I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2395 
To promote the economic security and safety of victims of domestic violence, 
dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 21, 2007 
Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD (for herself, Mr. POE, Mr. MOORE of Kansas, Mr. 
MCDERMOTT, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. ALLEN, Ms. 
BERKLEY, Mr. HONDA, Mr. WYNN, Mr. JEFFERSON, and Mr. 
MCCOTTER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the Committees on 
Ways and Means and Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently 
determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provi-
sions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To promote the economic security and safety of victims of 
domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or 
stalking, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Security and Financial Empowerment (SAFE) Act’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Findings. 
Sec. 3. Definitions. 
TITLE I—ENTITLEMENT TO EMERGENCY LEAVE FOR ADDRESS-
ING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, DATING VIOLENCE, SEXUAL AS-
SAULT, OR STALKING 
Sec. 101. Purposes. 
Sec. 102. Entitlement to emergency leave for addressing domestic violence, dat-
ing violence, sexual assault, or stalking. 
Sec. 103. Existing leave usable for addressing domestic violence, dating vio-
lence, sexual assault, or stalking. 
Sec. 104. Emergency benefits. 
Sec. 105. Effect on other laws and employment benefits. 
Sec. 106. Regulations. 
Sec. 107. Conforming amendment. 
Sec. 108. 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. 
Sec. 306. Regulations. 
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—SEVERABILITY 
Sec. 501. Severability. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
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(1) Violence against women has been reported 
to be the leading cause of physical injury to women. 
Such violence has a devastating impact on women’s 
physical and emotional health, financial security, 
and ability to maintain their jobs, and thus impacts 
interstate commerce. 
(2) Victims of domestic violence, dating vio-
lence, sexual assault, and stalking are particularly 
vulnerable to changes in employment, pay, and bene-
fits, and as a result of their desperate need for eco-
nomic stability, are in particular need of legal pro-
tection. 
(3) The Bureau of National Affairs has esti-
mated that domestic violence costs United States 
employers 
between 
$3,000,000,000 
and 
$5,000,000,000 annually in lost time and produc-
tivity, while other reports have estimated the cost at 
between $5,800,000,000 and $13,000,000,000 annu-
ally. 
(4) United States medical costs for domestic vi-
olence have been estimated to be $31,000,000,000 
per year. The medical cost associated with each inci-
dent of domestic violence ranges from $387 to $948, 
including costs of health care and mental health 
services. 
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(5) Domestic violence crimes account for ap-
proximately 15 percent of total crime costs in the 
United States each year. 
(6)(A) According to the National Institute of 
Justice, crime costs an estimated $450,000,000,000 
annually in medical expenses, lost earnings, social 
service costs, pain, suffering, and reduced quality of 
life for victims, which harms the Nation’s produc-
tivity and drains the Nation’s resources. 
(B) 
Violent 
crime 
accounts 
for 
$426,000,000,000 per year of this amount. 
(C) Rape exacts the highest costs per victim of 
any 
criminal 
offense, 
and 
accounts 
for 
$127,000,000,000 per year of the amount described 
in subparagraph (A). 
(7) Violent crime results in wage losses equiva-
lent to 1 percent of all United States earnings, and 
causes 3 percent of the Nation’s medical spending 
and 14 percent of the Nation’s injury-related med-
ical spending. 
(8) Homicide is the leading cause of death for 
women on the job. Husbands, boyfriends, and ex- 
partners commit 15 percent of workplace homicides 
against women. 
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(9) According to a recent study by the National 
Institutes of Health and Centers for Disease Control 
and Prevention, each year there are 5,300,000 non- 
fatal violent victimizations committed by intimate 
partners against women. Female murder victims 
were substantially more likely than male murder vic-
tims to have been killed by an intimate partner. 
About 1⁄3 of female murder victims, and about 4 per-
cent of male murder victims, were killed by an inti-
mate partner. 
(10) Forty-nine percent of senior executives re-
cently surveyed said domestic violence has a harmful 
effect on their company’s productivity, 47 percent 
said domestic violence negatively affects attendance, 
and 44 percent said domestic violence increases 
health care costs. 
(11) Seventy-eight percent of human resources 
professionals consider partner violence a workplace 
issue. However, more than 70 percent of United 
States workplaces have no formal program or policy 
that addresses workplace violence, let alone domestic 
violence. In fact, only 4 percent of employers pro-
vided training on domestic violence. 
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