U.S. Senator Patty Murray of Washington and U.S. Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard of California recently introduced the Security and Financial Empowerment (SAFE) Act of 2015 to assist victims of domestic violence. According to a press release issued by Senator Murray, the bill “would ensure [domestic violence] survivors who need services like medical attention and legal assistance can take safe leave from work, allow survivors who had to leave their job to receive unemployment insurance, protect survivors from being fired because of harassment by an abuser or because they requested protections at work to stay safe, and invest in a national awareness campaign to encourage a culture of prevention and support.” Both Houses of the U.S. Congress must approve the bill and the President must sign it before it becomes law.
Compiled from: Murray Introduces Legislation to Empower Domestic Violence Survivors, Break Down Economic Barriers, Senator Patty Murray (October 27, 2015); Clark, Meredith, This Bill Takes On An Often Overlooked Risk Of Domestic Abuse, Refinery 29 (October 27, 2015).