Bipartisan, bicameral legislation introduced by U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO) to fund victims services grants that help survivors of traumatic crimes received unanimous U.S. Senate approval this week and was sent to the president on July 21 to be signed into law.
Rep. Wagner in March cosponsored the VOCA (Victims of Crime Act) Fix to Sustain the Crime Victims Fund Act of 2021, H.R. 1652, with bill sponsor U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) to deposit certain funds into the Crime Victims Fund and to waive matching requirements, according to the congressional record bill summary. Other original cosponsors of the bill include U.S. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and John Moolenaar (R-MI).
“We are at risk of a devastating funding crisis for victims if the VOCA Fix Act is not signed into law and I thank my colleagues in the Senate for finally passing this important legislation,” Rep. Wagner said on Tuesday. “I call on President Biden to sign it into law without delay so victims can have confidence we have their backs as they work to find justice and we hold violent perpetrators accountable.”
The identical bill, S. 611, was introduced by U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Dick Durbin (D-IL). The U.S. House of Representatives on March 17 voted 384-38 to approve the measure while the Senate on July 20 voted unanimously to pass it. The bill was presented to President Joe Biden for his signature on Wednesday.