Significant progress is being made on the long-sought-after Violence Against Women Act reauthorization, including the critical tribal provisions of the bill, and the National Congress of American Indians is calling on House Majority Leader Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va., and authors of recent Senate and House legislation to continue discussions and pass final legislation.

“We believe there is a path to bipartisan agreement on the tribal provisions of VAWA. We remain hopeful that a comprehensive VAWA bill can and will move forward before this session of Congress ends,” said Jacqueline Pata, executive director of NCAI. “It’s hero time on both sides of the aisle.”

Female tribal leaders and members of NCAI’s Violence Against Women Task Force are actively meeting with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to ensure Indian Country’s voice is heard and to see that the tribal provisions are understood. x1