PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on HELP.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Jul 1, 1999
Children Who Witness Domestic Violence Protection Act - Amends the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), acting through the Director of Community Services in the Administration for Children and Families, to award grants to eligible nonprofit private entities to conduct programs to encourage the use of domestic violence intervention models using multisystem partnerships to address the needs of children who witness such violence. Provides for technical assistance to grant recipients. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 5) Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Secretary of Education to award grants to and enter into contracts with elementary and secondary schools that work with experts on domestic violence to enable the schools to: (1) provide training to administrators, faculty, and staff with respect to issues concerning children and domestic violence; (2) provide educational programming to students regarding domestic violence; (3) provide support services for students and school personnel for purposes of developing and strengthening prevention and intervention strategies with respect to domestic violence; and (4) develop school system policies regarding identification and referral procedures for students who are experiencing or witnessing such violence. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 6) Authorizes the Attorney General and the Secretary of HHS to jointly award grants to eligible States, Indian tribal governments, and units of local government to encourage entities to recognize and treat, as part of ongoing child welfare responsibilities, domestic violence as a serious problem threatening the safety and well-being of children and adults. Limits grants to three-year terms. Requires the Attorney General and the Secretary of HHS to distribute to each State child welfare service agency and domestic violence coalition and to Congress a summary of information on: (1) the activities funded with grants under this section; and (2) any related initiatives undertaken to promote attention by the staff of child welfare service agencies and community-based domestic violence programs to domestic violence and its impact on child and adult victims. Provides for technical assistance to grant recipients. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 7) Authorizes the Attorney General to award grants to States and Indian tribal governments to enable them to enter into contracts and cooperative agreements with nonprofit entities to assist such entities in establishing supervised visitation centers for visitation and visitation exchange by and between parents. Requires the Attorney General to report specified information concerning such program to Congress. Authorizes appropriations from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund to carry out this section. (Sec. 8) Requires the Attorney General to award grants to nonprofit domestic violence programs, shelters, or organizations in collaboration with local police departments for purposes of training local police officers regarding treatment of children who have witnessed domestic violence. Authorizes appropriations from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund to carry out this section. (Sec. 9) Authorizes the Secretary of HHS to establish demonstration programs under which grants are awarded to States to assist agencies and organizations in providing crisis nurseries for children who are abused and neglected, are at risk of abuse or neglect, are witnessing domestic violence, or are in families receiving child protective services. Authorizes appropriations.
People & committees
Sen. Wellstone, Paul D. [D-MN] · D–MN
Legislative record
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Read twice and referred to the Committee on HELP.
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S8102-8104)
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
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Source last updated: Aug 20, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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