III 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 537 

Supporting the National Sexual Assault Hotline and commending the Hotline 

for counseling and supporting more than 1,000,000 callers. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 20, 2006 

Mr. BIDEN (for himself and Mr. SPECTER) submitted the following resolution; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Supporting the National Sexual Assault Hotline and commending the Hotline for counseling and supporting more 

than 1,000,000 callers. 

Whereas it is estimated that a sexual assault occurs every 2.5 

minutes in the United States and more than 200,000 

people in the United States each year are victims of sexual assault; 

Whereas 1 of every 6 women and 1 of every 33 men in the 

United States have been victims of rape or attempted 

rape, according to the Department of Justice; 

Whereas the Uniform Crime Reports of the Federal Bureau 

of Investigation rank rape second only to murder in the 

hierarchy of violent crimes; 


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•SRES 537 IS 

Whereas research suggests that sexual assault victims who 

receive counseling are more likely to report the assault to 

the police and to participate in the prosecution of the offender; 

Whereas, in June 2006, the National Sexual Assault Hotline 

(referred to in this preamble as ‘‘Hotline’’) helped its 

1,000,000th caller; 

Whereas the Hotline operates 24 hours per day, 365 days per 

year, offering important, free, and confidential crisis 

intervention, support, information, and referrals for victims of sexual assault and their friends and families; 

Whereas the Hotline was created by the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (referred to in this preamble as 

‘‘RAINN’’), a non-profit corporation, the headquarters of 

which are located in Washington, D.C.; 

Whereas the Hotline answered its first call on July 27, 1994, 

and operated solely with private funds for the first 10 

years the Hotline was in existence; 

Whereas RAINN continues to operate the Hotline today, in 

partnership with 1,100 local rape crisis centers in the 50 

States and the District of Columbia and with over 10,000 

trained volunteers and staff, and in collaboration with 

coalitions against sexual assault in each of the 50 States; 

Whereas the Hotline helps an average of 11,000 people each 

month and in 2005 helped 137,039 women, men, and 

children across the Nation; 

Whereas the public education and outreach undertaken by 

RAINN and local rape crisis centers have increased public awareness of sexual violence and contributed to a 58- 

percent decline in crimes of sexual violence since 1993; 


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•SRES 537 IS 

Whereas the Hotline has experienced a significant increase in 

call volume as public awareness of sexual violence has 

grown, with calls to the Hotline increasing by 43 percent 

since 2003; 

Whereas millions of Americans have learned of the services 

available through the Hotline, thanks to the public service promotion contributed by every national broadcast television network, a dozen cable networks, and more than 

1,000 radio stations, newspapers, and magazines; and 

Whereas the Hotline serves as an outstanding example of a 

successful partnership between the Federal Government, 

the private sector, and individuals: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) supports the National Sexual Assault Hot3 line; and 

4 (2) commends the National Sexual Assault Hot5 line for counseling and supporting more than 

6 1,000,000 callers. 

Æ 


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