VAWA Reauthorized!

The Violence Against Women Act has been reauthorized and amended as of March 15, 2022. The amended act was effective on October 1, 2022, and on January 4, 2023, HUD published a notice in the Federal Register describing how the 2022 amendment affects HUD’s programs.  Provisions of VAWA 2022 may also be found in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 in Title VI of Division W, known as “Safe Homes for Victims”.

As part of the amendment, several covered housing programs have been added. These programs include Rural Development Voucher Program, Housing Trust Funds (officially added), Housing Assistance programs under Title 38 for Veterans, and any other federal housing program that provides income and rent-restricted housing to low or moderate-income households.

There are several key changes to note within the amendment, all of which will be implemented and enforced by the Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Office, also known as FHEO. FHEO will enforce the housing protections of VAWA in the same manner currently being used to enforce the Fair Housing Law. The VAWA complaint and investigation process is described in FHEO Notice: FHEO-2023-01, and VAWA compliance reviews will be incorporated into HUD’s existing compliance review process. 

In addition to the compliance review process, the 2022 reauthorization includes the requirement of HUD to establish an “Office of Gender-Based Violence Prevention”, as well as a Violence Against Women Act Director.  This reauthorization also makes it clear that all covered housing agencies are prohibited from retaliation against an applicant or tenant requesting VAWA protections.  Included in this prohibition of retaliation are those individuals that assist in, testify in, or otherwise participate in any VAWA related matter. Another key point of the amendment is the right to report crimes and emergencies without retaliation in the form of fees or penalties.

The 2022 reauthorization has amended the definition of a homeless person or family to be one that is “experiencing trauma or lack of safety” due to a VAWA related situation. The definition of “domestic violence” has been revised and the definitions of “economic abuse” and “technological abuse” have been added.

All existing VAWA forms are currently under revision and renewal. Current forms with the expiration date of 2017 continue to be valid documents until revised forms are published.

For additional information on the VAWA Reauthorization, please visit www.hud.gov/vawa.