Text of US HB 9497 (2022)

I 117TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 9497 To prevent international violence against women, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES DECEMBER 12, 2022 Ms. SCHAKOWSKY (for herself, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. CARSON, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, Ms. PRESSLEY, Ms. LEE of California, Ms. MCCOL- LUM, Mr. FOSTER, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. RUSH, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. SCHNEIDER, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Ms. BOURDEAUX, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. ALLRED, Ms. TITUS, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. SOTO, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. TRONE, Mrs. DINGELL, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Ms. ROSS, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. BEYER, Ms. MAT- SUI, Mr. EVANS, Mr. CASE, Ms. JOHNSON of Texas, Ms. NORTON, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. PALLONE, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Mr. CONNOLLY, Ms. MENG, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Ms. STEVENS, Mr. JOHNSON of Geor- gia, Ms. OMAR, Ms. SPEIER, Mrs. HAYES, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. WEXTON, Mr. COOPER, Mr. COSTA, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. PANETTA, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, Mr. MORELLE, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. SARBANES, Mr. YARMUTH, Mr. VARGAS, Ms. CHU, Ms. BROWNLEY, Mr. KAHELE, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Miss RICE of New York, Ms. MANNING, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. DOGGETT, Ms. LOIS FRANKEL of Florida, Ms. ROY- BAL-ALLARD, Ms. DEAN, Ms. NEWMAN, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. POCAN, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsyl- vania, Mr. LEVIN of California, Mr. QUIGLEY, Ms. SHERRILL, Mr. JONES, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Mrs. TORRES of California, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. WELCH, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. RUIZ, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. TORRES of New York, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Mr. KIND, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York, Mrs. CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Ms. BROWN of Ohio, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. COHEN, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. LIEU, Ms. SEWELL, Mr. SUOZZI, Mr. O’HALLERAN, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. CARTER of Louisiana, Mr. KEATING, and Ms. CLARKE of New York) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 9497 IH A BILL To prevent international violence against women, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘International Violence Against Women Act of 2022’’. 5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 6 this Act is as follows: 7 Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents. Sec. 2. Findings. Sec. 3. Statement of policy. Sec. 4. Definitions. TITLE I—STRATEGY, POLICY, AND PROGRAMS Sec. 101. United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Vi- olence Globally. Sec. 102. Implementation of the United States Strategy to Prevent and Re- spond to Gender-Based Violence Globally. Sec. 103. Monitoring the United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence Globally. TITLE II—OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY Sec. 201. Office of Global Women’s Issues. Sec. 202. Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment. Sec. 203. Briefing and assessment. Sec. 204. Addressing violence against women and girls in humanitarian relief, peacekeeping, conflict, and postconflict settings. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 8 Congress makes the following findings: 9 (1) An estimated one out of every three women 10 throughout the world will be beaten, coerced into 11 sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime. 12 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 9497 IH (2) Up to 70 percent of women in some coun- 1 tries report experiencing gender-based violence at 2 some point in their lives. 3 (3) Intimate partner violence is the most preva- 4 lent form of violence against women, preventing 5 them from playing more active roles in the social, 6 economic, and political development of their commu- 7 nities. 8 (4) Sexual violence among adolescents and pre- 9 adolescents is alarmingly high. National surveys in 10 Swaziland, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Haiti 11 have found that between 28 and 38 percent of girls 12 and between 9 and 18 percent of boys report experi- 13 encing sexual violence before reaching 18 years of 14 age. 15 (5) Adult male respondents in six countries who 16 had experienced violence as children were signifi- 17 cantly more likely to report perpetrating intimate 18 partner violence themselves according to the Inter- 19 national Men and Gender Equality Survey dataset. 20 Analysis by the International Center for Research on 21 Women further shows that men who witnessed vio- 22 lence against their mothers are consistently and sig- 23 nificantly more likely to report perpetrating sexual 24 violence. Further, sexually aggressive behaviors start 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 9497 IH young for these men, and overlap significantly with 1 other forms of physical violence. 2 (6) Gender-based violence harms economies and 3 the workers that fuel them. Despite under-reporting, 4 striking statistics document prevalent forms of gen- 5 der-based violence globally that affect the world of 6 work. Worldwide, women are concentrated in low- 7 wage, insecure jobs in workplaces where they lack 8 bargaining power, protections against gender-based 9 violence, safe and confidential reporting systems, re- 10 course to justice, and access to legal, medical, and 11 psychosocial services. 12 (7) Women living in poverty are particularly 13 vulnerable to gender-based violence. Lack of eco- 14 nomic opportunities often compel women to use des- 15 perate and dangerous means to provide for them- 16 selves and their families, risking significant exposure 17 to sexual exploitation and abuse. These women often 18 cannot afford critical social and medical services. 19 (8) Research conducted in India, Colombia, 20 South Africa, and Uganda indicates that when 21 women have greater control of assets, they are less 22 likely to experience intimate partner violence. Addi- 23 tionally, when women participate in the economy, 24 they are able to develop a wider support network, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 9497 IH which allows them to more easily escape intimate 1 partner violence. 2 (9) Gender-based violence impacts livelihoods 3 and food security by reducing work capacity and 4 productivity, including the ability to grow food for 5 consumption. Studies have shown that women af- 6 fected by gender-based violence are exposed to ill- 7 nesses and injuries that hamper their ability to work 8 productively and care for their families. Diminished 9 food production consequently increases hunger and 10 women’s vulnerability to further violence. 11 (10) Country studies indicate that the risk of 12 HIV among women who have experienced violence 13 may be up to three times higher than among those 14 who have not experienced violence. The World 15 Health Organization found that women who experi- 16 ence intimate partner violence are at more than 50 17 percent greater risk of HIV infection, and in some 18 instances their risk of HIV infection increases four- 19 fold. Women living with HIV are more likely to ex- 20 perience violence than other women, and fear of vio- 21 lence can prevent women from accessing HIV/AIDS 22 information and receiving treatment and counseling. 23 (11) Addressing gender norms and inequities is 24 essential to reducing HIV risk and increasing access 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 9497 IH to HIV prevention, care, and treatment services for 1 women and men. 2 (12) Prevalence of sexual and physical violence 3 is higher among persons with disabilities, particu- 4 larly for adolescents and intimate partners with dis- 5 abilities, and for men and women with intellectual 6 impairments living in institutions. The World Health 7 Organization reports that rates of gender-based vio- 8 lence are between 4 and 10 times greater among 9 persons with disabilities compared to non-disabled 10 persons. 11 (13) Displaced, refugee, and stateless women 12 and girls in humanitarian emergencies, conflict set- 13 tings, and natural disasters face extreme violence 14 and threats, including— 15 (A) being forced to exchange sex for food 16 and humanitarian supplies; and 17 (B) being at increased risk of rape, sexual 18 exploitation, and abuse. 19 (14) Rape and sexual assault against women 20 and girls are used to torture, intimidate, and ter- 21 rorize communities. Rape and sexual assault are 22 used as tools of war in conflict zones, including the 23 Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Syria, Af- 24 ghanistan, El Salvador, and South Sudan. UNFPA, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 9497 IH the United Nation’s reproductive health and rights 1 agency, leads the Gender Based Violence Area of 2 Responsibility, which is responsible for global coordi- 3 nation and collaboration on GBV prevention and re- 4 sponse in humanitarian settings and is a leading 5 provider of post-rape care and other reproductive 6 health services and commodities in humanitarian 7 settings. 8 (15) Child and forced marriage of girls— 9 (A) is a harmful practice that deprives 10 girls of their dignity and rights and creates bar- 11 riers to development for communities and coun- 12 tries; 13 (B) is projected to affect more than 14 150,000,000 girls who will become brides be- 15 tween 2019 and 2030; 16 (C) can prematurely end girls’ education, 17 increase vulnerability to gender-based violence, 18 and significantly raise the risk of maternal and 19 infant morbidity or mortality, including the risk 20 of obstetric fistula and sexually transmitted dis- 21 eases, including HIV/AIDS; 22 (D) is perpetuated by poverty, a lack of 23 educational or employment opportunities for 24 girls, a lack of legal policies and enforcement of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 9497 IH laws, and religious, cultural, and social factors 1 related to girls’ perceived lack of value, factors 2 which become particularly acute in conflict and 3 disaster settings where fears of sexual violence 4 and overstretched coping mechanisms often 5 drive child and forced marriage; and 6 (E) child marriage is estimated to con- 7 tribute, on average, to a loss in earnings of 8 about nine percent for women who married 9 early, which translates into a loss of about one 10 percent in earnings for the entire labor force 11 when factoring in all working adults. 12 (16) Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/ 13 C) is carried out most often on girls between infancy 14 and 15 years of age and has impacted more than 15 200,000,000 girls and women who are alive today. 16 FGM/C can cause long-term health problems, includ- 17 ing infertility, complications in childbirth, and in- 18 creased risk of newborn deaths. Mental health is one 19 of the least explored domains of impact of gender- 20 based violence; indeed, self-harm and suicide is the 21 leading cause of death globally for adolescent girls 22 aged 15–19. 23 (17) World Bank data shows that gender in- 24 equality directly corresponds to increased levels of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 9497 IH political and economic instability within states. Gen- 1 der-based violence impedes women’s meaningful par- 2 ticipation in social, political, and economic spheres, 3 which is essential to the stability and democratiza- 4 tion of a country. Since women disproportionately 5 experience gender-based violence during conflict and 6 post-conflict reconstruction, they can play a pivotal 7 role in preventing, mitigating, and resolving conflict, 8 and countering extremism. 9 (18) Gender-based violence is a contributing 10 factor to human trafficking. Experts in the field 11 have reported that women and girls who have experi- 12 enced gender-based violence and live in societies that 13 tolerate severe gender discrimination appear to be 14 more vulnerable to being trafficked. Comprehensive 15 efforts to reduce human trafficking must include ef- 16 forts to prevent and respond to gender-based vio- 17 lence due to the intertwined relationship of the two 18 crimes. 19 (19) Health services are among the first places 20 survivors of violence seek assistance. Health focused 21 nongovernmental organizations and United Nations 22 agencies like UNFPA, the Reproductive Health and 23 Rights Agency, has critical opportunities to reach af- 24 fected women and girls. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 9497 IH (20) Gender-based violence also manifests on- 1 line; gender-based cyberviolence is a growing con- 2 cern, with women and girls disproportionately af- 3 fected and targeted based on their appearance, activ- 4 ism and sexuality. 5 (21) Taking meaningful action to address gen- 6 der-based violence is an imperative acknowledgment 7 of a woman’s agency and personal right to leading 8 a dignified life. 9 (22) Addressing gender norms and inequities is 10 essential to reducing HIV risk and increasing access 11 to HIV prevention, care, and treatment services for 12 women and men. 13 SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 14 It is the policy of the United States— 15 (1) to take effective action to prevent and re- 16 spond to violence against women and girls around 17 the world as a matter of basic human rights and to 18 promote gender equality, economic growth, and im- 19 proved public health; 20 (2) to systematically integrate and coordinate 21 efforts to prevent and respond to violence against 22 women and girls internationally into United States 23 foreign policy and foreign assistance programs, in- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 9497 IH cluding peace-building efforts and humanitarian re- 1 lief and recovery; 2 (3) to support and build local capacity in devel- 3 oping countries, including the capacity of govern- 4 ments at all levels and nongovernmental organiza- 5 tions, especially women-led organizations to prevent 6 and respond to violence against women and girls; 7 (4) to consult, cooperate, coordinate, and col- 8 laborate with a wide variety of nongovernmental 9 partners with demonstrated experience in preventing 10 and responding to violence against women and girls, 11 including faith-based organizations and women-led 12 organizations; 13 (5) to employ a multisectoral approach to pre- 14 venting and responding to violence against women 15 and girls internationally, including activities in the 16 economic, education, health, nutrition, legal, and ju- 17 dicial sectors; 18 (6) to work at all levels, from the individual to 19 the family, community, local, national, and inter- 20 national levels, to prevent and respond to violence 21 against women and girls around the world; 22 (7) to enhance training by United States per- 23 sonnel of professional foreign military and police 24 forces and judicial officials, including specific and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 9497 IH thorough instruction on preventing and responding 1 to violence against women and girls around the 2 world; 3 (8) to engage men and boys as partners, as an 4 essential element of making sustained reductions in 5 violence against women and girls; 6 (9) to include the prevention of child and forced 7 marriage as an important part of United States 8 Government efforts to prevent violence against girls 9 and promote gender equality and global health; 10 (10) to require that all United States contrac- 11 tors and grantees establish appropriate policies and 12 take effective measures to prevent violence against 13 women and girls and sexual exploitation and abuse 14 within their workforce; 15 (11) to exert sustained international leadership 16 to prevent and respond to violence against women 17 and girls, including in bilateral and multilateral fora; 18 and 19 (12) to implement the United States Strategy 20 to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence 21 Globally. 22 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 23 In this Act: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 9497 IH (1) AMBASSADOR-AT-LARGE.—The term ‘‘Am- 1 bassador-at-Large’’ means the Ambassador-at-Large 2 for Global Women’s Issues at the Department of 3 State appointed by the President pursuant to section 4 201(a). 5 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT- 6 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com- 7 mittees’’ means— 8 (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and 9 the Committee on Appropriations of the House 10 of Representatives; and 11 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations 12 and the Committee on Appropriations of the 13 Senate. 14 (3) GENDER ANALYSIS.—The term ‘‘gender 15 analysis’’ means the examination of the differential 16 impact of policies on different genders. 17 (4) GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE.—The term 18 ‘‘gender-based violence’’— 19 (A) means any harmful threat or act di- 20 rected at an individual or group based on actual 21 or perceived biological sex, gender identity or 22 expression, sexual orientation, or lack of adher- 23 ence to varying socially constructed norms 24 around masculinity and femininity; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 14 •HR 9497 IH (B) is rooted in structural gender inequal- 1 ities, patriarchy, and power imbalances; and 2 (C) includes the use or threat of physical, 3 psychological, sexual, economic, legal, political, 4 social and other forms of control or abuse. 5 (5) OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Office’’ means the Of- 6 fice of Global Women’s Issues established by the 7 Secretary of State pursuant to section 201(a). 8 (6) SENIOR COORDINATOR.—The term ‘‘Senior 9 Coordinator’’ means the Senior Coordinator for Gen- 10 der Equality and Women’s Empowerment at the 11 United States Agency for International Development 12 appointed pursuant to section 202. 13 (7) VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS.— 14 The term ‘‘violence against women and girls’’— 15 (A) means any act of violence against 16 women or girls that results in, or is likely to re- 17 sult in, physical, sexual, or psychological harm 18 or suffering to women or girls, including threats 19 of such acts, coercion, or arbitrary deprivations 20 of liberty, whether occurring in public or private 21 life; and 22 (B) includes— 23 (i) physical, sexual, and psychological 24 violence occurring in the family, including 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 15 •HR 9497 IH battering, sexual abuse of female children 1 in the household, dowry-related violence, 2 marital rape, female genital cutting and 3 mutilation, forced child marriage, and 4 other harmful practices to women and 5 girls, nonspousal violence, and violence re- 6 lated to exploitation; 7 (ii) physical, sexual, and psychological 8 violence occurring within the general com- 9 munity, including rape, sexual abuse, sex- 10 ual harassment and intimidation at work, 11 in educational institutions and elsewhere, 12 trafficking in women and girls, and forced 13 prostitution; and 14 (iii) physical, sexual, and psycho- 15 logical violence perpetrated or condoned by 16 the state, wherever it occurs. 17 TITLE I—STRATEGY, POLICY, 18 AND PROGRAMS 19 SEC. 101. UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO PREVENT AND RE- 20 SPOND TO GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE GLOB- 21 ALLY. 22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 23 date of the enactment of this Act, and every 4 years there- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 16 •HR 9497 IH after, the Ambassador-at-Large, in consultation with the 1 Senior Coordinator, shall— 2 (1) develop or update, in consultation with civil 3 society, including service providers, a United States 4 global strategy to prevent and respond to violence 5 against women and girls, using evidence-based inter- 6 ventions and standards that address the root causes 7 of, and provide comprehensive responses to, violence 8 against women and girls; 9 (2) submit the strategy under paragraph (1) to 10 the appropriate congressional committees for com- 11 ment and review; and 12 (3) make the strategy publicly available on the 13 internet. 14 (b) INITIAL STRATEGY.—For the purposes of this 15 section, the ‘‘United States Strategy to Prevent and Re- 16 spond to Gender-Based Violence Globally’’, issued in Au- 17 gust 2012 and updated in 2016, shall be deemed to fulfill 18 the initial requirement of subsection (a). 19 (c) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.—Not later than 60 20 days after submission of the strategy under subsection (a), 21 the Ambassador-at-Large, in consultation with the Senior 22 Coordinator, shall submit to the appropriate congressional 23 committees an implementation plan detailing how the 24 strategy will be implemented in the upcoming 4 fiscal 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 17 •HR 9497 IH years, including the budget resources requested, and the 1 specific activities to be supported, by each executive agen- 2 cy under the strategy. 3 (d) COLLABORATION AND COORDINATION.—In devel- 4 oping the strategy under subsection (a), the Ambassador- 5 at-Large and the Senior Coordinator shall consult with— 6 (1) the heads of relevant Federal agencies; 7 (2) the Senior Policy Operating Group on Traf- 8 ficking in Persons; and 9 (3) representatives of civil society, including 10 nongovernmental organizations, faith-based organi- 11 zations, multilateral organizations, local and inter- 12 national civil society groups, and local service pro- 13 viders and beneficiaries with demonstrated experi- 14 ence in addressing violence against women and girls 15 or promoting gender equality internationally. 16 (e) CONTENT.—The implementation plan required 17 under subsection (c) shall— 18 (1) identify eligible low-income and lower-mid- 19 dle income countries with significant levels of vio- 20 lence against women and girls, including within dis- 21 placed communities, that have the governmental or 22 nongovernmental organizational capacity to manage 23 and implement gender-based violence prevention and 24 response program activities and should, when pos- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 18 •HR 9497 IH sible, be geographically, ethnically, and culturally di- 1 verse from one another; 2 (2) select 5 to 20 of the eligible countries iden- 3 tified under paragraph (1) in which to develop com- 4 prehensive and holistic individual country plans that 5 incorporate at least two of the program activities 6 listed in section 102(b); 7 (3) assess and describe the current or potential 8 capacity of the government of each eligible country 9 selected under paragraph (2) and civil society orga- 10 nizations in each such eligible country to address 11 and respond to violence against women and girls; 12 (4) identify coordination mechanisms with Fed- 13 eral agencies that— 14 (A) have existing programs relevant to the 15 strategy; 16 (B) will be involved in new program activi- 17 ties; and 18 (C) are engaged in broader United States 19 strategies around development; 20 (5) describe the monitoring and evaluation 21 mechanisms established for each eligible country, 22 and their intended use in assessing overall progress 23 in prevention and response; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 19 •HR 9497 IH (6) project general levels of resources needed to 1 achieve the stated objectives in each eligible country, 2 including an accounting of— 3 (A) activities and funding already ex- 4 pended by the Department of State, the United 5 States Agency for International Development, 6 and other Federal agencies, donor country gov- 7 ernments, and multilateral institutions; and 8 (B) leveraged private sector resources; 9 (7) integrate gender analysis into the strategy 10 for each country; and 11 (8) include, as appropriate, strategies designed 12 to accommodate the needs of stateless, disabled, in- 13 ternally displaced refugees and religious or ethnic 14 minority women and girls. 15 SEC. 102. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE UNITED STATES 16 STRATEGY TO PREVENT AND RESPOND TO 17 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE GLOBALLY. 18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State and the 19 Administrator of the United States Agency for Inter- 20 national Development are authorized to provide assistance 21 to prevent and respond to violence against women and 22 girls internationally. 23 (b) PROGRAM ACTIVITIES SUPPORTED.—Assistance 24 provided under this section shall be used to carry out, in 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 20 •HR 9497 IH each of the countries identified in the strategy required 1 pursuant to subsection 101(e)(2), two or more of the fol- 2 lowing program activities: 3 (1) Increasing legal and judicial protections 4 by— 5 (A) supporting programs that strengthen a 6 coordinated community response to violence 7 against women and girls, including through co- 8 ordination between judges, police, prosecutors, 9 and legal advocates to enhance prospects for 10 perpetrator accountability; 11 (B) supporting efforts and providing re- 12 sources to provide training and technical assist- 13 ance to police, prosecutors, forensic physicians, 14 lawyers, corrections officers, judges, and judi- 15 cial officials, and where appropriate, to non- 16 lawyer advocates and traditional community au- 17 thorities on violence against women and girls; 18 (C) supporting efforts to reform and revise 19 criminal and civil laws to prohibit violence 20 against women and girls and create account- 21 ability for perpetrators; 22 (D) enhancing the capacity of the justice 23 sector, including keeping official records of all 24 complaints, collecting and safeguarding evi- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 21 •HR 9497 IH dence, systematizing and tracking data on cases 1 of violence against women and girls, and under- 2 taking investigations and evidence gathering ex- 3 peditiously; 4 (E) helping women and girls who are vic- 5 tims of violence gain access to the justice sector 6 and supporting them throughout the legal proc- 7 ess, including establishing victim and witness 8 units for courts and promoting support for sur- 9 vivor services, including hotlines and shelters; 10 (F) promoting civil remedies in cases of 11 domestic violence that— 12 (i) prioritize victim safety and con- 13 fidentiality and offender accountability; 14 (ii) grant women and children re- 15 straining, protection, or removal orders 16 with appropriate criminal sanctions for vio- 17 lations against perpetrators of violence; 18 (iii) strengthen and promote women’s 19 custodial rights over children and protect 20 children; and 21 (iv) grant courts authority to provide 22 specific relief pursuant to a restraining or 23 removal order, including restitution, spous- 24 al maintenance, child support, payment of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 22 •HR 9497 IH debt, or return or equitable distribution of 1 property; 2 (G) reducing the incidence of violence 3 against women and girls committed by govern- 4 ment officials by developing confidential mecha- 5 nisms for reporting violence against women and 6 girls committed by government officials and in- 7 stitutions and developing laws to punish the 8 perpetrators and remove immunity from state 9 officials; 10 (H) promoting broader legal protection for 11 women and girls against all forms of violence 12 against women and girls, such as female infan- 13 ticide and female genital mutilation, and prac- 14 tices that are associated with higher rates of vi- 15 olence against women and girls, such as child 16 and forced marriage; and 17 (I) increasing the number of women advo- 18 cates trained to respond to violence against 19 women and girls at police stations, including 20 the creation of domestic violence units and in- 21 creasing the number of women police. 22 (2) Carrying out health care initiatives, includ- 23 ing— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 23 •HR 9497 IH (A) promoting the integration of programs 1 to prevent and respond to violence against 2 women and girls into existing programs ad- 3 dressing child survival, women’s health, repro- 4 ductive health, family planning, mental health, 5 and HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment; 6 (B) training of health care providers, in- 7 cluding traditional birth attendants, on methods 8 to safely and confidentially assess women and 9 girls seeking health services for intimate part- 10 ner, family, and sexual violence; 11 (C) developing and enforcing national and 12 operational women’s health, reproductive health, 13 children’s health, and HIV/AIDS policies that 14 prevent and respond to violence against women 15 and girls, with accompanying resources, includ- 16 ing through cooperative efforts with ministries 17 of health; 18 (D) developing information gathering sys- 19 tems within the health care sector that, con- 20 sistent with safety and confidentiality concerns, 21 collect and compile data on the type of violence 22 against women and girls, access to care, age of 23 victims, and relationship of victims to perpetra- 24 tors; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 24 •HR 9497 IH (E) working with governments to develop 1 partnerships with civil society organizations to 2 create referral networks systems for psycho- 3 social, legal, economic, or other support serv- 4 ices; and 5 (F) integrating screening and assessment 6 for gender-based violence into HIV/AIDS pro- 7 gramming and other health programming into 8 all country operation plans, and increasing 9 women’s access to information, strategies, and 10 services to protect themselves from HIV/AIDS. 11 (3) Conducting public awareness programs to 12 change social norms and attitudes, including— 13 (A) supporting women survivors of violence 14 to educate their communities on the impacts of 15 violence; 16 (B) engaging men, including faith and tra- 17 ditional leaders; 18 (C) providing funding and programmatic 19 support for mass media social change cam- 20 paigns; and 21 (D) supporting community efforts to 22 change attitudes about harmful traditional 23 practices, including child marriage, female gen- 24 ital mutilation, and so-called ‘‘honor killings’’. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 25 •HR 9497 IH (4) Improving economic opportunities for 1 women and girls, including— 2 (A) supporting programs to help women 3 meet their economic needs and to increase their 4 economic opportunities, in both rural and urban 5 areas, including through support for— 6 (i) the establishment and development 7 of businesses (micro, small, and medium- 8 sized enterprises) through access to finan- 9 cial and nonfinancial services; and 10 (ii) education, literacy, and numeracy 11 programs, leadership development and job 12 skills training, especially in nontraditional 13 fields and expected growth sectors; 14 (B) supporting programs to help increase 15 property rights, social security, and home own- 16 ership and land tenure security for women by— 17 (i) promoting equitable extension of 18 property and inheritance rights, particu- 19 larly rights to familial and marital prop- 20 erty; 21 (ii) promoting legal literacy, including 22 among faith and traditional leaders, about 23 women’s property rights; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 26 •HR 9497 IH (iii) helping women to make land 1 claims and protecting women’s existing 2 claims and advocating for equitable land ti- 3 tling and registration for women, including 4 safeguards for women title-holders in the 5 case of domestic violence disputes; 6 (C) integrating activities to prevent and re- 7 spond to violence against women and girls into 8 existing economic opportunity programs by— 9 (i) integrating education on violence 10 against women and girls into women’s 11 microfinance, microenterprise, and job 12 skills training programs; and 13 (ii) training providers of economic op- 14 portunity services and programs in sensi- 15 tivity to violence against women and girls; 16 and 17 (D) addressing violence against women and 18 girls in the workplace. 19 (5) Improving educational opportunities for 20 women and girls, including— 21 (A) supporting efforts and providing re- 22 sources to provide training for all teachers and 23 school administrators on school-related violence, 24 in particular increasing awareness of violence 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 27 •HR 9497 IH against women and girls, and to improve re- 1 porting, referral, and implementation of codes 2 of conduct; 3 (B) working to ensure the safety of girls 4 during their travel to and from school and on 5 school grounds; 6 (C) supporting programs for girls and boys 7 on the unacceptability of violence against 8 women and girls; 9 (D) comprehensive sexuality education pro- 10 grams which include consent education; and 11 (E) conducting national and baseline sur- 12 veys to collect data on school-related violence 13 against women and girls. 14 (c) BUILDING LOCAL CAPACITY.—Not less than 10 15 percent of the amount of assistance provided to an eligible 16 country under this section should be provided to commu- 17 nity-based nongovernmental or faith-based organizations, 18 with priority given to nongovernmental organizations led 19 by women. 20 SEC. 103. MONITORING THE UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO 21 PREVENT AND RESPOND TO GENDER-BASED 22 VIOLENCE GLOBALLY. 23 (a) IN GENERAL.—In each strategy submitted under 24 section 101(a), the Ambassador-at-Large and Senior Co- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 28 •HR 9497 IH ordinator shall include an analysis of best practices for 1 preventing and addressing violence against women and 2 girls internationally, which shall include— 3 (1) a description of successful efforts by foreign 4 governments, multilateral institutions, nongovern- 5 mental organizations, educational organizations, and 6 faith-based organizations in preventing and respond- 7 ing to violence against women and girls; 8 (2) recommendations related to best practices, 9 effective strategies, and improvements to enhance 10 the impact of prevention and response efforts; and 11 (3) the impact of activities funded by the strat- 12 egy in preventing and reducing violence against 13 women and girls internationally. 14 (b) AMENDMENTS.—The Foreign Assistance Act of 15 1961 is amended— 16 (1) in section 116(d) (22 U.S.C. 2151n(d))— 17 (A) in paragraph (11)(C), by striking 18 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 19 (B) in paragraph (12)(C)(ii), by striking 20 the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 21 and 22 (C) by adding at the end the following new 23 paragraph: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 29 •HR 9497 IH ‘‘(13) wherever applicable, the nature and ex- 1 tent of violence against women and girls (as such 2 term is defined in section 4 of the International Vio- 3 lence Against Women Act of 2022).’’; and 4 (2) in section 502B (22 U.S.C. 2304)— 5 (A) by redesignating the second subsection 6 designated as subsection (i) as subsection (j); 7 and 8 (B) by adding at the end the following new 9 subsection: 10 ‘‘(k) INCLUSION OF INFORMATION RELATING TO VI- 11 OLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS.—The report re- 12 quired by subsection (b) shall include, wherever applicable, 13 the nature and extent of violence against women and girls 14 (as such term is defined in section 4 of the International 15 Violence Against Women Act of 2022).’’. 16 (c) MONITORING AND EVALUATION.—In coordination 17 with relevant officials, and consistent with the monitoring 18 and evaluation policies of their respective agencies, the 19 Ambassador-at-Large and the Senior Coordinator shall 20 develop a plan for monitoring and independent evaluation 21 of programs, projects, and activities carried out under this 22 Act. The plan shall— 23 (1) apply rigorous monitoring and evaluation 24 methodologies to focus on learning, accountability, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 30 •HR 9497 IH and policymaking, choosing from among a wide vari- 1 ety of qualitative, quantitative, summative, and 2 formative methods common in the field of social sci- 3 entific inquiry, including impact evaluations; and 4 (2) be included in the implementation plan re- 5 quired under section 101(c). 6 (d) RESEARCH AND DATA COLLECTION.—The Sec- 7 retary of State and the Administrator of the United States 8 Agency for International Development shall— 9 (1) produce original research or analysis of ef- 10 fective interventions to prevent or respond to vio- 11 lence against women and girls internationally; 12 (2) collect and analyze new or existing data on 13 the scope and extent of all forms of violence against 14 women and girls internationally, including under 15 documented forms of violence and violence against 16 marginalized groups; 17 (3) conduct research on effective interventions 18 to respond to violence against women and girls inter- 19 nationally, including efforts to scale up effective pro- 20 gramming; and 21 (4) support systemic data collection using inter- 22 nationally comparable indicators, norms, and meth- 23 odologies for measuring the scope, prevalence, and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 31 •HR 9497 IH incidence of violence against women and girls inter- 1 nationally. 2 TITLE II—OVERSIGHT AND 3 ACCOUNTABILITY 4 SEC. 201. OFFICE OF GLOBAL WOMEN’S ISSUES. 5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of State shall 6 establish in the Office of the Secretary of the Department 7 of State the Office of Global Women’s Issues. The Office 8 shall be headed by an Ambassador-at-Large for Global 9 Women’s Issues, who shall be appointed by the President, 10 by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The 11 Ambassador-at-Large shall report directly to the Secretary 12 and shall have the rank and status of Ambassador-at- 13 Large. 14 (b) PURPOSE.—In addition to the duties described in 15 subsection (c) and duties determined by the Secretary of 16 State, the Ambassador-at-Large shall coordinate efforts of 17 the United States Government as directed by the Sec- 18 retary regarding approaches that promote equality and ad- 19 vance the status of women and girls in United States for- 20 eign policy. 21 (c) DUTIES.— 22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Ambassador-at-Large— 23 (A) in consultation with the Senior Coordi- 24 nator, shall direct activities, policies, programs, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 32 •HR 9497 IH and funding relating to gender equality and the 1 advancement of women and girls internation- 2 ally, including those intended to prevent and re- 3 spond to violence against women and girls, for 4 all bureaus and offices of the Department of 5 State and in the international programs of all 6 other Federal agencies; 7 (B) shall actively promote and advance the 8 integration of gender analysis into the pro- 9 grams, structures, processes, and capacities of 10 bureaus and offices of the Department of State 11 and in the international programs of other Fed- 12 eral agencies; 13 (C) shall direct United States Government 14 resources, as appropriate, to respond to needs 15 for promoting gender equality and the em- 16 powerment of women in United States Govern- 17 ment foreign policies and international pro- 18 grams, including to prevent and respond to vio- 19 lence against women and girls internationally; 20 (D) may design, support, and implement 21 activities regarding empowerment of women 22 internationally, including for the prevention of 23 and response to violence against women and 24 girls internationally; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 33 •HR 9497 IH (E) shall conduct regular consultation with 1 civil society organizations working to prevent 2 and respond to violence against women and 3 girls internationally; 4 (F) shall ensure that programs, projects, 5 and activities designed to prevent and respond 6 to violence against women and girls internation- 7 ally are subject to rigorous monitoring and eval- 8 uation, and that there is a uniform set of indi- 9 cators and standards for such monitoring and 10 evaluation that is used across all Federal agen- 11 cies; 12 (G) shall serve as the principal advisor to 13 the Secretary of State regarding gender equal- 14 ity, women’s empowerment, and violence 15 against women and girls as a foreign policy 16 matter; and 17 (H) is authorized to represent the United 18 States in diplomatic and multilateral fora on 19 matters relevant to the status of women and 20 girls, including violence against women and 21 girls internationally. 22 (2) INFORMATION SHARING AND TRANS- 23 PARENCY.—The Office— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00033 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 34 •HR 9497 IH (A) shall be the central repository of data 1 on all United States programs, projects, and ac- 2 tivities that relate to prevention and response to 3 violence against women and girls; and 4 (B) shall produce a full accounting of 5 United States Government spending on such 6 programs, projects, and activities. 7 SEC. 202. SENIOR COORDINATOR FOR GENDER EQUALITY 8 AND WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT. 9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 10 United States Agency for International Development the 11 position of Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and 12 Women’s Empowerment. The Senior Coordinator shall— 13 (1) report to the Administrator of the United 14 States Agency for International Development; and 15 (2) conduct the activities of the Administrator 16 under this Act. 17 (b) DUTIES.—The Senior Coordinator— 18 (1) in consultation with the Ambassador-at- 19 Large, shall direct activities, policies, programs, and 20 funding of the United States Agency for Inter- 21 national Development relating to gender equality 22 and women’s empowerment, including those intended 23 to prevent and respond to violence against women 24 and girls; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 35 •HR 9497 IH (2) shall actively promote and advance the inte- 1 gration of gender analysis into the programs, struc- 2 tures, processes, and capacities of all bureaus and 3 offices of the United States Agency for International 4 Development as required by the Agency’s Gender 5 Equality and Female Empowerment Policy; 6 (3) shall direct United States Agency for Inter- 7 national Development resources for gender equality 8 and women’s empowerment, including to prevent and 9 respond to violence against women and girls inter- 10 nationally; 11 (4) may design, support, and implement activi- 12 ties led by the United States Agency for Inter- 13 national Development regarding gender equality and 14 women’s empowerment, including for the prevention 15 and response to violence against women and girls 16 internationally; 17 (5) shall conduct regular consultation with civil 18 society organizations working to prevent and re- 19 spond to violence against women and girls inter- 20 nationally; 21 (6) shall serve as the principal advisor to the 22 Administrator regarding gender equality, women’s 23 empowerment, and violence against women and girls; 24 and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00035 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 36 •HR 9497 IH (7) shall track and analyze monitoring and eval- 1 uation data and findings on international prevention 2 and response programs of the United States Agency 3 for International Development, consistent with 4 Agency-wide monitoring and evaluation activities, to 5 assist in the preparation of the strategy developed 6 under section 101(a). 7 SEC. 203. BRIEFING AND ASSESSMENT. 8 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact- 9 ment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Ambas- 10 sador-at-Large and the Senior Coordinator shall provide, 11 to the appropriate congressional committees— 12 (1) a briefing on international violence against 13 women and girls prevention and response strategies, 14 programming, and associated outcomes; and 15 (2) an assessment of human and financial re- 16 sources necessary to fulfill the purposes and duties 17 under this Act. 18 SEC. 204. ADDRESSING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND 19 GIRLS IN HUMANITARIAN RELIEF, PEACE- 20 KEEPING, CONFLICT, AND POSTCONFLICT 21 SETTINGS. 22 (a) ACTIVITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE 23 WITH USAID.—The Secretary of State and the Adminis- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00036 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 37 •HR 9497 IH trator of the United States Agency for International De- 1 velopment shall ensure that— 2 (1) bilateral and multilateral assistance made 3 available for humanitarian relief, conflict mitigation, 4 and post-conflict reconstruction including funds 5 made available through Safe from the Start and 6 other programs and efforts— 7 (A) prevents and responds to violence 8 against women and girls from the very onset of 9 and throughout a crisis; 10 (B) builds the capacity of humanitarian 11 actors, including multilateral agencies and those 12 leading relevant humanitarian cluster responses 13 and Areas of Responsibility (AOR), such as the 14 GBV AOR; 15 (C) builds the capacity of local partners to 16 address the special protection needs of women 17 and children; 18 (D) supports survivors of violence through 19 education, essential medical and psychosocial 20 assistance, trauma counseling, family and com- 21 munity reinsertion and reunification, and eco- 22 nomic opportunity programs; and 23 (E) provides legal services for women and 24 girls who are victims of violence; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 38 •HR 9497 IH (2) specialists in violence against women and 1 girls are designated and deployed, as appropriate, as 2 an integral part of Disaster Assistance Response 3 Teams to ensure the integration of prevention and 4 response to violence against women and girls inter- 5 nationally in strategies and programming; and 6 (3) contractors, grantees, and governments that 7 carry out programs with United States assistance— 8 (A) train humanitarian workers in pre- 9 venting and responding to violence against 10 women and girls, including in the use of mecha- 11 nisms to report violence against women and 12 girls; 13 (B) conduct appropriate public outreach to 14 make known to the host community the mecha- 15 nisms to report violence against women and 16 girls; and 17 (C) promptly and appropriately respond to 18 reports of violence against women and girls and 19 treat survivors in accordance with best practices 20 regarding confidentiality. 21 (b) EMERGENCY RESPONSE TO CREDIBLE REPORTS 22 OF CRITICAL OR WIDESPREAD VIOLENCE AGAINST 23 WOMEN AND GIRLS.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 39 •HR 9497 IH (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State, act- 1 ing through the heads of relevant bureaus and of- 2 fices of the Department of State, shall— 3 (A) identify critical or widespread incidents 4 of violence against women and girls in situa- 5 tions of armed conflict when such incidents 6 occur, through consultation with other Federal 7 departments and agencies, the United Nations, 8 international organizations, and nongovern- 9 mental organizations; 10 (B) determine emergency response meas- 11 ures not later than 45 days after such identi- 12 fication; and 13 (C) brief Congress, upon request, on the 14 implementation of such emergency response 15 measures and outcomes not later than 90 days 16 after such determination. 17 (2) CONTENT.—The emergency measures devel- 18 oped under paragraph (1) shall include a description 19 of bilateral diplomatic efforts with— 20 (A) the government of the country in 21 which the violence is occurring; 22 (B) governments in the region in which the 23 violence is occurring; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00039 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 40 •HR 9497 IH (C) other donor governments. 1 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:14 Dec 21, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H9497.IH H9497 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS