II

107TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1249

To promote the economic security and safety of victims of domestic and

sexual violence, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JULY 25, 2001

Mr. WELLSTONE (for himself, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. SCHUMER, Mr. DODD, Mr.

DAYTON, Mrs. CLINTON, and Mr. INOUYE) introduced the following bill;

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

A BILL

To promote the economic security and safety of victims of

domestic and sexual violence, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Victims’ Economic Security and Safety Act’’.

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for

7 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Findings.

Sec. 3. Definitions.

TITLE I—ENTITLEMENT TO EMERGENCY LEAVE FOR

ADDRESSING DOMESTIC OR SEXUAL VIOLENCE
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Sec. 101. Purposes.

Sec. 102. Entitlement to emergency leave for addressing domestic or sexual violence.

Sec. 103. Existing leave usable for addressing domestic or sexual violence.

Sec. 104. Emergency benefits.

Sec. 105. Effect on other laws and employment benefits.

Sec. 106. Conforming amendments.

Sec. 107. Effective date.

TITLE II—ENTITLEMENT TO UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION

FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, DATING VIOLENCE,

SEXUAL ASSAULT, OR STALKING

Sec. 201. Purposes.

Sec. 202. Unemployment compensation and training provisions.

TITLE III—VICTIMS’ EMPLOYMENT SUSTAINABILITY

Sec. 301. Short title.

Sec. 302. Purposes.

Sec. 303. Prohibited discriminatory acts.

Sec. 304. Enforcement.

Sec. 305. Attorney’s fees.

TITLE IV—VICTIMS OF ABUSE INSURANCE PROTECTION

Sec. 401. Short title.

Sec. 402. Definitions.

Sec. 403. Discriminatory acts prohibited.

Sec. 404. Insurance protocols for subjects of abuse.

Sec. 405. Reasons for adverse actions.

Sec. 406. Life insurance.

Sec. 407. Subrogation without consent prohibited.

Sec. 408. Enforcement.

Sec. 409. Effective date.

TITLE V—WORKPLACE SAFETY PROGRAM TAX CREDIT

Sec. 501. Credit for costs to employers of implementing workplace safety programs.

TITLE VI—NATIONAL CLEARINGHOUSE ON DOMESTIC AND

SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN THE WORKPLACE GRANT

Sec. 601. National clearinghouse on domestic and sexual violence in the workplace grant.

TITLE VII—SEVERABILITY

Sec. 701. Severability.

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

2 Congress makes the following findings:
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1 (1) Domestic violence crimes account for ap2 proximately 15 percent of total crime costs in the

3 United States each year.

4 (2) Violence against women has been reported

5 to be the leading cause of physical injury to women.

6 Such violence has a devastating impact on women’s

7 physical and emotional health and financial security.

8 (3) According to recent government surveys,

9 from 1993 through 1998 the average annual number

10 of violent victimizations committed by intimate part11 ners was 1,082,110, 87 percent of which were com12 mitted against women. Female murder victims were

13 substantially more likely than male murder victims

to have been killed by an intimate partner. About 1 14 ⁄3

15 of female murder victims, and about 4 percent of

16 male murder victims, were killed by an intimate

17 partner.

18 (4) According to recent government estimates,

19 approximately 987,400 rapes occur annually in the

20 United States, 89 percent of the rapes perpetrated

21 against female victims.

22 (5) Approximately 10,200,000 people have been

23 stalked at some time in their lives. Four out of every

24 5 stalking victims are women. Stalkers harass and

25 terrorize their victims by spying on the victims,
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1 standing outside their places of work or homes, mak2 ing unwanted phone calls, sending or leaving un3 wanted letters or items, or vandalizing property.

4 (6) Employees in the United States who have

5 been victims of domestic violence, dating violence,

6 sexual assault, or stalking too often suffer adverse

7 consequences in the workplace as a result of their

8 victimization.

9 (7) Victims of domestic violence, dating vio10 lence, sexual assault, and stalking are particularly

11 vulnerable to changes in employment, pay, and bene12 fits as a result of their victimizations, and are,

13 therefore, in need of legal protection.

14 (8) The prevalence of domestic violence, dating

15 violence, sexual assault, stalking, and other violence

16 against women at work is dramatic. Approximately

17 11 percent of all rapes occur in the workplace.

18 About 50,500 individuals, 83 percent of whom are

19 women, were raped or sexually assaulted in the

20 workplace each year from 1992 through 1996. Half

21 of all female victims of violent workplace crimes

22 know their attackers. Nearly 1 out of 10 violent

23 workplace incidents are committed by partners or

24 spouses.
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1 (9) Homicide is the leading cause of death for

2 women on the job. Husbands, boyfriends, and ex3 partners commit 15 percent of workplace homicides

4 against women.

5 (10) Studies indicate that between 35 and 56

6 percent of employed battered women surveyed were

7 harassed at work by their abusive partners.

8 (11) According to a 1998 report of the General

Accounting Office, between 1⁄4 and 1 9 ⁄2 of domestic

10 violence victims surveyed in 3 studies reported that

11 the victims lost a job due, at least in part, to domes12 tic violence.

13 (12) Women who have experienced domestic vi14 olence or dating violence are more likely than other

15 women to be unemployed, to suffer from health

16 problems that can affect employability and job per17 formance, to report lower personal income, and to

18 rely on welfare.

19 (13) Abusers frequently seek to control their

20 partners by actively interfering with their ability to

21 work, including preventing their partners from going

22 to work, harassing their partners at work, limiting

23 the access of their partners to cash or transpor24 tation, and sabotaging the child care arrangements

25 of their partners.
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(14) More than 1 1 ⁄2 of women receiving welfare

2 have been victims of domestic violence as adults and

between 1⁄4 and 1 3 ⁄3 reported being abused in the last

4 year.

5 (15) Sexual assault, whether occurring in or out

6 of the workplace, can impair an employee’s work

7 performance, require time away from work, and un8 dermine the employee’s ability to maintain a job. Al9 most 50 percent of sexual assault survivors lose their

10 jobs or are forced to quit in the aftermath of the as11 saults.

(16) More than 1 12 ⁄4 of stalking victims report

13 losing time from work due to the stalking and 7 per14 cent never return to work.

15 (17)(A) According to the National Institute of

16 Justice, crime costs an estimated $450,000,000,000

17 annually in medical expenses, lost earnings, social

18 service costs, pain, suffering, and reduced quality of

19 life for victims, which harms the Nation’s produc20 tivity and drains the Nation’s resources.

21 (B) Violent crime accounts for

22 $426,000,000,000 per year of this amount.

23 (C) Rape exacts the highest costs per victim of

24 any criminal offense, and accounts for
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1 $127,000,000,000 per year of the amount described

2 in subparagraph (A).

3 (18) Violent crime results in wage losses equiv4 alent to 1 percent of all United States earnings, and

5 causes 3 percent of the Nation’s medical spending

6 and 14 percent of the Nation’s injury-related med7 ical spending.

8 (19) The Bureau of National Affairs has esti9 mated that domestic violence costs United States

10 employers between $3,000,000,000 and

11 $5,000,000,000 annually in lost time and produc12 tivity. Other reports have estimated that domestic

13 violence costs United States employers

14 $13,000,000,000 annually.

15 (20) United States medical costs for domestic

16 violence have been estimated to be $31,000,000,000

17 per year.

18 (21) Surveys of business executives and cor19 porate security directors also underscore the heavy

20 toll that workplace violence takes on women, busi21 nesses, and interstate commerce in the United

22 States.

23 (22) Ninety-four percent of corporate security

24 and safety directors at companies nationwide rank

25 domestic violence as a high security concern.
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1 (23) Forty-nine percent of senior executives re2 cently surveyed said domestic violence has a harmful

3 effect on their company’s productivity, 47 percent

4 said domestic violence negatively affects attendance,

5 and 44 percent said domestic violence increases

6 health care costs.

7 (24) Only 16 States have laws that explicitly

8 provide unemployment insurance to domestic vio9 lence victims in certain circumstances, and none of

10 the laws explicitly cover victims of sexual assault or

11 stalking.

12 (25) Only 2 States provide domestic violence

13 victims with leave from work to go to court, to the

14 doctor, or to take other steps to address the domes15 tic violence in their lives, and only Maine provides

16 such leave to victims of sexual assault and stalking.

17 (26) No States prohibit employment discrimina18 tion against victims of domestic violence, sexual as19 sault, or stalking. New York City is the only juris20 diction with a law prohibiting employment discrimi21 nation against actual or perceived victims of domes22 tic violence.

23 (27) Employees, including individuals partici24 pating in welfare to work programs, may need to

25 take time during business hours to—
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1 (A) obtain orders of protection;

2 (B) seek medical or legal assistance, coun3 seling, or other services; or

4 (C) look for housing in order to escape

5 from domestic violence.

6 (28) Existing Federal law does not explicitly—

7 (A) authorize victims of domestic violence,

8 dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking to

9 take leave from work to seek legal assistance

10 and redress, counseling, or assistance with safe11 ty planning activities;

12 (B) address the eligibility of victims of do13 mestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault,

14 or stalking for unemployment compensation; or

15 (C) prohibit employment discrimination

16 against actual or perceived victims of domestic

17 violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or

18 stalking.

19 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

20 In this Act, except as otherwise expressly provided:

21 (1) COMMERCE.—The terms ‘‘commerce’’ and

22 ‘‘industry or activity affecting commerce’’ have the

23 meanings given the terms in section 101 of the

24 Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C.

25 2611).
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1 (2) COURSE OF CONDUCT.—The term ‘‘course

2 of conduct’’ means a course of repeatedly maintain3 ing a visual or physical proximity to a person or con4 veying verbal or written threats, including threats

5 conveyed through electronic communications, or

6 threats implied by conduct.

7 (3) DATING VIOLENCE.—The term ‘‘dating vio8 lence’’ has the meaning given the term in section

9 826 of the Higher Education Amendments of 1998

10 (20 U.S.C. 1152).

11 (4) DOMESTIC OR SEXUAL VIOLENCE.—The

12 term ‘‘domestic or sexual violence’’ means domestic

13 violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking.

14 (5) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—The term ‘‘domestic

15 violence’’ has the meaning given the term in section

16 826 of the Higher Education Amendments of 1998

17 (20 U.S.C. 1152).

18 (6) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE COALITION.—The

19 term ‘‘domestic violence coalition’’ means a non20 profit, nongovernmental membership organization

21 that—

22 (A) consists of the entities carrying out a

23 majority of the domestic violence programs car24 ried out within a State;
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1 (B) collaborates and coordinates activities

2 with Federal, State, and local entities to further

3 the purposes of domestic violence intervention

4 and prevention; and

5 (C) among other activities, provides train6 ing and technical assistance to entities carrying

7 out domestic violence programs within a State,

8 territory, political subdivision, or area under

9 Federal authority.

10 (7) ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS.—The term

11 ‘‘electronic communications’’ includes communica12 tions via telephone, mobile phone, computer, e-mail,

13 video recorder, fax machine, telex, or pager.

14 (8) EMPLOY; STATE.—The terms ‘‘employ’’ and

15 ‘‘State’’ have the meanings given the terms in sec16 tion 3 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29

17 U.S.C. 203).

18 (9) EMPLOYEE.—

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘employee’’

20 means any person employed by an employer. In

21 the case of an individual employed by a public

22 agency, such term means an individual em23 ployed as described in section 3(e) of the Fair

24 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C.

25 203(e)).
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1 (B) BASIS.—The term includes a person

2 employed as described in subparagraph (A) on

3 a full- or part-time basis, for a fixed time pe4 riod, on a temporary basis, pursuant to a detail,

5 as an independent contractor, or as a partici6 pant in a work assignment as a condition of re7 ceipt of Federal or State income-based public

8 assistance.

9 (10) EMPLOYER.—The term ‘‘employer’’—

10 (A) means any person engaged in com11 merce or in any industry or activity affecting

12 commerce who employs 15 or more individuals;

13 and

14 (B) includes any person acting directly or

15 indirectly in the interest of an employer in rela16 tion to an employee, and includes a public agen17 cy, but does not include any labor organization

18 (other than when acting as an employer) or

19 anyone acting in the capacity of officer or agent

20 of such labor organization.

21 (11) EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS.—The term ‘‘em22 ployment benefits’’ means all benefits provided or

23 made available to employees by an employer, includ24 ing group life insurance, health insurance, disability

25 insurance, sick leave, annual leave, educational bene-
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1 fits, and pensions, regardless of whether such bene2 fits are provided by a practice or written policy of

3 an employer or through an ‘‘employee benefit plan’’,

4 as defined in section 3(3) of the Employee Retire5 ment Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C.

6 1002(3)).

7 (12) PARENT; SON OR DAUGHTER.—The terms

8 ‘‘parent’’ and ‘‘son or daughter’’ have the meanings

9 given the terms in section 101 of the Family and

10 Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611).

11 (13) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ has the

12 meaning given the term in section 3 of the Fair

13 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203).

14 (14) PUBLIC AGENCY.—The term ‘‘public agen15 cy’’ has the meaning given the term in section 3 of

16 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C.

17 203).

18 (15) PUBLIC ASSISTANCE.—The term ‘‘public

19 assistance’’ includes cash, food stamps, medical as20 sistance, housing assistance, and other benefits pro21 vided on the basis of income by a public agency.

22 (16) REDUCED LEAVE SCHEDULE.—The term

23 ‘‘reduced leave schedule’’ means a leave schedule

24 that reduces the usual number of hours per work25 week, or hours per workday, of an employee.
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1 (17) REPEATEDLY.—The term ‘‘repeatedly’’

2 means on 2 or more occasions.

3 (18) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’

4 means the Secretary of Labor.

5 (19) SEXUAL ASSAULT.—The term ‘‘sexual as6 sault’’ has the meaning given the term in section

7 826 of the Higher Education Amendments of 1998

8 (20 U.S.C. 1152).

9 (20) SEXUAL ASSAULT COALITION.—The term

10 ‘‘sexual assault coalition’’ means a nonprofit, non11 governmental membership organization that—

12 (A) consists of the entities carrying out a

13 majority of the sexual assault programs carried

14 out within a State;

15 (B) collaborates and coordinates activities

16 with Federal, State, and local entities to further

17 the purposes of sexual assault intervention and

18 prevention; and

19 (C) among other activities, provides train20 ing and technical assistance to entities carrying

21 out sexual assault programs within a State, ter22 ritory, political subdivision, or area under Fed23 eral authority.

24 (21) STALKING.—The term ‘‘stalking’’ means

25 engaging in a course of conduct directed at a spe-
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1 cific person that would cause a reasonable person to

2 suffer substantial emotional distress or to fear bodily

3 injury, sexual assault, or death to the person, or the

4 person’s spouse, parent, or son or daughter, or any

5 other person who regularly resides in the person’s

6 household, if the conduct causes the specific person

7 to have such distress or fear.

8 (22) VICTIM SERVICES ORGANIZATION.—The

9 term ‘‘victim services organization’’ means a non10 profit, nongovernmental organization that provides

11 assistance to victims of domestic or sexual violence

12 or to advocates for such victims, including a rape

13 crisis center, an organization carrying out a domes14 tic violence program, an organization operating a

15 shelter or providing counseling services, or an orga16 nization providing assistance through the legal proc17 ess.

18 TITLE I—ENTITLEMENT TO

19 EMERGENCY LEAVE FOR AD20 DRESSING DOMESTIC OR SEX21 UAL VIOLENCE

22 SEC. 101. PURPOSES.

23 The purposes of this title are, pursuant to the affirm24 ative power of Congress to enact legislation under the por25 tions of section 8 of article I of the Constitution relating
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1 to providing for the general welfare and to regulation of

2 commerce among the several States, and under section 5

3 of the 14th amendment to the Constitution—

4 (1) to promote the national interest in reducing

5 domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault,

6 and stalking by enabling victims of domestic or sex7 ual violence to maintain the financial independence

8 necessary to leave abusive situations, achieve safety,

9 and minimize the physical and emotional injuries

10 from domestic or sexual violence, and to reduce the

11 devastating economic consequences of domestic or

12 sexual violence to employers and employees;

13 (2) to promote the national interest in ensuring

14 that victims of domestic or sexual violence can re15 cover from and cope with the effects of such vio16 lence, and participate in criminal and civil justice

17 processes, without fear of adverse economic con18 sequences from their employers;

19 (3) to ensure that victims of domestic or sexual

20 violence can recover from and cope with the effects

21 of such violence, and participate in criminal and civil

22 justice processes, without fear of adverse economic

23 consequences with respect to public benefits;

24 (4) to promote the purposes of the 14th amend25 ment by addressing the failure of existing laws to
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1 protect the employment rights of victims of domestic

2 or sexual violence, by protecting the civil and eco3 nomic rights of victims of domestic or sexual vio4 lence, and by furthering the equal opportunity of

5 women for economic self-sufficiency and employment

6 free from discrimination;

7 (5) to minimize the negative impact on inter8 state commerce from dislocations of employees and

9 harmful effects on productivity, employment, health

10 care costs, and employer costs, caused by domestic

11 or sexual violence, including intentional efforts to

12 frustrate women’s ability to participate in employ13 ment and interstate commerce; and

14 (6) to accomplish the purposes described in

15 paragraphs (1) through (5) by—

16 (A) entitling employed victims of domestic

17 or sexual violence to take leave to seek medical

18 help, legal assistance, counseling, safety plan19 ning, and other assistance without penalty from

20 their employers; and

21 (B) prohibiting employers from discrimi22 nating against actual or perceived victims of do23 mestic or sexual violence, in a manner that ac24 commodates the legitimate interests of employ-
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1 ers and protects the safety of all persons in the

2 workplace.

3 SEC. 102. ENTITLEMENT TO EMERGENCY LEAVE FOR AD4 DRESSING DOMESTIC OR SEXUAL VIOLENCE.

5 (a) LEAVE REQUIREMENT.—

6 (1) BASIS.—An employee who is a victim of do7 mestic or sexual violence may take leave from work

8 to address domestic or sexual violence, by—

9 (A) seeking medical attention for, or recov10 ering from, physical or psychological injuries

11 caused by domestic or sexual violence;

12 (B) obtaining services from a victim serv13 ices organization;

14 (C) obtaining psychological or other coun15 seling for the employee or the employee’s parent

16 or son or daughter;

17 (D) participating in safety planning, tem18 porarily or permanently relocating, or taking

19 other actions to increase the safety of the em20 ployee or the employee’s parent or son or

21 daughter from future domestic or sexual vio22 lence or ensure economic security; or

23 (E) seeking legal assistance or remedies to

24 ensure the health and safety of the employee or

25 the employee’s parent or son or daughter, in-
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1 cluding preparing for or participating in any

2 civil or criminal legal proceeding related to or

3 derived from domestic or sexual violence.

4 (2) PERIOD.—An employee may take not more

5 than 30 days of leave, as described in paragraph (1),

6 in any 12-month period.

7 (3) SCHEDULE.—Leave described in paragraph

8 (1) may be taken intermittently or on a reduced

9 leave schedule.

10 (b) NOTICE.—The employee shall provide the em11 ployer with reasonable notice of the employee’s intention

12 to take the leave, unless providing such notice is not prac13 ticable.

14 (c) CERTIFICATION.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The employer may require

16 the employee to provide certification to the employer,

17 within a reasonable period after the employer re18 quires the certification, that—

19 (A) the employee is a victim of domestic or

20 sexual violence; and

21 (B) the leave is for 1 of the purposes enu22 merated in subsection (a)(1).

23 (2) CONTENTS.—An employee may satisfy the

24 certification requirement of paragraph (1) by pro25 viding to the employer—
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1 (A) a sworn statement of the employee;

2 (B) documentation from an employee,

3 agent, or volunteer of a victim services organi4 zation, an attorney, a member of the clergy, or

5 a medical or other professional, from whom the

6 employee has sought assistance in addressing

7 domestic or sexual violence and the effects of

8 the violence;

9 (C) a police or court record; or

10 (D) other corroborating evidence.

11 (d) CONFIDENTIALITY.—All information provided to

12 the employer pursuant to subsection (b) or (c), including

13 a statement of the employee or any other documentation,

14 record, or corroborating evidence, and the fact that the

15 employee has requested or obtained leave pursuant to this

16 section, shall be retained in the strictest confidence by the

17 employer, except to the extent that disclosure is—

18 (1) requested or consented to by the employee;

19 or

20 (2) otherwise required by applicable Federal or

21 State law.

22 (e) EMPLOYMENT AND BENEFITS.—

23 (1) RESTORATION TO POSITION.—

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

25 paragraph (2), any employee who takes leave
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1 under this section for the intended purpose of

2 the leave shall be entitled, on return from such

3 leave—

4 (i) to be restored by the employer to

5 the position of employment held by the em6 ployee when the leave commenced; or

7 (ii) to be restored to an equivalent po8 sition with equivalent employment benefits,

9 pay, and other terms and conditions of em10 ployment.

11 (B) LOSS OF BENEFITS.—The taking of

12 leave under this section shall not result in the

13 loss of any employment benefit accrued prior to

14 the date on which the leave commenced.

15 (C) LIMITATIONS.—Nothing in this sub16 section shall be construed to entitle any re17 stored employee to—

18 (i) the accrual of any seniority or em19 ployment benefits during any period of

20 leave; or

21 (ii) any right, benefit, or position of

22 employment other than any right, benefit,

23 or position to which the employee would

24 have been entitled had the employee not

25 taken the leave.
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1 (D) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this

2 paragraph shall be construed to prohibit an em3 ployer from requiring an employee on leave

4 under this section to report periodically to the

5 employer on the status and intention of the em6 ployee to return to work.

7 (2) EXEMPTION CONCERNING CERTAIN HIGHLY

8 COMPENSATED EMPLOYEES.—

9 (A) DENIAL OF RESTORATION.—An em10 ployer may deny restoration under paragraph

11 (1) to any employee described in subparagraph

12 (B) if—

13 (i) such denial is necessary to prevent

14 substantial and grievous economic injury to

15 the operations of the employer;

16 (ii) the employer notifies the employee

17 of the intent of the employer to deny res18 toration on such basis at the time the em19 ployer determines that such injury would

20 occur; and

21 (iii) in any case in which the leave has

22 commenced, the employee elects not to re23 turn to employment after receiving such

24 notice.
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1 (B) AFFECTED EMPLOYEES.—An employee

2 referred to in subparagraph (A) is a salaried

3 employee who is among the highest paid 10 per4 cent of the employees employed by the employer

5 within 75 miles of the facility at which the em6 ployee is employed.

7 (3) MAINTENANCE OF HEALTH BENEFITS.—

8 (A) COVERAGE.—Except as provided in

9 subparagraph (B), during any period that an

10 employee takes leave under this section, the em11 ployer shall maintain coverage under any group

12 health plan (as defined in section 5000(b)(1) of

13 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) for the du14 ration of such leave at the level and under the

15 conditions coverage would have been provided if

16 the employee had continued in employment con17 tinuously for the duration of such leave.

18 (B) FAILURE TO RETURN FROM LEAVE.—

19 The employer may recover the premium that

20 the employer paid for maintaining coverage for

21 the employee under such group health plan dur22 ing any period of leave under this section if—

23 (i) the employee fails to return from

24 leave under this section after the period of
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1 leave to which the employee is entitled has

2 expired; and

3 (ii) the employee fails to return to

4 work for a reason other than—

5 (I) the continuation, recurrence,

6 or onset of domestic or sexual vio7 lence, that entitles the employee to

8 leave pursuant to this section; or

9 (II) other circumstances beyond

10 the control of the employee.

11 (C) CERTIFICATION.—

12 (i) ISSUANCE.—An employer may re13 quire an employee who claims that the em14 ployee is unable to return to work because

15 of a reason described in subclause (I) or

16 (II) of subparagraph (B)(ii) to provide,

17 within a reasonable period after making

18 the claim, certification to the employer

19 that the employee is unable to return to

20 work because of that reason.

21 (ii) CONTENTS.—An employee may

22 satisfy the certification requirement of

23 clause (i) by providing to the employer—

24 (I) a sworn statement of the em25 ployee;
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1 (II) documentation from an em2 ployee, agent, or volunteer of a victim

3 services organization, an attorney, a

4 member of the clergy, or a medical or

5 other professional, from whom the

6 employee has sought assistance in ad7 dressing domestic or sexual violence

8 and the effects of that violence;

9 (III) a police or court record; or

10 (IV) other corroborating evi11 dence.

12 (D) CONFIDENTIALITY.—All information

13 provided to the employer pursuant to subpara14 graph (C), including a statement of the em15 ployee or any other documentation, record, or

16 corroborating evidence, and the fact that the

17 employee is not returning to work because of a

18 reason described in subclause (I) or (II) of sub19 paragraph (B)(ii) shall be retained in the strict20 est confidence by the employer, except to the

21 extent that disclosure is—

22 (i) requested or consented to by the

23 employee; or

24 (ii) otherwise required by applicable

25 Federal or State law.
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1 (f) PROHIBITED ACTS.—

2 (1) INTERFERENCE WITH RIGHTS.—

3 (A) EXERCISE OF RIGHTS.—It shall be un4 lawful for any employer to interfere with, re5 strain, or deny the exercise of or the attempt to

6 exercise, any right provided under this section.

7 (B) EMPLOYER DISCRIMINATION.—It shall

8 be unlawful for any employer to discharge or

9 harass any individual, or otherwise discriminate

10 against any individual with respect to com11 pensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of

12 employment of the individual (including retalia13 tion in any form or manner) because the

14 individual—

15 (i) exercised any right provided under

16 this section; or

17 (ii) opposed any practice made unlaw18 ful by this section.

19 (C) PUBLIC AGENCY SANCTIONS.—It shall

20 be unlawful for any public agency to deny, re21 duce, or terminate the benefits of, otherwise

22 sanction, or harass any individual, or otherwise

23 discriminate against any individual with respect

24 to the amount, terms, or conditions of public

25 assistance of the individual (including retalia-
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1 tion in any form or manner) because the

2 individual—

3 (i) exercised any right provided under

4 this section; or

5 (ii) opposed any practice made unlaw6 ful by this section.

7 (2) INTERFERENCE WITH PROCEEDINGS OR IN8 QUIRIES.—It shall be unlawful for any person to dis9 charge or in any other manner discriminate (as de10 scribed in subparagraph (B) or (C) of paragraph

11 (1)) against any individual because such

12 individual—

13 (A) has filed any charge, or has instituted

14 or caused to be instituted any proceeding,

15 under or related to this section;

16 (B) has given, or is about to give, any in17 formation in connection with any inquiry or

18 proceeding relating to any right provided under

19 this section; or

20 (C) has testified, or is about to testify, in

21 any inquiry or proceeding relating to any right

22 provided under this section.

23 (g) ENFORCEMENT.—

24 (1) CIVIL ACTION BY AFFECTED INDIVID25 UALS.—
28

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1 (A) LIABILITY.—Any employer or public

2 agency that violates subsection (f) shall be lia3 ble to any individual affected—

4 (i) for damages equal to—

5 (I) the amount of—

6 (aa) any wages, salary, em7 ployment benefits, public assist8 ance, or other compensation de9 nied or lost to such individual by

10 reason of the violation; or

11 (bb) in a case in which

12 wages, salary, employment bene13 fits, public assistance, or other

14 compensation has not been de15 nied or lost to the individual, any

16 actual monetary losses sustained

17 by the individual as a direct re18 sult of the violation;

19 (II) the interest on the amount

20 described in subclause (I) calculated

21 at the prevailing rate; and

22 (III) an additional amount as liq23 uidated damages equal to the sum of

24 the amount described in subclause (I)

25 and the interest described in sub-
29

•S 1249 IS

1 clause (II), except that if an employer

2 or public agency that has violated

3 subsection (f) proves to the satisfac4 tion of the court that the act or omis5 sion that violated subsection (f) was

6 in good faith and that the employer or

7 public agency had reasonable grounds

8 for believing that the act or omission

9 was not a violation of subsection (f),

10 such court may, in the discretion of

11 the court, reduce the amount of the li12 ability to the amount and interest de13 termined under subclauses (I) and

14 (II), respectively; and

15 (ii) for such equitable relief as may be

16 appropriate, including employment, rein17 statement, and promotion.

18 (B) RIGHT OF ACTION.—An action to re19 cover the damages or equitable relief prescribed

20 in subparagraph (A) may be maintained against

21 any employer or public agency in any Federal

22 or State court of competent jurisdiction by any

23 1 or more affected individuals for and on behalf

24 of—

25 (i) the individuals; or
30

•S 1249 IS

1 (ii) the individuals and other individ2 uals similarly situated.

3 (C) FEES AND COSTS.—The court in such

4 an action shall, in addition to any judgment

5 awarded to the plaintiff, allow a reasonable at6 torney’s fee, reasonable expert witness fees, and

7 other costs of the action to be paid by the de8 fendant.

9 (D) LIMITATIONS.—The right provided by

10 subparagraph (B) to bring an action by or on

11 behalf of any affected individual shall

12 terminate—

13 (i) on the filing of a complaint by the

14 Secretary in an action under paragraph (4)

15 in which restraint is sought of any further

16 delay in the payment of the amount de17 scribed in subparagraph (A)(i) to such in18 dividual by an employer or public agency

19 responsible under subparagraph (A) for

20 the payment; or

21 (ii) on the filing of a complaint by the

22 Secretary in an action under paragraph (2)

23 in which a recovery is sought of the dam24 ages described in subparagraph (A)(i)

25 owing to an affected individual by an em-
31

•S 1249 IS

1 ployer or public agency liable under sub2 paragraph (A),

3 unless the action described in clause (i) or (ii)

4 is dismissed without prejudice on motion of the

5 Secretary.

6 (2) ACTION BY THE SECRETARY.—

7 (A) ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION.—The Sec8 retary shall receive, investigate, and attempt to

9 resolve complaints of violations of subsection (f)

10 in the same manner as the Secretary receives,

11 investigates, and attempts to resolve complaints

12 of violations of sections 6 and 7 of the Fair

13 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206

14 and 207).

15 (B) CIVIL ACTION.—The Secretary may

16 bring an action in any court of competent juris17 diction to recover the damages described in

18 paragraph (1)(A)(i).

19 (C) SUMS RECOVERED.—Any sums recov20 ered by the Secretary pursuant to subparagraph

21 (B) shall be held in a special deposit account

22 and shall be paid, on order of the Secretary, di23 rectly to each individual affected. Any such

24 sums not paid to such an individual because of

25 inability to do so within a period of 3 years
32

•S 1249 IS

1 shall be deposited into the Treasury of the

2 United States as miscellaneous receipts.

3 (3) LIMITATION.—

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

5 subparagraph (B), an action may be brought

6 under this subsection not later than 2 years

7 after the date of the last event constituting the

8 alleged violation for which the action is brought.

9 (B) WILLFUL VIOLATION.—In the case of

10 such action brought for a willful violation of

11 subsection (f), such action may be brought

12 within 3 years after the date of the last event

13 constituting the alleged violation for which such

14 action is brought.

15 (C) COMMENCEMENT.—In determining

16 when an action is commenced by the Secretary

17 under this subsection for the purposes of this

18 paragraph, it shall be considered to be com19 menced on the date when the complaint is filed.

20 (4) ACTION FOR INJUNCTION BY SECRETARY.—

21 The district courts of the United States shall have

22 jurisdiction, for cause shown, in an action brought

23 by the Secretary—

24 (A) to restrain violations of subsection (f),

25 including the restraint of any withholding of
33

•S 1249 IS

1 payment of wages, salary, employment benefits,

2 public assistance, or other compensation, plus

3 interest, found by the court to be due to af4 fected individuals; or

5 (B) to award such other equitable relief as

6 may be appropriate, including employment, re7 instatement, and promotion.

8 (5) SOLICITOR OF LABOR.—The Solicitor of

9 Labor may appear for and represent the Secretary

10 on any litigation brought under this subsection.

11 (6) EMPLOYER LIABILITY UNDER OTHER

12 LAWS.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to

13 limit the liability of an employer or public agency to

14 an individual, for harm suffered relating to the indi15 vidual’s experience of domestic or sexual violence,

16 pursuant to any other Federal or State law, includ17 ing a law providing for a legal remedy.

18 SEC. 103. EXISTING LEAVE USABLE FOR ADDRESSING DO19 MESTIC OR SEXUAL VIOLENCE.

20 An employee who is entitled to take paid or unpaid

21 leave (including family, medical, sick, annual, personal, or

22 similar leave) from employment, pursuant to State or local

23 law, a collective bargaining agreement, or an employment

24 benefits program or plan, may elect to substitute any pe-
34

•S 1249 IS

1 riod of such leave for an equivalent period of leave pro2 vided under section 102.

3 SEC. 104. EMERGENCY BENEFITS.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—A State may use funds provided

5 to the State under part A of title IV of the Social Security

6 Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) to provide nonrecurrent short7 term emergency benefits to an individual for any period

8 of leave the individual takes pursuant to section 102.

9 (b) ELIGIBILITY.—In calculating the eligibility of an

10 individual for such emergency benefits, the State shall

11 count only the cash available or accessible to the indi12 vidual.

13 (c) TIMING.—

14 (1) APPLICATIONS.—An individual seeking

15 emergency benefits under subsection (a) from a

16 State shall submit an application to the State.

17 (2) BENEFITS.—The State shall provide bene18 fits to an eligible applicant under paragraph (1) on

19 an expedited basis, and not later than 7 days after

20 the applicant submits an application under para21 graph (1).

22 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 404 of the

23 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 604) is amended by adding

24 at the end the following:
35

•S 1249 IS

1 ‘‘(l) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE EMERGENCY BENE2 FITS.—A State that receives a grant under section 403

3 may use the grant to provide nonrecurrent short-term

4 emergency benefits, in accordance with section 104 of the

5 Victims’ Economic Security and Safety Act, to individuals

6 who take leave pursuant to section 102 of that Act, with7 out regard to whether the individuals receive assistance

8 under the State program funded under this part.’’.

9 SEC. 105. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS AND EMPLOYMENT BEN10 EFITS.

11 (a) MORE PROTECTIVE LAWS, AGREEMENTS, PRO12 GRAMS, AND PLANS.—Nothing in this title shall be con13 strued to supersede any provision of any Federal, State,

14 or local law, collective bargaining agreement, or employ15 ment benefits program or plan that provides—

16 (1) greater leave benefits for victims of domes17 tic or sexual violence than the rights established

18 under this title; or

19 (2) leave benefits for a larger population of vic20 tims of domestic or sexual violence (as defined in

21 such law, agreement, program, or plan) than the vic22 tims of domestic or sexual violence covered under

23 this title.

24 (b) LESS PROTECTIVE LAWS, AGREEMENTS, PRO25 GRAMS, AND PLANS.—The rights established for victims
36

•S 1249 IS

1 of domestic or sexual violence under this title shall not

2 be diminished by any State or local law, collective bar3 gaining agreement, or employment benefits program or

4 plan.

5 SEC. 106. CONFORMING AMENDMENT.

6 Section 1003(a)(1) of the Rehabilitation Act Amend7 ments of 1986 (42 U.S.C. 2000d–7(a)(1)) is amended by

8 inserting ‘‘title I or III of the Victims’ Economic Security

9 and Safety Act,’’ before ‘‘or the provisions’’.

10 SEC. 107. EFFECTIVE DATE.

11 This title and the amendment made by this title take

12 effect 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act.

13 TITLE II—ENTITLEMENT TO UN14 EMPLOYMENT COMPENSA15 TION FOR VICTIMS OF DO16 MESTIC VIOLENCE, DATING

17 VIOLENCE, SEXUAL ASSAULT,

18 OR STALKING

19 SEC. 201. PURPOSES.

20 The purposes of this title are, pursuant to the affirm21 ative power of Congress to enact legislation under the por22 tions of section 8 of article I of the Constitution relating

23 to laying and collecting taxes, providing for the general

24 welfare, and regulation of commerce among the several

25 States—
37

•S 1249 IS

1 (1) to promote the national interest in reducing

2 domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault,

3 and stalking by enabling victims of domestic or sex4 ual violence to maintain the financial independence

5 necessary to leave abusive situations, achieve safety,

6 and minimize the physical and emotional injuries

7 from domestic or sexual violence, and to reduce the

8 devastating economic consequences of domestic or

9 sexual violence to employers and employees;

10 (2) to promote the national interest in ensuring

11 that victims of domestic or sexual violence can re12 cover from and cope with the effects of such victim13 ization and participate in the criminal and civil jus14 tice processes without fear of adverse economic con15 sequences;

16 (3) to minimize the negative impact on inter17 state commerce from dislocations of employees and

18 harmful effects on productivity, loss of employment,

19 health care costs, and employer costs, caused by do20 mestic or sexual violence including intentional efforts

21 to frustrate the ability of women to participate in

22 employment and interstate commerce; and

23 (4) to accomplish the purposes described in

24 paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) by providing unemploy25 ment insurance to those who are separated from
38

•S 1249 IS

1 their employment as a result of domestic or sexual

2 violence, in a manner that accommodates the legiti3 mate interests of employers and protects the safety

4 of all persons in the workplace.

5 SEC. 202. UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION AND TRAINING

6 PROVISIONS.

7 (a) UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION.—Section 3304

8 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to approval

9 of State unemployment compensation laws) is amended—

10 (1) in subsection (a)—

11 (A) in paragraph (18), by striking ‘‘and’’

12 at the end;

13 (B) by redesignating paragraph (19) as

14 paragraph (20); and

15 (C) by inserting after paragraph (18) the

16 following new paragraph:

17 ‘‘(19) compensation shall not be denied where

18 an individual is separated from employment due to

19 circumstances resulting from the individual’s experi20 ence of domestic or sexual violence; and’’; and

21 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub22 section:

23 ‘‘(g) CONSTRUCTION.—

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of subsection

25 (a)(19), an individual’s separation from employment
39

•S 1249 IS

1 shall be treated as due to circumstances resulting

2 from the individual’s experience of domestic or sex3 ual violence if the separation resulted from—

4 ‘‘(A) the individual’s reasonable fear of fu5 ture domestic or sexual violence at or en route

6 to or from the individual’s place of employment;

7 ‘‘(B) the individual’s wish to relocate in

8 order to avoid future domestic or sexual vio9 lence against the individual or the individual’s

10 parent, son, or daughter (as such terms are de11 fined in section 3 of the Victims’ Economic Se12 curity and Safety Act);

13 ‘‘(C) the individual’s need to obtain treat14 ment to address the physical or psychological

15 effects of domestic or sexual violence;

16 ‘‘(D) the employer’s denial of the individ17 ual’s request for leave from employment to ad18 dress domestic or sexual violence and its effects

19 on the individual or the individual’s parent, son,

20 or daughter (as such terms are so defined), in21 cluding leave authorized by section 102 of the

22 Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 or by

23 title I of the Victims’ Economic Security and

24 Safety Act;
40

•S 1249 IS

1 ‘‘(E) the employer’s termination of the in2 dividual’s employment due to actions, including

3 absences, taken by the individual that were nec4 essary to protect the individual or the individ5 ual’s family from domestic or sexual violence;

6 ‘‘(F) the employer’s termination of the in7 dividual due to circumstances resulting from

8 the individual’s being, or being perceived to be,

9 a victim of domestic or sexual violence; or

10 ‘‘(G) any other circumstance in which do11 mestic or sexual violence causes the individual

12 to reasonably believe that separation from em13 ployment is necessary for the future safety of

14 the individual or the individual’s family.

15 ‘‘(2) REASONABLE EFFORTS TO RETAIN EM16 PLOYMENT.—For purposes of subsection (a)(19), if

17 State law requires the individual to have made rea18 sonable efforts to retain employment as a condition

19 for receiving unemployment compensation, such re20 quirement shall be met if the individual—

21 ‘‘(A) sought protection from, or assistance

22 in responding to, domestic or sexual violence,

23 including calling the police, obtaining services

24 from a victim services organization (as defined

25 in section 3 of the Victims’ Economic Security
41

•S 1249 IS

1 and Safety Act), or seeking legal, social work,

2 medical, clerical, or other assistance;

3 ‘‘(B) sought safety, including refuge in a

4 shelter or temporary or permanent relocation,

5 whether or not the individual actually obtained

6 such refuge or accomplished such relocation; or

7 ‘‘(C) reasonably believed that options such

8 as taking a leave of absence, transferring jobs,

9 or receiving an alternative work schedule would

10 not be sufficient to guarantee the safety of the

11 individual or the individual’s family.

12 ‘‘(3) ACTIVE SEARCH FOR EMPLOYMENT.—For

13 purposes of subsection (a)(19), if State law requires

14 the individual to actively search for employment

15 after separation from employment as a condition for

16 receiving unemployment compensation—

17 ‘‘(A) such requirement shall be treated as

18 met where the individual registers for work (the

19 individual is not otherwise required to seek em20 ployment on a weekly basis); and

21 ‘‘(B) such law may not categorize an em22 ployment opportunity as suitable work for the

23 individual unless such employment opportunity

24 reasonably accommodates the individual’s need
42

•S 1249 IS

1 to address the physical, psychological, legal, and

2 other effects of domestic or sexual violence.

3 ‘‘(4) PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO MEET

4 CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS.—

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In determining if an

6 individual meets the requirements of para7 graphs (1), (2), and (3), the unemployment

8 agency of the State in which an individual is re9 questing unemployment compensation by reason

10 of subsection (a)(19) may require the individual

11 to provide certification that the separation from

12 employment was due to circumstances resulting

13 from the individual’s experience of domestic or

14 sexual violence.

15 ‘‘(B) SATISFACTION OF CERTIFICATION

16 REQUIREMENT.—An individual may satisfy the

17 certification requirement of subparagraph (A)

18 by providing to the unemployment agency—

19 ‘‘(i) a sworn statement of the indi20 vidual;

21 ‘‘(ii) documentation from an em22 ployee, agent, or volunteer of a victim serv23 ices organization (as defined in section 3 of

24 the Victims’ Economic Security and Safety

25 Act), an attorney, a member of the clergy,
43

•S 1249 IS

1 or a medical or other professional, from

2 whom the individual has sought assistance

3 in addressing domestic or sexual violence

4 and the effects of that violence;

5 ‘‘(iii) a police or court record; or

6 ‘‘(iv) other corroborating evidence.

7 ‘‘(C) CONFIDENTIALITY.—All information

8 provided to the unemployment agency pursuant

9 to this paragraph, including a statement of an

10 individual or any other documentation, record,

11 or corroborating evidence, and the fact that an

12 individual has applied for, inquired about, or

13 obtained unemployment compensation available

14 by reason of subsection (a)(19) shall be re15 tained in the strictest confidence by the individ16 ual’s former or current employer and the unem17 ployment agency, except to the extent that dis18 closure is—

19 ‘‘(i) requested or consented to by the

20 individual; or

21 ‘‘(ii) otherwise required by applicable

22 Federal or State law.’’.

23 (b) UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION PERSONNEL

24 TRAINING.—Section 303(a) of the Social Security Act (42

25 U.S.C. 503(a)) is amended—
44

•S 1249 IS

1 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through

2 (10) as paragraphs (5) through (11), respectively;

3 and

4 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol5 lowing new paragraph:

6 ‘‘(4) Such methods of administration as will en7 sure that—

8 ‘‘(A) applicants for unemployment com9 pensation and individuals inquiring about such

10 compensation are adequately notified of the

11 provisions of subsections (a)(19) and (g) of sec12 tion 3304 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986

13 (relating to the availability of unemployment

14 compensation for victims of domestic or sexual

15 violence); and

16 ‘‘(B) claims reviewers and hearing per17 sonnel are adequately trained in—

18 ‘‘(i) the nature and dynamics of do19 mestic or sexual violence (as defined in

20 section 3306(u) of the Internal Revenue

21 Code of 1986); and

22 ‘‘(ii) methods of ascertaining and

23 keeping confidential information about pos24 sible experiences of domestic or sexual vio25 lence (as so defined) to ensure that—
45

•S 1249 IS

1 ‘‘(I) requests for unemployment

2 compensation based on separations

3 stemming from such violence are reli4 ably screened, identified, and adju5 dicated; and

6 ‘‘(II) full confidentiality is pro7 vided for the individual’s claim and

8 submitted evidence; and’’.

9 (c) TANF PERSONNEL TRAINING.—Section 402(a)

10 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 602(a)) is amended

11 by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

12 ‘‘(8) CERTIFICATION THAT THE STATE WILL

13 PROVIDE INFORMATION TO VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC

14 AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE.—A certification by the

15 chief officer of the State that the State has estab16 lished and is enforcing standards and procedures

17 to—

18 ‘‘(A) ensure that applicants for assistance

19 under the program and individuals inquiring

20 about such assistance are adequately notified

21 of—

22 ‘‘(i) the provisions of subsections

23 (a)(19) and (g) of section 3304 of the In24 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to

25 the availability of unemployment com-
46

•S 1249 IS

1 pensation for victims of domestic or sexual

2 violence); and

3 ‘‘(ii) assistance made available by the

4 State to victims of domestic or sexual vio5 lence;

6 ‘‘(B) ensure that case workers and other

7 agency personnel responsible for administering

8 the State program funded under this part are

9 adequately trained in—

10 ‘‘(i) the nature and dynamics of do11 mestic or sexual violence (as defined in

12 section 3306(u) of the Internal Revenue

13 Code of 1986);

14 ‘‘(ii) State standards and procedures

15 relating to the prevention of, and assist16 ance for individuals who experience, do17 mestic or sexual violence (as so defined);

18 and

19 ‘‘(iii) methods of ascertaining and

20 keeping confidential information about pos21 sible experiences of domestic or sexual vio22 lence (as so defined);

23 ‘‘(C) if a State has elected to establish and

24 enforce standards and procedures regarding the
47

•S 1249 IS

1 screening for and identification of domestic vio2 lence pursuant to paragraph (7), ensure that—

3 ‘‘(i) applicants for assistance under

4 the program and individuals inquiring

5 about such assistance are adequately noti6 fied of options available under such stand7 ards and procedures; and

8 ‘‘(ii) case workers and other agency

9 personnel responsible for administering the

10 State program funded under this part are

11 provided with adequate training regarding

12 such standards and procedures and options

13 available under such standards and proce14 dures; and

15 ‘‘(D) ensure that the training required

16 under subparagraphs (B) and, if applicable,

17 (C)(ii) is provided through a training program

18 operated by an eligible entity (as defined in sec19 tion 202(d)(2) of the Victims’ Economic Secu20 rity and Safety Act).’’.

21 (d) DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE TRAINING

22 GRANT PROGRAM.—

23 (1) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of

24 Health and Human Services (in this subsection re-
48

•S 1249 IS

1 ferred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) is authorized to

2 award—

3 (A) a grant to a national victim services

4 organization in order for such organization to—

5 (i) develop and disseminate a model

6 training program (and related materials)

7 for the training required under section

8 303(a)(4)(B) of the Social Security Act

9 (42 U.S.C. 503(a)(4)(B)), as added by

10 subsection (b), and under subparagraphs

11 (B) and, if applicable, (C)(ii) of section

12 402(a)(8) of the such Act (42 U.S.C.

13 602(a)(8)), as added by subsection (c); and

14 (ii) provide technical assistance with

15 respect to such model training program;

16 and

17 (B) grants to State, tribal, or local agen18 cies in order for such agencies to contract with

19 eligible entities to provide State, tribal, or local

20 case workers and other State, tribal, or local

21 agency personnel responsible for administering

22 the temporary assistance to needy families pro23 gram established under part A of title IV of the

24 Social Security Act in a State or Indian res25 ervation with the training required under sub-
49

•S 1249 IS

1 paragraphs (B) and, if applicable, (C)(ii) of

2 such section 402(a)(8).

3 (2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY DEFINED.—For purposes

4 of paragraph (1)(B), the term ‘‘eligible entity’’

5 means an entity—

6 (A) that is—

7 (i) a State or tribal domestic violence

8 coalition or sexual assault coalition;

9 (ii) a State or local victim services or10 ganization with recognized expertise in the

11 dynamics of domestic or sexual violence

12 whose primary mission is to provide serv13 ices to victims of domestic or sexual vio14 lence, such as a rape crisis center or do15 mestic violence program; or

16 (iii) an organization with dem17 onstrated expertise in State or county wel18 fare laws and implementation of such laws

19 and experience with disseminating informa20 tion on such laws and implementation, but

21 only if such organization will provide the

22 required training in partnership with an

23 entity described in clause (i) or (ii); and

24 (B) that—
50

•S 1249 IS

1 (i) has demonstrated expertise in both

2 domestic and sexual assault, such as a

3 joint domestic violence and sexual assault

4 coalition; or

5 (ii) will provide the required training

6 in partnership with an entity described in

7 clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph (A) in

8 order to comply with the dual domestic vio9 lence and sexual assault expertise require10 ment under clause (i).

11 (3) APPLICATION.—An entity seeking a grant

12 under this subsection shall submit an application to

13 the Secretary at such time, in such form and man14 ner, and containing such information as the Sec15 retary specifies.

16 (4) REPORTS.—

17 (A) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Sec18 retary shall annually submit a report to Con19 gress on the grant program established under

20 this subsection.

21 (B) REPORTS AVAILABLE TO PUBLIC.—

22 The Secretary shall establish procedures for the

23 dissemination to the public of each report sub24 mitted under subparagraph (A). Such proce-
51

•S 1249 IS

1 dures shall include the use of the Internet to

2 disseminate such reports.

3 (5) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

4 (A) AUTHORIZATION.—There are author5 ized to be appropriated—

6 (i) $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2002 to

7 carry out the provisions of paragraph

8 (1)(A); and

9 (ii) $12,000,000 for each of fiscal

10 years 2002 through 2004 to carry out the

11 provisions of paragraph (1)(B).

12 (B) THREE-YEAR AVAILABILITY OF GRANT

13 FUNDS.—Each recipient of a grant under this

14 subsection shall return to the Secretary of

15 Health and Human Services any unused por16 tion of such grant not later than 3 years after

17 the date the grant was awarded, together with

18 any earnings on such unused portion.

19 (C) AMOUNTS RETURNED.—Any amounts

20 returned pursuant to subparagraph (B) shall be

21 available without further appropriation to the

22 Secretary of Health and Human Services for

23 the purpose of carrying out the provisions of

24 paragraph (1)(B).
52

•S 1249 IS

1 (e) DEFINITION OF DOMESTIC OR SEXUAL VIO2 LENCE.—Section 3306 of the Internal Revenue Code of

3 1986 (relating to definitions) is amended by adding at the

4 end the following:

5 ‘‘(u) DOMESTIC OR SEXUAL VIOLENCE.—For pur6 poses of this chapter, the term ‘domestic or sexual vio7 lence’ means domestic violence, dating violence, sexual as8 sault, or stalking, as those terms are defined in section

9 3 of the Victims’ Economic Security and Safety Act.’’.

10 (f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—

11 (1) UNEMPLOYMENT AMENDMENTS.—

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

13 subparagraph (B) and paragraph (2), the

14 amendments made by this section shall apply in

15 the case of compensation paid for weeks begin16 ning on or after the expiration of 180 days

17 from the date of enactment of this Act.

18 (B) EXTENSION OF EFFECTIVE DATE FOR

19 STATE LAW AMENDMENT.—

20 (i) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary of

21 Labor identifies a State as requiring a

22 change to its statutes or regulations in

23 order to comply with the amendments

24 made by this section (excluding the amend25 ment made by subsection (c)), such
53

•S 1249 IS

1 amendments shall apply in the case of

2 compensation paid for weeks beginning

3 after the earlier of—

4 (I) the date the State changes its

5 statutes or regulations in order to

6 comply with such amendments; or

7 (II) the end of the first session of

8 the State legislature which begins

9 after the date of enactment of this

10 Act or which began prior to such date

11 and remained in session for at least

12 25 calendar days after such date;

13 except that in no case shall such amend14 ments apply before the date that is 180

15 days after the date of enactment of this

16 Act.

17 (ii) SESSION DEFINED.—In this sub18 paragraph, the term ‘‘session’’ means a

19 regular, special, budget, or other session of

20 a State legislature.

21 (2) TANF AMENDMENT.—

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

23 subparagraph (B), the amendment made by

24 subsection (c) shall take effect on the date of

25 enactment of this Act.
54

•S 1249 IS

1 (B) EXTENSION OF EFFECTIVE DATE FOR

2 STATE LAW AMENDMENT.—In the case of a

3 State plan under part A of title IV of the Social

4 Security Act which the Secretary of Health and

5 Human Services determines requires State leg6 islation in order for the plan to meet the addi7 tional requirements imposed by the amendment

8 made by subsection (c), the State plan shall not

9 be regarded as failing to comply with the re10 quirements of such amendment on the basis of

11 its failure to meet these additional requirements

12 before the first day of the first calendar quarter

13 beginning after the close of the first regular

14 session of the State legislature that begins after

15 the date of enactment of this Act. For purposes

16 of the previous sentence, in the case of a State

17 that has a 2-year legislative session, each year

18 of the session is considered to be a separate

19 regular session of the State legislature.

20 TITLE III—VICTIMS’

21 EMPLOYMENT SUSTAINABILITY

22 SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE.

23 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Victims’ Employment

24 Sustainability Act’’.
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1 SEC. 302. PURPOSES.

2 The purposes of this title are, pursuant to the affirm3 ative power of Congress to enact legislation under the por4 tions of section 8 of article I of the Constitution relating

5 to providing for the general welfare and to regulation of

6 commerce among the several States, and under section 5

7 of the 14th amendment to the Constitution—

8 (1) to promote the national interest in reducing

9 domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault,

10 and stalking by enabling victims of domestic or sex11 ual violence to maintain the financial independence

12 necessary to leave abusive situations, achieve safety,

13 and minimize the physical and emotional injuries

14 from domestic or sexual violence, and to reduce the

15 devastating economic consequences of domestic or

16 sexual violence to employers and employees;

17 (2) to promote the national interest in ensuring

18 that victims of domestic or sexual violence can re19 cover from and cope with the effects of such vio20 lence, and participate in criminal and civil justice

21 processes, without fear of adverse economic con22 sequences from their employers;

23 (3) to ensure that victims of domestic or sexual

24 violence can recover from and cope with the effects

25 of such violence, and participate in criminal and civil
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1 justice processes, without fear of adverse economic

2 consequences with respect to public benefits;

3 (4) to promote the purposes of the 14th amend4 ment by addressing the failure of existing laws to

5 protect the employment rights of victims of domestic

6 or sexual violence, by protecting the civil and eco7 nomic rights of victims of domestic or sexual vio8 lence, and by furthering the equal opportunity of

9 women for economic self-sufficiency and employment

10 free from discrimination;

11 (5) to minimize the negative impact on inter12 state commerce from dislocations of employees and

13 harmful effects on productivity, employment, health

14 care costs, and employer costs, caused by domestic

15 or sexual violence, including intentional efforts to

16 frustrate women’s ability to participate in employ17 ment and interstate commerce; and

18 (6) to accomplish the purposes described in

19 paragraphs (1) through (5) by prohibiting employers

20 from discriminating against actual or perceived vic21 tims of domestic or sexual violence, in a manner that

22 accommodates the legitimate interests of employers

23 and protects the safety of all persons in the work24 place.
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1 SEC. 303. PROHIBITED DISCRIMINATORY ACTS.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—An employer shall not fail to hire,

3 refuse to hire, discharge, or harass any individual, or oth4 erwise discriminate against any individual with respect to

5 the compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of em6 ployment of the individual (including retaliation in any

7 form or manner), and a public agency shall not deny, re8 duce, or terminate the benefits of, otherwise sanction, or

9 harass any individual, or otherwise discriminate against

10 any individual with respect to the amount, terms, or condi11 tions of public assistance of the individual (including retal12 iation in any form or manner), because—

13 (1) the individual involved—

14 (A) is or is perceived to be a victim of do15 mestic or sexual violence;

16 (B) attended, participated in, prepared for,

17 or requested leave to attend, participate in, or

18 prepare for, a criminal or civil court proceeding

19 relating to an incident of domestic or sexual vi20 olence of which the individual, or the son or

21 daughter or parent of the individual, was a vic22 tim; or

23 (C) requested an adjustment to a job

24 structure, workplace facility, or work require25 ment, including a transfer, reassignment, or

26 modified schedule, leave, a changed telephone
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1 number or seating assignment, installation of a

2 lock, or implementation of a safety procedure,

3 in response to actual or threatened domestic or

4 sexual violence, regardless of whether the re5 quest was granted; or

6 (2) the workplace is disrupted or threatened by

7 the action of a person whom the individual states

8 has committed or threatened to commit domestic or

9 sexual violence against the individual, or the individ10 ual’s son or daughter or parent.

11 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

12 (1) DISCRIMINATE.—The term ‘‘discriminate’’,

13 used with respect to the terms, conditions, or privi14 leges of employment or with respect to the terms or

15 conditions of public assistance, includes not making

16 a reasonable accommodation to the known limita17 tions of an otherwise qualified individual—

18 (A) who is a victim of domestic or sexual

19 violence;

20 (B) who is—

21 (i) an applicant or employee of the

22 employer (including a public agency); or

23 (ii) an applicant for or recipient of

24 public assistance from the public agency;

25 and
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1 (C) whose limitations resulted from cir2 cumstances relating to being a victim of domes3 tic or sexual violence;

4 unless the employer or public agency can dem5 onstrate that the accommodation would impose an

6 undue hardship on the operation of the employer or

7 public agency.

8 (2) QUALIFIED INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘quali9 fied individual’’ means—

10 (A) in the case of an applicant or employee

11 described in paragraph (1)(B)(i), an individual

12 who, with or without reasonable accommoda13 tion, can perform the essential functions of the

14 employment position that such individual holds

15 or desires; or

16 (B) in the case of an applicant or recipient

17 described in paragraph (1)(B)(ii), an individual

18 who, with or without reasonable accommoda19 tion, can satisfy the essential requirements of

20 the program providing the public assistance

21 that the individual receives or desires.

22 (3) REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION.—The term

23 ‘‘reasonable accommodation’’ may include an adjust24 ment to a job structure, workplace facility, or work

25 requirement, including a transfer, reassignment, or
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1 modified schedule, leave, a changed telephone num2 ber or seating assignment, installation of a lock, or

3 implementation of a safety procedure, in response to

4 actual or threatened domestic or sexual violence.

5 (4) UNDUE HARDSHIP.—

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘undue hard7 ship’’ means an action requiring significant dif8 ficulty or expense, when considered in light of

9 the factors set forth in subparagraph (B).

10 (B) FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED.—In de11 termining whether a reasonable accommodation

12 would impose an undue hardship on the oper13 ation of an employer or public agency, factors

14 to be considered include—

15 (i) the nature and cost of the reason16 able accommodation needed under this sec17 tion;

18 (ii) the overall financial resources of

19 the facility involved in the provision of the

20 reasonable accommodation, the number of

21 persons employed at such facility, the ef22 fect on expenses and resources, or the im23 pact otherwise of such accommodation on

24 the operation of the facility;
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1 (iii) the overall financial resources of

2 the employer or public agency, the overall

3 size of the business of an employer or pub4 lic agency with respect to the number of

5 employees of the employer or public agen6 cy, and the number, type, and location of

7 the facilities of an employer or public agen8 cy; and

9 (iv) the type of operation of the em10 ployer or public agency, including the com11 position, structure, and functions of the

12 workforce of the employer or public agen13 cy, the geographic separateness of the fa14 cility from the employer or public agency,

15 and the administrative or fiscal relation16 ship of the facility to the employer or pub17 lic agency.

18 SEC. 304. ENFORCEMENT.

19 (a) CIVIL ACTION BY INDIVIDUALS.—

20 (1) LIABILITY.—Any employer or public agency

21 that violates section 303 shall be liable to any indi22 vidual affected for—

23 (A) damages equal to the amount of

24 wages, salary, employment benefits, public as25 sistance, or other compensation denied or lost
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1 to such individual by reason of the violation,

2 and the interest on that amount calculated at

3 the prevailing rate;

4 (B) compensatory damages, including dam5 ages for future pecuniary losses, emotional

6 pain, suffering, inconvenience, mental anguish,

7 loss of enjoyment or life, and other nonpecu8 niary losses;

9 (C) such punitive damages, up to 3 times

10 the amount of actual damages sustained, as the

11 court described in paragraph (2) shall deter12 mine to be appropriate; and

13 (D) such equitable relief as may be appro14 priate, including employment, reinstatement,

15 and promotion.

16 (2) RIGHT OF ACTION.—An action to recover

17 the damages or equitable relief prescribed in para18 graph (1) may be maintained against any employer

19 or public agency in any Federal or State court of

20 competent jurisdiction by any 1 or more individuals

21 described in section 303.

22 (b) ACTION BY DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.—The At23 torney General may bring a civil action in any Federal

24 or State court of competent jurisdiction to recover the

25 damages or equitable relief described in subsection (a)(1).
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1 SEC. 305. ATTORNEY’S FEES.

2 Section 722(b) of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C.

3 1988(b)) is amended by inserting ‘‘the Victims’ Employ4 ment Sustainability Act,’’ after ‘‘title VI of the Civil

5 Rights Act of 1964,’’.

6 TITLE IV—VICTIMS OF ABUSE

7 INSURANCE PROTECTION

8 SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE.

9 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Victims of Abuse In10 surance Protection Act’’.

11 SEC. 402. DEFINITIONS.

12 In this title:

13 (1) ABUSE.—The term ‘‘abuse’’ means the oc14 currence of 1 or more of the following acts by a cur15 rent or former household or family member, intimate

16 partner, or caretaker:

17 (A) Attempting to cause or causing an18 other person bodily injury, physical harm, sub19 stantial emotional distress, psychological trau20 ma, rape, sexual assault, or involuntary sexual

21 intercourse.

22 (B) Engaging in a course of conduct or re23 peatedly committing acts toward another per24 son, including following the person without

25 proper authority and under circumstances that
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1 place the person in reasonable fear of bodily in2 jury or physical harm.

3 (C) Subjecting another person to false im4 prisonment or kidnapping.

5 (D) Attempting to cause or causing dam6 age to property so as to intimidate or attempt

7 to control the behavior of another person.

8 (2) HEALTH CARRIER.—The term ‘‘health car9 rier’’ means a person that contracts or offers to con10 tract on a risk-assuming basis to provide, deliver, ar11 range for, pay for, or reimburse any of the cost of

12 health care services, including a sickness and acci13 dent insurance company, a health maintenance orga14 nization, a nonprofit hospital and health service cor15 poration or any other entity providing a plan of

16 health insurance, health benefits or health services.

17 (3) INSURED.—The term ‘‘insured’’ means a

18 party named on a policy, certificate, or health ben19 efit plan, including an individual, corporation, part20 nership, association, unincorporated organization, or

21 any similar entity, as the person with legal rights to

22 the benefits provided by the policy, certificate, or

23 health benefit plan. For group insurance, such term

24 includes a person who is a beneficiary covered by a

25 group policy, certificate, or health benefit plan. For
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1 life insurance, the term refers to the person whose

2 life is covered under an insurance policy.

3 (4) INSURER.—The term ‘‘insurer’’ means any

4 person, reciprocal exchange, inter insurer, Lloyds in5 surer, fraternal benefit society, or other legal entity

6 engaged in the business of insurance, including

7 agents, brokers, adjusters, and third-party adminis8 trators. The term also includes health carriers,

9 health benefit plans, and life, disability, and prop10 erty and casualty insurers.

11 (5) POLICY.—The term ‘‘policy’’ means a con12 tract of insurance, certificate, indemnity, suretyship,

13 or annuity issued, proposed for issuance or intended

14 for issuance by an insurer, including endorsements

15 or riders to an insurance policy or contract.

16 (6) SUBJECT OF ABUSE.—The term ‘‘subject of

17 abuse’’ means—

18 (A) a person against whom an act of abuse

19 has been directed;

20 (B) a person who has prior or current in21 juries, illnesses, or disorders that resulted from

22 abuse; or

23 (C) a person who seeks, may have sought,

24 or had reason to seek medical or psychological
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1 treatment for abuse, protection, court-ordered

2 protection, or shelter from abuse.

3 SEC. 403. DISCRIMINATORY ACTS PROHIBITED.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—No insurer may, directly or indi5 rectly, engage in any of the following acts or practices on

6 the basis that the applicant or insured, or any person em7 ployed by the applicant or insured or with whom the appli8 cant or insured is known to have a relationship or associa9 tion, is, has been, or may be the subject of abuse or has

10 incurred or may incur abuse-related claims:

11 (1) Denying, refusing to issue, renew or reissue,

12 or canceling or otherwise terminating an insurance

13 policy or health benefit plan.

14 (2) Restricting, excluding, or limiting insurance

15 coverage for losses or denying a claim, except as oth16 erwise permitted or required by State laws relating

17 to life insurance beneficiaries.

18 (3) Adding a premium differential to any insur19 ance policy or health benefit plan.

20 (b) PROHIBITION ON LIMITATION OF CLAIMS.—No

21 insurer may, directly or indirectly, deny or limit payment

22 of a claim incurred by an innocent insured as a result of

23 abuse.

24 (c) PROHIBITION ON TERMINATION.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—No insurer or health carrier

2 may terminate health coverage for a subject of abuse

3 because coverage was originally issued in the name

4 of the abuser and the abuser has divorced, separated

5 from, or lost custody of the subject of abuse or the

6 abuser’s coverage has terminated voluntarily or in7 voluntarily and the subject of abuse does not qualify

8 for an extension of coverage under part 6 of subtitle

9 B of title I of the Employee Retirement Income Se10 curity Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1161 et seq.) or sec11 tion 4980B of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

12 (2) PAYMENT OF PREMIUMS.—Nothing in para13 graph (1) shall be construed to prohibit the insurer

14 from requiring that the subject of abuse pay the full

15 premium for the subject’s coverage under the health

16 plan if the requirements are applied to all insured of

17 the health carrier.

18 (3) EXCEPTION.—An insurer may terminate

19 group coverage to which this subsection applies after

20 the continuation coverage period required by this

21 subsection has been in force for 18 months if it of22 fers conversion to an equivalent individual plan.

23 (4) CONTINUATION COVERAGE.—The continu24 ation of health coverage required by this subsection

25 shall be satisfied by any extension of coverage under
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1 part 6 of subtitle B of title I of the Employee Re2 tirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C.

3 1161 et seq.) or section 4980B of the Internal Rev4 enue Code of 1986 provided to a subject of abuse

5 and is not intended to be in addition to any exten6 sion of coverage otherwise provided for under such

7 part 6 or section 4980B.

8 (d) USE OF INFORMATION.—

9 (1) LIMITATION.—

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—In order to protect the

11 safety and privacy of subjects of abuse, no per12 son employed by or contracting with an insurer

13 or health benefit plan may—

14 (i) use, disclose, or transfer informa15 tion relating to abuse status, acts of abuse,

16 abuse-related medical conditions or the ap17 plicant’s or insured’s status as a family

18 member, employer, associate, or person in

19 a relationship with a subject of abuse for

20 any purpose unrelated to the direct provi21 sion of health care services unless such

22 use, disclosure, or transfer is required by

23 an order of an entity with authority to reg24 ulate insurance or an order of a court of

25 competent jurisdiction; or
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1 (ii) disclose or transfer information

2 relating to an applicant’s or insured’s mail3 ing address or telephone number or the

4 mailing address and telephone number of a

5 shelter for subjects of abuse, unless such

6 disclosure or transfer—

7 (I) is required in order to provide

8 insurance coverage; and

9 (II) does not have the potential

10 to endanger the safety of a subject of

11 abuse.

12 (B) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in

13 this paragraph may be construed to limit or

14 preclude a subject of abuse from obtaining the

15 subject’s own insurance records from an in16 surer.

17 (2) AUTHORITY OF SUBJECT OF ABUSE.—A

18 subject of abuse, at the absolute discretion of the

19 subject of abuse, may provide evidence of abuse to

20 an insurer for the limited purpose of facilitating

21 treatment of an abuse-related condition or dem22 onstrating that a condition is abuse-related. Nothing

23 in this paragraph shall be construed as authorizing

24 an insurer or health carrier to disregard such pro25 vided evidence.
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1 SEC. 404. INSURANCE PROTOCOLS FOR SUBJECTS OF

2 ABUSE.

3 Insurers shall develop and adhere to written policies

4 specifying procedures to be followed by employees, con5 tractors, producers, agents, and brokers for the purpose

6 of protecting the safety and privacy of a subject of abuse

7 and otherwise implementing this title when taking an ap8 plication, investigating a claim, or taking any other action

9 relating to a policy or claim involving a subject of abuse.

10 SEC. 405. REASONS FOR ADVERSE ACTIONS.

11 An insurer that takes an action that adversely affects

12 a subject of abuse, shall advise the subject of abuse appli13 cant or insured of the specific reasons for the action in

14 writing. For purposes of this section, reference to general

15 underwriting practices or guidelines shall not constitute

16 a specific reason.

17 SEC. 406. LIFE INSURANCE.

18 Nothing in this title shall be construed to prohibit

19 a life insurer from declining to issue a life insurance policy

20 if the applicant or prospective owner of the policy is or

21 would be designated as a beneficiary of the policy, and

22 if—

23 (1) the applicant or prospective owner of the

24 policy lacks an insurable interest in the insured; or

25 (2) the applicant or prospective owner of the

26 policy is known, on the basis of police or court
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1 records, to have committed an act of abuse against

2 the proposed insured.

3 SEC. 407. SUBROGATION WITHOUT CONSENT PROHIBITED.

4 Subrogation of claims resulting from abuse is prohib5 ited without the informed consent of the subject of abuse.

6 SEC. 408. ENFORCEMENT.

7 (a) FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Trade Commis9 sion shall have the power to examine and investigate

10 any insurer to determine whether such insurer has

11 been or is engaged in any act or practice prohibited

12 by this title.

13 (2) CEASE AND DESIST ORDERS.—If the Fed14 eral Trade Commission determines an insurer has

15 been or is engaged in any act or practice prohibited

16 by this title, the Commission may take action

17 against such insurer by the issuance of a cease and

18 desist order as if the insurer was in violation of sec19 tion 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act. Such

20 cease and desist order may include any individual re21 lief warranted under the circumstances, including

22 temporary, preliminary, and permanent injunctive

23 and compensatory relief.

24 (b) PRIVATE CAUSE OF ACTION.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—An applicant or insured who

2 believes that the applicant or insured has been ad3 versely affected by an act or practice of an insurer

4 in violation of this title may maintain an action

5 against the insurer in a Federal or State court of

6 original jurisdiction.

7 (2) RELIEF.—Upon proof of such conduct by a

8 preponderance of the evidence in an action described

9 in paragraph (1), the court may award appropriate

10 relief, including temporary, preliminary, and perma11 nent injunctive relief and compensatory and punitive

12 damages, as well as the costs of suit and reasonable

13 fees for the aggrieved individual’s attorneys and ex14 pert witnesses.

15 (3) STATUTORY DAMAGES.—With respect to

16 compensatory damages in an action described in

17 paragraph (1), the aggrieved individual may elect, at

18 any time prior to the rendering of final judgment, to

19 recover in lieu of actual damages, an award of statu20 tory damages in the amount of $5,000 for each vio21 lation.

22 SEC. 409. EFFECTIVE DATE.

23 This title shall apply with respect to any action taken

24 on or after the date of enactment of this Act.
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1 TITLE V—WORKPLACE SAFETY

2 PROGRAM TAX CREDIT

3 SEC. 501. CREDIT FOR COSTS TO EMPLOYERS OF IMPLE4 MENTING WORKPLACE SAFETY PROGRAMS.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart D of part IV of sub6 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of

7 1986 (relating to business related credits) is amended by

8 adding at the end the following:

9 ‘‘SEC. 45G. WORKPLACE SAFETY PROGRAM CREDIT.

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of section 38, the

11 workplace safety program credit determined under this

12 section for the taxable year is, for any employer, an

13 amount equal to 40 percent of the domestic and sexual

14 violence safety and education costs paid or incurred by

15 such employer during the taxable year.

16 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section—

17 ‘‘(1) DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE SAFETY

18 AND EDUCATION COST.—

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘domestic

20 and sexual violence safety and education cost’

21 means any cost certified by the Secretary of

22 Labor to the Secretary as being for the purpose

23 of—

24 ‘‘(i) ensuring the safety of employees

25 from domestic or sexual violence,
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1 ‘‘(ii) providing assistance to employees

2 and the spouses and dependents of employ3 ees with respect to domestic or sexual vio4 lence,

5 ‘‘(iii) providing legal or medical serv6 ices to employees and the spouses and de7 pendents of employees subjected to, or at

8 risk from, domestic or sexual violence,

9 ‘‘(iv) educating employees about the

10 issue of domestic or sexual violence, or

11 ‘‘(v) implementing human resource or

12 personnel policies initiated to protect em13 ployees from domestic or sexual violence or

14 to support employees who have been vic15 tims of domestic or sexual violence.

16 ‘‘(B) TYPES OF COSTS.—Such term in17 cludes costs certified by the Secretary of Labor

18 to the Secretary as being for the purpose of—

19 ‘‘(i) the hiring of new security per20 sonnel in order to address domestic or sex21 ual violence,

22 ‘‘(ii) the creation of buddy systems or

23 escort systems for walking employees to

24 parking lots, parked cars, subway stations,
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1 or bus stops, in order to address domestic

2 or sexual violence,

3 ‘‘(iii) the purchase or installation of

4 new security equipment, including surveil5 lance equipment, lighting fixtures, cardkey

6 access systems, and identification systems,

7 in order to address domestic or sexual vio8 lence,

9 ‘‘(iv) the establishment of an employee

10 assistance line or other employee assist11 ance services, in order to address domestic

12 or sexual violence, for the use of individual

13 employees, including counseling or referral

14 services undertaken in consultation and co15 ordination with national, State, or local do16 mestic violence coalitions, sexual assault

17 coalitions, domestic violence programs, or

18 sexual assault programs,

19 ‘‘(v) the retention of an attorney to

20 provide legal services to employees seeking

21 restraining orders or other legal recourse

22 from domestic or sexual violence,

23 ‘‘(vi) the establishment of medical

24 services addressing the medical needs of
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1 employees who are victims of domestic or

2 sexual violence,

3 ‘‘(vii) the retention of a financial ex4 pert or an accountant to provide financial

5 counseling to employees seeking to escape

6 from domestic or sexual violence,

7 ‘‘(viii) the establishment of an edu8 cation program for employees, consisting of

9 seminars or training sessions about domes10 tic or sexual violence undertaken in con11 sultation and coordination with national,

12 State, or local domestic violence coalitions,

13 sexual assault coalitions, domestic violence

14 programs, or sexual assault programs,

15 ‘‘(ix) studies of the cost, impact, or

16 extent of domestic or sexual violence at the

17 employer’s place of business, if such stud18 ies are made available to the public and

19 protect the identity of employees included

20 in the study,

21 ‘‘(x) the publication of a regularly dis22 seminated newsletter or other regularly

23 disseminated educational materials about

24 domestic or sexual violence,
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1 ‘‘(xi) the implementation of leave poli2 cies for the purpose of allowing or accom3 modating the needs of victims of domestic

4 or sexual violence to pursue counseling,

5 legal assistance, or safety planning, includ6 ing leave from work to attend meetings

7 with attorneys, to give evidentiary state8 ments or depositions, and to attend hear9 ings or trials in court,

10 ‘‘(xii) the implementation of flexible

11 work policies for the purpose of allowing or

12 accommodating the needs of employees

13 who are victims of domestic or sexual vio14 lence, or employees at risk with respect to

15 such crimes, to avoid assailants,

16 ‘‘(xiii) the implementation of transfer

17 policies for the purpose of allowing or ac18 commodating the needs of employees sub19 jected to domestic or sexual violence to

20 change office locations within the company

21 in order to avoid assailants or to allow the

22 transfer of an employee who has per23 petrated domestic or sexual violence in

24 order to protect the victim, including pay25 ment of costs for the transfer and reloca-
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1 tion of an employee to another city, coun2 ty, State, or country for the purpose of

3 maintaining an employee’s safety from do4 mestic or sexual violence, or

5 ‘‘(xiv) the provision of any of the serv6 ices described in clauses (iv) through (viii)

7 to the spouses or dependents of employees.

8 ‘‘(C) NOTIFICATION OF POSSIBLE TAX

9 CONSEQUENCES.—In no event shall any cost for

10 goods or services which may be included in the

11 income of any employee receiving or benefiting

12 from such goods or services be treated as a do13 mestic and sexual violence safety and education

14 cost unless the employer notifies the employee

15 in writing of the possibility of such inclusion.

16 ‘‘(2) DOMESTIC OR SEXUAL VIOLENCE.—The

17 term ‘domestic or sexual violence’ means domestic

18 violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking,

19 as those terms are defined in section 3 of the Vic20 tims’ Economic Security and Safety Act.

21 ‘‘(3) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE COALITION; SEXUAL

22 ASSAULT COALITION.—The terms ‘domestic violence

23 coalition’ and ‘sexual assault coalition’ have the

24 meanings given the terms in section 3 of the Vic25 tims’ Economic Security and Safety Act.
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1 ‘‘(4) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘employee’ means

2 a person who is an employee, as defined in section

3 3(9) of the Victims’ Economic Security and Safety

4 Act, except that the person may be employed by any

5 employer described in paragraph (5).

6 ‘‘(5) EMPLOYER.—The term ‘employer’ means

7 a person who is an employer, as defined in section

8 3(10) of such Act, determined without regard to the

9 number of individuals employed.

10 ‘‘(c) COORDINATION WITH OTHER PROVISIONS.—No

11 credit or deduction shall be allowed under any other provi12 sion of this title for any amount for which a credit is al13 lowed under this section.’’.

14 (b) TREATMENT AS GENERAL BUSINESS CREDIT.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (b) of section 38

16 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to

17 general business credit) is amended by striking

18 ‘‘plus’’ at the end of paragraph (14), by striking the

19 period at the end of paragraph (15) and inserting ‘‘,

20 plus’’, and by adding at the end the following:

21 ‘‘(16) the workplace safety program credit de22 termined under section 45G.’’.

23 (2) TRANSITIONAL RULE FOR CARRYBACKS.—

24 Subsection (d) of section 39 of such Code (relating
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1 to transitional rules) is amended by adding at the

2 end the following:

3 ‘‘(11) NO CARRYBACK OF SECTION 45G CREDIT

4 BEFORE EFFECTIVE DATE.—No portion of the un5 used business credit for any taxable year which is

6 attributable to the workplace safety program credit

7 determined under section 45G may be carried back

8 to a taxable year beginning before January 1,

9 2002.’’.

10 (3) DEDUCTION FOR UNUSED CREDITS.—Sub11 section (c) of section 196 of such Code (relating to

12 deduction for certain unused business credits) is

13 amended by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph

14 (9), by striking the period at the end of paragraph

15 (10) and inserting ‘‘, and’’, and by adding at the

16 end the following:

17 ‘‘(11) the workplace safety program credit de18 termined under section 45G.’’.

19 (c) CREDIT NOT A DEFENSE IN LEGAL ACTIONS.—

20 The allowance of a credit under section 45G of the Inter21 nal Revenue Code of 1986 (as added by this section) shall

22 not absolve employers of their responsibilities under any

23 other law and shall not be construed as a defense to any

24 legal action (other than legal action by the Secretary of

25 the Treasury under such Code).
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1 (d) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections

2 for subpart D of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1

3 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by add4 ing at the end the following:

‘‘Sec. 45G. Workplace safety program credit.’’.

5 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

6 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after

7 December 31, 2001.

8 TITLE VI—NATIONAL CLEARING9 HOUSE ON DOMESTIC AND

10 SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN THE

11 WORKPLACE GRANT

12 SEC. 601. NATIONAL CLEARINGHOUSE ON DOMESTIC AND

13 SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN THE WORKPLACE

14 GRANT.

15 (a) AUTHORITY.—The Attorney General may award

16 a grant in accordance with this section to a private, non17 profit entity or tribal organization that meets the require18 ments of subsection (b), in order to provide for the estab19 lishment and operation of a national clearinghouse and re20 source center to provide information and assistance to em21 ployers, labor organizations, and advocates on behalf of

22 victims of domestic or sexual violence, in their efforts to

23 develop and implement appropriate responses to assist

24 those victims.
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1 (b) GRANTEES.—Each applicant for a grant under

2 this section shall submit to the Attorney General an appli3 cation, which shall—

4 (1) demonstrate that the applicant—

5 (A) has a nationally recognized expertise in

6 the area of domestic violence, dating violence,

7 sexual assault, and stalking, and a record of

8 commitment and quality responses to reduce

9 domestic violence, dating violence, sexual as10 sault, and stalking; and

11 (B) will provide matching funds from non12 Federal sources in an amount equal to not less

13 than 10 percent of the total amount of the

14 grant awarded under this section; and

15 (2) include a plan to maximize, to the extent

16 practicable, outreach to employers (including private

17 companies, as well as public entities such as univer18 sities, and State and local governments) in devel19 oping and implementing appropriate responses to as20 sist employees who are victims of domestic or sexual

21 violence.

22 (c) USE OF GRANT AMOUNT.—A grant under this

23 section may be used for staff salaries, travel expenses,

24 equipment, printing, and other reasonable expenses nec25 essary to assemble, maintain, and disseminate to employ-
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1 ers, labor organizations, and advocates described in sub2 section (a), information on and appropriate responses to

3 domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and

4 stalking, including—

5 (1) training to promote a better understanding

6 of appropriate assistance to employee victims;

7 (2) conferences and other educational opportu8 nities;

9 (3) development of protocols and model work10 place policies;

11 (4) employer- and union-sponsored victim serv12 ices and outreach counseling; and

13 (5) assessments of the workplace costs of do14 mestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and

15 stalking.

16 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

17 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section

18 $500,000 for each of fiscal years 2002 through 2006.

19 TITLE VII—SEVERABILITY

20 SEC. 701. SEVERABILITY.

21 If any provision of this Act, any amendment made

22 by this Act, or the application of such provision or amend23 ment to any person or circumstance is held to be unconsti24 tutional, the remainder of the provisions of this Act, the

25 amendments made by this Act, and the application of such
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1 provisions or amendments to any person or circumstance

2 shall not be affected.

Æ