	Legislation in the 109th Congress

		Appropriations

Funding authorization for the Victims of Child Abuse Act programs expired with FY2005. Congress nonetheless provided FY2006 funding for these programs in the conference report to H.R. 109-108 ). Congress provided$14.8 million in FY2006 appropriations for this program rather than the $11.8 million proposed bythe President. For FY2007, the Administration has again requested reduced funding for theprogram, totaling $11.679 million. ForFY2007, the Administration has proposed $11.750 million in CASA funding. Training for Judicial Personnel and Practitioners. 109-162 ) includes an authorization of $7.5 million (in each of FY2006-FY2010) for specializedtechnical assistance and training programs related to the purposes of Children's Advocacy Centers. TheViolence Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005 ( P.L. 109-162 )also amended the CASA program and reauthorized its funding for FY2007-FY2011. (As notedabove, FY2006 funding for CASA was provided in P.L. 109-162 reauthorizes funding for CASA for fiveyears but maintains the FY2005 funding authorization level of $12 million and changes the first yearof the extension to FY2007. 109-162 clarifies that fundsprovided for CASA may be used to "initiate, sustain, and expand" CASA programs. (7) 
Training for Judicial Personnel and Practitioners. Description and Funding of Victims of Child Abuse Act Programs

		Children's Advocacy Centers

Regional children's advocacy centers, local children's advocacy centers, and related technicalassistance and training (to improve the quality of criminal prosecution of child abuse cases) areauthorized under Subtitle A (Sections 213, 214, and 214A) of the Victims of Child Abuse Act. (11) For FY2005, funding wasauthorized at $15 million for the centers, and approximately $12.5 million was appropriated for thesecenters. While the Congress has designated the Center as the recipient of most of these funds, sometraining and technical assistance funds provided under this legislative authority have also beendirected by the appropriators to the National Children's Alliance and, in a few years, to the NationalChildren's Advocacy Center in Huntsville, AL. This brought total program funding to$12.9 million in FY2004. Although the Victims of Child Abuse Act ( P.L. All funding under this authorization is awarded to the National Council of Juvenile andFamily Court Judges. 106-314 , The Strengthening Abuse and Neglect Courts Act of 2000 (SANCA)authorized an additional $5 million for FY2001 through FY2005 for the Department ofJustice to make grants to the National Court Appointed Special Advocate Association toexpand recruitment for and the capacity of CASA programs in the 15 largest urban areas; todevelop regional, multi-jurisdictional court-appointed special advocate programs servingrural areas; and to provide training and supervision of volunteers in court-appointed specialadvocate programs. Further,it does not indicate that the funding authorization for related training and technical assistancefunds has been extended (FY2006-FY2010) and increased to $7.5 million.
The Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 (Title II, P.L. 101-647 ) authorized three programs: Children's Advocacy Centers, the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) program, andTraining for Judicial Practitioners and Personnel. Funding authorization for each of these programsexpired with FY2005. In mid-December 2005, Congress approved the Violence Against Womenand Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005 ( H.R. 3402 ), which reauthorizesfunding for the CASA program (for FY2007-FY2011) at its FY2005 authorization level of $12million. That legislation (now P.L. 109-162 ) also extends funding for training and technicalassistance related to the Children's Advocacy Centers for FY2006-FY2010, increasing thatauthorization level to $7.5 million (previously $5 million) -- although it does not extend theauthorization for the Children's Advocacy Centers themselves. Despite the expiration of theirspending authorizations, funding for each of the Victims of Child Abuse Act programs was includedin FY2006 appropriations ( P.L. 109-108 ), and the Administration has requested funding for theseprograms in FY2007.
Children's Advocacy Centers are authorized to provide services to child victims of abuse (andto their non-offending family members), to coordinate child abuse investigations in ways that reducetheir trauma, and to provide for related training and technical assistance. Funding for the centers andrelated training and technical assistance grew from approximately $13 million in FY2004 to closeto $15 million in each of FY2005 and FY2006. For FY2007, the Administration has requested $11.7million in funding for Children's Advocacy Centers.
Under the CASA program, funding is provided to the National Court Appointed SpecialAdvocates Association to initiate and expand local programs that provide volunteer advocates (calledCASAs) to children who are the victims in child abuse or neglect cases. The Violence AgainstWomen and Department of Justice Act reauthorizes funding for CASA for FY2007-FY2011 and,among other changes, includes authority for the use of these funds to "sustain" CASA programs. Funding for CASA was $11.7 million in FY2005. For FY2006, Congress appropriatedapproximately $11.7 million for CASA. The Administration has requested $11.8 million for theprogram in FY2007.
Funds appropriated for Training Judicial Practitioners and Personnel have been awarded tothe National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, and have been used to create the ongoing"model courts" initiative. Funding for this program was somewhat lower in FY2005 ($1.9 million)than in each of the seven preceding fiscal years. For FY2006, Congress appropriated approximately$2.3 million for this training program, and the Administration has requested the same level offunding for FY2007. This report will be updated as necessary.