states and the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have adopted the FVO, according to an HHS count. Advocates say that 28 states have adopted the FVO; another dozen or so have expressed some intention to provide services to battered women on welfare. Nonetheless, a substantial number of states must take action to officially adopt the FVO. [See proposed 45 C.F.R. 271.52 (B)(1), 62 Fed. Reg. at 62189] There are several problems with the proposed HHS regulations which should be resolved before the regulations are finalized. One difficulty is an implication that there is a limitation on the time that a battered woman can be excused from work participation: only six months. For some women, this is insufficient time to escape a violent situation, receive counseling and other vital services and then to receive education or training in order to secure a job. Congress indicated in the FVO statute that waivers are to be available "so long as needed." This confusion between the proposed regulation and Congress's intention needs to be resolved. Additionally, HHS is proposing to let states exceed their 20% hardship exemption pool due to FVO waivers only if a domestic violence victim is at the end of the time limit under their State's welfare plan. Analysts assert that HHS is confused about requirements pertaining to time limits and work requirements as impacted by the FVO good cause waiver. An in–depth analysis of the proposed regulations will soon be available from NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund, 99 Hudson St., 12th Floor, New York, NY 10013, (212) 925–6635. |
ACTION NEEDED |
If you live in a state which has not formally adopted the Family Violence Option in its welfare plan filed with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, contact your governor and welfare officials to ask them to do so. They may learn more about the proposed regulation by consulting the HHS website: http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/news/welfare/ or contact the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance, 5th Floor East, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW, Washington, D.C. 20447. Many university and municipal libraries also carry copies of the Federal Register where the proposed regulations can be found at 62 Fed. Reg. 62124 (Nov. 20, 1997) You may submit your written comments by February 18, 1998 to the Administration for Children and Families. |
Battered Immigrant Women Protection Fails |
Unfortunately, an amendment was not adopted that would have provided
a permanent extension of Section 245 (i) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act to allow battered immigrant women to use protections under the
Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)
in order to gain permanent U.S. residency without having to first leave
the country. House members of a Conference Committee exempted immigrants
from deportation only if they can currently qualify for residency in this
country. In effect, this means that immigrant women experiencing domestic
violence will not be protected under VAWA if they seek services
or self-petition after January 14, 1998. In fact, battered immigrant women
who fall into the latter category will have to leave the country for three
to 10 years to eventually establish residency in the U.S., even though
this may cause considerable hardship for the women and their children.
Legislation to correct this situation will be introduced soon by Rep. Connie Morella (R-MD). Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA) also worked to gain the extension language. |
ACTION NEEDED |
Let your member of Congress know that domestic violence for many immigrant women is a serious, life-threatening matter and that immigration politics should not create more hardships for them. In the past, this permanent extension, aided by the VAWA protection, has enjoyed bipartisan support. Ask your Representative to co-sponsor the Morella bill when it is introduced in 1998. |
White House Endorses Hate Crimes Expansion |
President Clinton announced his support for an expansion in the federal
criminal civil rights law prohibiting hate crimes based on sex, sexual
orientation or disability at the White
House Conference on Hate Crimes, held on Nov. 10th. The new categories
will be added to existing ones relating to religion, race, national origin
and ethnicity. The President's position was buttressed by strong support
for the expansion expressed by Attorney General Janet Reno in a meeting
held Nov. 3rd with NOW officers Patricia
Ireland, Kim Gandy, Karen
Johnson, Elizabeth Toledo and
NOW National Board Advisory co-chairs Ellie Smeal and Janet Canterbury.
NOW has been advocating for nearly a decade to have serious crimes which
are clear expressions of violent misogynist or homophobic behavior prohibited
in federal statutes.
Legislation (S. 1529), developed by the Hate Crimes Task Force of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, was introduced prior to the White House conference by Sens. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and Arlen Specter (R-PA). In the House, a similar bill, H.R. 3081, is sponsored by Reps. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Bill McCollum (R-FL). In brief, the bills would:
It is important to note that the bill would provide additional protection for battered women and victims of rape, sexual assault and incest when those crimes fit the pattern of hate violence. This is especially useful when local and state law enforcement authorities are unable or unwilling to respond adequately. Currently, only 17 states have statutes which prohibit sex-based hate crimes and frequently these crimes are not adequately prosecuted. |
ACTION NEEDED |
Advocates have set a goal of obtaining by President's Day, February 16th, 51 Senators to co–sponsor the Hate Crimes expansion bill. Please take advantage of the holiday break to call or visit with your Senator (or House member) to urge their co-sponsorship of either S. 1529 or H.R. 3081. Ask them to have their staff member contact Tom Perez in Sen. Kennedy's office at (202) 224-7878 or David Yassky, minority counsel for the House Judiciary Committee at (202) 225-7087. Additionally, we hope to add to the list of organizational endorsements and would like to have law enforcement organizations and other professional, civic, religious, and women's/minority groups join in supporting this important advance for women, disabled persons, lesbians and gays. |
New "Communications Decency" Bill Introduced |
The Family
Television Viewing Information and Empowerment Act (S.409), a second
generation version of the defeated Communications Decency Act which
passed in the 104th Congress (but was found unconstitutional in Reno
v. American Civil Liberties Union), was introduced recently by
Sen. Dan Coats (R–IN), with
Sen. Jesse Helms (R–NC) as
a co–sponsor. The new bill, more narrow in focus than the first bill (which
prohibited any "indecent" material from being carried on the
Internet), would establish criminal penalties for making certain kinds
of sexually explicit material available on–line to users younger than 17.
In addition, the bill requires local televisions stations to establish rating systems for program content, outlines the specifics of those rating systems, and withholds Federal Communications Commission (FCC) broadcast licenses if those plans are not implemented. Any station which did not comply would not be eligible to receive transitional digital television frequency assignments -- the next technology wave. |
ACTION NEEDED |
Analysts assert that there are currently sufficient tools available
to prosecute any distributor of hardcore material and yet still be consistent
with First Amendment protections of speech. Some of the most offensive
examples of cyber-porn -- images of bestiality, gang rape, torture and
pedophilia -- are clearly obscene and would meet the 1973 Supreme Court
test. Also, critics argue that current federal law bans interstate commerce
in obscene material distributed through computers. "Indecent"
material, according to Reno is not "obscene."
Contact your member of Congress about concerns regarding this legislation; the first "Communications Decency Act" would have prohibited discussion of abortion. This bill, if passed, could make such matters as reproductive health off limits for adolescents. |
GOP Leadership Prevents Vote on Civil Rights Nominee |
When it looked like there would be enough votes in the Senate to confirm President Clinton's nominee for Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Bill Lann Lee, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Orrin Hatch (R-UT) refused to let his committee take up the question. Hatch's excuse was that Lee, though very qualified, would use the position to fight affirmative action rollbacks. |
ACTION NEEDED |
Urge your Senators to confirm Lee as soon as Congress re-convenes in January; more information can be found in the November NOW Legislative Update. |
This Legislative Update was compiled by the Government Relations/Public Policy Team at the National NOW Office. Call Jan Erickson, Government Relations Director, at (202) 331–0066, ext. 768, if you have any questions. To receive free of charge copies of any of the above bills, call your U.S. Senator or Representative at (202) 224–3121 or connect to http://thomas.loc.gov . This update is mailed monthly to NOW leadership. Any member can receive a copy of this update by mail for a yearly charge of $25. You may also read this Legislative Update at http://www.now.org/issues/legislat/ . Anyone may receive it by e–mail if they join our Action Alert e–mail network.
Some of the research for this legislative update was conducted by the NOW Foundation. To make a tax-deductible contribution to the Foundation, connect to https://www.now.org/foundation/donation.html .
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