Hello and welcome to today's webinar we're really excited that so many of you are here, it is two o'clock. So be mindful of everyone's time today we are going to get started. Everybody welcome, we would love if you would introduce yourselves in the chat and just tell us where you're from. If you have any questions today we really encourage you to put those in the chat. We'll be monitoring it throughout the presentation today. If you do want to come off mute. For any reason, please raise your hand, and we will, we will help you with that as well. I believe we're going to be doing question and answer at the end of the webinar but we will be looking at the chat so please feel free to put those questions in at any time and we will get to them. Anything that we don't get to in our time together we will address after. Excellent. Looks like we have some good representation in the chat here. So today we're going to be talking about our reauthorization, this is recently passed in March of this year and we're really excited about it. And we really wanted to talk to you today about how it impacts forensic nursing. You're going to have a number of presenters today who will introduce themselves in just a minute there are no conflicts of interest for any of the presenters. After this webinar, you will receive an evaluation that you do need to complete in order to receive your CEs, you do need to be on the webinar for the majority of the webinar as well in order to receive those, and the IAFN is an accredited as a provider of forensic nursing education. And today, our goals today are for you to report increased knowledge of federal funding streams and how it relates to VAWA, recently passed VAWA reauthorization, and how VAWA impacts forensic nursing practice. So with that, I'm going to turn it over to Nicole to get us started and Nicole you introduce yourself before you get going. Yeah, perfect. Thanks, Christina. Hi you guys welcome everybody my name is Nicole Stalman and I'm a forensic nursing specialist here with IAFN. So, before we start our presentation today we're going to start out with a few polling questions. So if that first polling question populates on your screen go ahead and select true or false for us. And Amy's going to populate that for you. So the first question here is true or false. VAWA reauthorization does not create new programs and initiatives, does not expand access to justice, safety, and services for survivors in underserved communities. For survivors in rural communities, this means access to sexual assault medical forensic exams is limited. So go ahead, I'll give you a few seconds to answer that. Christina you are co host so you probably have those responses so if you could go through those percentages for us. Of course, so we have 21% of people said true and 79% said false. Excellent. Thank you. So this response is false. So VAWA reauthorization creates new programs and initiatives, it expands access to justice, safety, and services for survivors in underserved communities. And for survivors in rural communities, this means improved access and a strengthened response to sexual assault medical forensic exams. So good job. Thank you. We'll go on to the next question here. So yes or no. This is our second polling question. So go ahead and select yes or no does follow up reauthorization impact your work as a forensic nurse examiner. And so we know that there's more than just forensic nurse examiners on this call so please go ahead and respond if you're an advocate if you work in any coalitions or if you identify as any stakeholder who serves victims related to violent crimes. Great so this one is 97% yes so a lot of you know the answer to that one. Perfect. Thank you, Christina. So yes, absolutely. It certainly impacts our work. And here we go with our third polling question third and final. And go ahead and select true or false so the statement reads the office on violence against women in the office on. Excuse me, the Office of Justice programs are the same offices housed under the Department of Justice. So is that true or false. So we've been going all over with 5050 for a while, and we are at 65% false and 35% true. Awesome. So this answer is false. These are two office. These two offices, they are completely separate entities, but they both fall under the Department of Justice. So we're going to cover this in more detail in a few slides. All right, thank you for participating in those polling questions we're going to move into the first slide here. So we're going to start the presentation with an overview a very basic overview of the United States government. This is to capture a better understanding of that funnel of federal funds down to our medical forensic exams. So, there are three branches in the United States government, the legislative judicial and executive branch. So, the legislative branch makes laws right so this is made up of the US Congress, which is further comprised of the Senate and House of Representatives. There are 100 elected senators to per state, and each serve a six year term, and the house has 435 voting representatives, which that number and representation is determined and based on the population of your state. The executive and judicial branch interpret laws. This branch includes the Supreme Court and other federal courts, and the executive branch. They carry out the law. So, this branch is comprised of the President, the Vice President, and the cabinet. The cabinet is an advisory body that is made up of 15 executive departments, which are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Sorry, Christina that one was animated. Perfect. So, again, the cabinet is an advisory body that is made up of 15 executive departments which are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. These departments include for example the Department of Defense, Education, Homeland Security, Labor, Interior, the State Department, Veteran Affairs, just to name a few. And today we're going to briefly cover federal grant programs that are housed under the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Justice. Two departments that support and fund our work. Alright so this image is an organizational chart of the Department of Justice or DOJ, so bear with me as we walk through this. So housed under the DOJ is the Attorney General and the Deputy Attorney General. Many offices are housed under the Deputy Attorney General so for example, Legislative Affairs, Tribal Justice, Public Affairs, the FBI, DEA, ATF, the US Attorneys, they're all housed under the Deputy Attorney General. So under the Deputy Attorney General is the Associate Attorney General, and following along with the animation here. They have 12 different offices, so two offices within the DOJ that we will briefly cover again today are the Office of Justice Programs, OJP, and the Office on Violence Against Women. OJP and OVW. Alright so to better understand these two offices, we do have a fact sheet that's available for you guys to download on safety.org, and it is titled Federal Funder Facts. The fact sheet breaks down these two offices to better understand VOCA and VAWA, but we're going to go through each of, or we'll go through this fact sheet shortly, and the PDF of this slide will be available to you in the handouts. Alright so on this next slide here you'll see that the Office of Justice Programs, or OJP, houses various programs such as the Bureau of Justice Assistance, Justice Statistics, National Institute of Justice, etc. Our focus is OVC, or Office for Victims of Crime. So, this office works to improve the nation's ability to help victims of crime. Within OVC there are five divisions, and the subdivision that we are looking at is the State Compensation and Assistance Division. So, the Crime Victims Fund was established by VOCA, or Victims of Crime Act of 1984, so 38 years ago, and this fund is financed by fines and penalties paid by convicted federal offenders, not from our tax dollars. And OVC administers two VOCA formula grant programs that support Crime Victims Compensation, or CDC, and Crime Victims Assistance, or CVA. You'll see on this next slide that when talking about VOCA, federal revenue is deposited into this fund, so we have to ask ourselves, if they're not supported by tax dollars, where do these funds come from? So, VOCA funds, they come from criminal fines from convicted federal offenders, forfeited appearance bonds from convicted federal offenders, special forfeitures of collateral profits from crime, special assessments for individuals and corporations convicted of federal crimes. They also come from gifts, donations, or requests from private parties. And what's important to note here is that, again, they do not come from taxpayer dollars. All right, so this slide, the VOCA Compensation Formula Grant Program provides funding to supplement state compensation programs that provide financial assistance and reimbursement to victims for crime-related out-of-pocket expenses. So this includes medical and dental care, lost wages, income, counseling, etc. This program may also reimburse victims for other types of expenses related to their assault, such as travel or maybe temporary housing or lodging. VOCA Formula Grants for CDC or Crime Victims Compensation are awarded to every state, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Guam. On the right side of the screen, you'll see the box for Crime Victims Assistance. So, VOCA Formula Grants for Crime Victims Assistance are awarded to every state, the District of Columbia, the territories, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Puerto Rico. And this is mandated, or this is a mandated-based amount, based on the population of that state or territory. The state, once they receive those funds, then provides subgrants to local community-based organizations and public agencies that provide services directly to victims. So, for examples of assistance, this can include crisis counseling, telephone and on-site information and referrals, criminal justice support and advocacy, shelter, therapy, and additional assistance as identified as needed. These funds may also be used to develop new programs that address things like emerging needs, gaps in services, and training of victim service advocates. So, in covering these funds, please know that VOCA by statute is the payer of last resort, and all federal programs and provisions supersede VOCA. So, you can find this information by visiting ovc.gov. Also, you can find your VOCA state administrator by visiting the National Association of VOCA Assistance Administrators, and it's outlined or highlighted by state. And after my portion of the presentation today, I'm going to go ahead and throw that link in the chat for you guys, just so you have it. But it is navaa.org. All right, so we just covered OJP and VOCA. So, very brief, right? So, now we're going to transition into a brief overview of OVW, or the Office on Violence Against Women, another office, again, that falls under the Department of Justice. So, OVW administers 19 grant programs authorized by the Violence Against Women Act, or VAWA, of 1994, and subsequent legislation. We're going to talk about these grants in the next few slides, but these programs are designed to develop the nation's capacity to reduce domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking by strengthening services to victims and holding offenders accountable. Also, just to highlight this, but VAWA defines the medical forensic exam as an exam provided to a sexual assault patient performed by medical personnel trained to gather evidence of sexual assault in a manner suitable for the use in the court of law. So minimum requirements based on their four provisions include an exam of physical trauma, determination of penetration or force, patient history or interview, and collection and evaluation of evidence. So under VAWA, a state, territory, or the District of Columbia, they are entitled to funds under the Stop Violence Against Women formula grant program, only if it or another governmental entity incurs that full out-of-pocket cost for those exams for victims of sexual assault. So what does full out-of-pocket costs mean? Full out-of-pocket costs, so that means any expense that may be charged to that victim in connection with the exam for the purposes of gathering evidence of sexual assault. So under the VAWA reauthorization of 2005, states could no longer require victims to participate in a criminal justice system or cooperate with law enforcement in order to receive that exam. So if the state wanted to use stop funds to pay for the exams, it would not require victims to seek reimbursement from their private health insurance. In the 2013 reauthorization, it stated that victims must be able to request those exams and that there can be no co-pays or bills that are sent to these patients. So they also may not be required to participate in the criminal justice system or cooperate with law enforcement as in the 2005 reauthorization. So within this iteration, is that the state, tribal government, local government, or any other government entity, they can no longer reimburse the victim for out-of-pocket costs for the exam and the exams must be free of charge to the victim. And the state must also coordinate with healthcare to notify victims of sexual assault of the availability of those exams without costs. All right, so on this next slide here, you're going to see, these are four formula grant programs and these formula grant programs are administered by OVW and the enacting legislation specifies how these funds are to be distributed. So just to talk through a few of these, the STOP formula grant program stands for Services, Training, Officers, and Prosecutors, is awarded to states and territories and enhances the capacity of local communities to develop and strengthen effective law enforcement, prosecution, and victim service strategies. So just to highlight a little more of this grant, within this grant, each state and territory, they must allocate 25% for law enforcement, 25% for prosecutors, 30% for victim services, and 10% of which must be distributed to culturally specific community-based organizations, 5% to state and local courts, and 15% goes for discretionary distribution. The SAS program, the Sexual Assault Services Program, is the first federal funding stream solely dedicated to the provisions of direct intervention and assistance for victims of sexual assault. So this grant provides funding to assist in supporting rape crisis centers and other nonprofit, non-governmental organizations or tribal programs that provide services, direct intervention, and related assistance to victims of sexual assault. And these funds were designed to supplement other funding sources. The State and Territorial Coalitions Program provides grants to each state domestic violence coalition, which is determined by the Department of Health and Human Services, and sexual assault coalitions, which is determined by the CDC. And this is for purposes of coordinating victim service activities, collaborating and coordinating with federal, state, and local entities addressing violence against women. So sexual assault coalitions, for example, provide support to rape crisis centers through funding, training, and technical assistance, maybe public awareness activities and public policy advocacy, just to name a few. And a few examples for domestic violence coalitions provide similar provisions to battered women's shelters or other domestic violence victim service providers. Then you'll see here the Tribal Coalitions Program. So this program supports the development and operation of nonprofit, non-governmental, tribal, domestic violence, and sexual assault coalitions. And these coalitions provide education, support, and technical assistance to service providers and tribes to enhance their response to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. All right, on this next slide here, you'll see that OVW also administers 15 discretionary grant programs, and they are responsible for creating program parameters, qualifications, eligibility, and deliverables in accordance with the authorizing legislation. So you can see these 15 grants listed here. Some of these grants target underserved populations, maybe rural programs, training and services to endanger the health and well-being of survivors. Some of these grants are targeted to help end abuse in later life. The handout that you guys will receive after this presentation today will provide specific details outlining these grants. And of course, you can certainly visit justice.gov for more information. And most importantly, you can certainly visit justice.gov and certainly apply for these grants for your programs. This one slide that we have for the Department of Health and Human Services, so they provide federal funding to support forensic nursing programs and services. And I know a number of you on this presentation today have received this grant or are working or operating under this grant, so kudos to you. But here, the operating division is the Health Resources and Services Administration, and they have created the A&E SANE program. So what is this program? The A&E SANE program funds advanced nursing education to train and certify nurses, advanced practice nurses, forensic nurses, to practice as sexual assault nurse examiners. Their goal, so their goal is to increase the supply and distribution of qualified working SANEs and expand access to sexual assault forensic exams across the nation. So their stated outcome is to provide better physical and mental health care for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence, leading to better evidence collection and potentially higher prosecution rates. So for more information, so the HRSA.gov website is listed on the slide, but those who are eligible to apply for this grant include public and nonprofit hospitals, state or local health departments, nurse-managed health clinics, accredited schools of nursing, just to name a few, but the full list and more information about this particular program can be found at HRSA.gov. And with that, I'm going to hand it over to Tim and Sylvia to introduce themselves and tell us more about the current FAWA reauthorization. Great. Well, thanks, Nicole, for that fantastic dive into federal funding streams, how VAWA impacts forensic nursing and the critical work that you all do. I'm Sylvia Cornegie. I'm a policy advisor with Folsonelli. We are based here in Washington, DC, where we've had the pleasure of representing IFN in Washington before Congress and the administration since December. Tim. Yeah, hi. Tim Perrin, also one of the policy advisors here at Folsonelli. And that's just really a fancy way of saying that we're lobbyists. And one time my mother-in-law said she wished that I was a carpenter so that she could explain what I do. But here we are, we're talking about something, a really exciting public policy victory for forensic nurses. And so it doesn't matter what we do, we did it, right? So this is a big group win that we're excited to share with you. Sylvia, I guess I'll turn it back over to you, but just maybe real quick, a little bit about our role as lobbyists. Sylvia and I have a background of working with lots of clients in the public policy and healthcare specifically in that space. We have worked with provider organizations and really represented pretty much every stakeholder interest in the healthcare sector over the course of our careers, which really helps just giving us a better understanding of what's going on. And as a result, we know people throughout Washington DC who might be able to help us or provide interesting or insightful advice to us. So that's part of what we do. Both Sylvia and I have a background of having worked on Capitol Hill for members of Congress. And Sylvia, I'm not gonna steal your thunder. I don't know if you're gonna get into all that stuff, but we've been doing this a while and we enjoy doing this. We love working with IAFN. It's an incredible honor and a privilege for us to represent you all here in Washington. And like I said, it started out with, we're so excited with this VAWA reauthorization. This really is a tremendous victory. So with that, I'll be quiet and hand it back over to Sylvia. Great, thanks so much, Tim. So in this next portion of our program, Tim and I are going to take a closer look at the reauthorization bill that was signed into law this year, just over two months ago now. And we have a few goals. First, we want to take in the reaction with you to this milestone at the highest levels of government and listen to some of the very personal stories that have compelled legislative action. Secondly, we're gonna recap IAFN's work and specifically all of your contributions to get to this place. And then third, we're gonna do a brief review of the provisions that you fought for and won. Okay. So I'd like to start by taking a moment to acknowledge the call to action to pass VAWA and sense of accomplishment after its enactment from two very important policymakers and champions for survivors in our justice system. These are comments by Lisa Monaco, Deputy Attorney General at the Justice Department and Alison Randall, Principal Deputy Director of OVW. And by the way, those of you who joined us at IAFN's annual advocacy day this year in February may recognize Alison Randall as our keynote speaker this year. So I do think there is some value in reading these brief statements aloud just to underscore the priority that this entire administration placed on getting VAWA to the president's desk. The first statement from Lisa Monaco was in her testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in October last year on reauthorizing VAWA. Our government has a moral obligation to protected citizens and when it falls short in that effort, we must listen to those who we have let down to better understand where we can improve. Survivors who come forward to report abuse must be met with competent and compassionate professionals who have the resources, training, and institutional support to do their jobs. The second statement from Alison Randall was issued after VAWA reauthorization was signed into law and in particular, highlights the work of forensic nurse examiners. At OVW, we're honored to do this work. We're lifelong advocates and survivors. We are committed to ending domestic and sexual violence and stalking and we could not be more excited about the passage of VAWA 2022. This historic law creates new programs and initiatives, expanding access to justice, safety, and services for survivors in underserved communities. For survivors in rural communities, for instance, this means improved access to sexual assault medical forensic examinations. So of course, it's a huge accomplishment to be included in a press release from OVW leadership applauding the passage of VAWA and you should take note that you are heard and appreciated. Next slide, please. To highlight again the significance of VAWA reauthorization and what this means to so many, we'd like to play a clip for you of representative Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts who represents the area just outside of Boston. She went to the floor shortly after the house passed its attempt at VAWA reauthorization in 2019 to talk about her vote. So let's go ahead and play that. See if we can get the sound going on that. Amanda, if you can hear it, Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Violence Against Women Act, VAWA. I rise today to bring our stories out of the shadows. Let us reject the myth that strong women, bold women, independent women do not find themselves in the throes of violence at the hands of someone who claim to love them. My mother, my Shiro, found herself in such an abusive relationship, one that threatened her physical safety, her sanity, chipped away at her dignity and her joy. As a child to witness the abuse and derogation of the person who is your world, your everything, it is an image, a feeling, which never leaves. To the millions of women who find themselves in the shoes of my mother, and to the countless daughters who find themselves looking on, I see you. I'm fighting for you and all the Sandys out there. My mom, Sandy, depending on the day, was beaten for being too pretty, too ugly, too smart, too dumb. This man beat my mother's limbs and down her spirit. His abuse was the deepest of betrayals. For the short stories that we share here today, if they make people uncomfortable, good. Let that discomfort lead to transformation. Transformation in our discourse, transformation in our lawmaking and a renewed commitment to our shared humanity. No more. Mommy, this one's for you. I yield back. So this is a reminder that these issues touch so many lives and families, including those who personally walk the halls of Congress every day. It's a powerful video, and I'll just let that speak for itself. Next slide, please. Of course, no victory lap would be complete without a statement from the president. The following were part of his remarks on VAWA reauthorization the day after the bill was signed into law, and they provide a good snapshot of where we were, how far we needed and what's left to do. The president said, we're never going to get it all done, but we can't ever stop trying. As long as there are women in this country and around the world who live in fear of violence, there's more we have to do to fulfill the sacred commitment. No one, no one, regardless of gender or sexual orientation, should experience abuse, period. And if they do, they should have the services and support they need to get through it. And we're not going to rest. But in the meantime, all of you should be enormously proud of what you've accomplished. This reauthorization is a testament to the power of your voices and your tireless dedication to changing things for the better. So as Tim will explain a little later on, VAWA was one title in an enormous piece of legislation that made its way to the president's desk. Therefore, the fact that the president made a point of recognizing VAWA among passage of other measures dealing with government funding, healthcare and immigration, just to name a few, signals and reinforces the federal commitment to responding to domestic violence and sexual assault. Next slide, please. The road to VAWA reauthorization was an intense three-year negotiation that required both sides to overlook partisan differences and push through on the overarching goal, which is to make sure survivors have all the resources they need to heal and that you have the tools you need to do your work. As you can see on the left-hand side, there were a number of legislative twists and turns dating back to April 2019 in the House until we arrived at a final bill that was signed into law in March this year. This multi-year effort included two different votes in the House on iterations of VAWA and actually by two separate Congresses, one that gaveled in January 2019 and another that opened in January 2021. We also saw the Senate introduce two different versions of VAWA in November 2019, one Democrat and one Republican. And it wasn't until late last year that four bipartisan senators came together, Dick Durbin from Illinois, Dianne Feinstein from California, Lisa Murkowski from Alaska, and Joni Ernst from Iowa, to unveil a bipartisan framework that ultimately served as the base for the law we have today. They formally introduced the bill about two months later in February and successfully sent it to the President in March. Again, this was very much a compromise bill. And to best give you an idea of the work and struggle involved, let's play a clip from Senator Joni Ernst from November 2019 where she talked about the political dynamics and difficulties facing VAWA in both the House and Senate. Mr. President, I'm here on the floor today to speak my piece about the Violence Against Women Act. And I speak to this body not just as a senator, but I speak to this body as a survivor of rape and as the survivor of domestic violence. For months, for months, the senior senator from California and I worked together on a piece of legislation that would reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, a bipartisan effort, an effort that brought the senator and I together in an effort to reauthorize the bill with as much support in this body as possible. Now, we were working together in good faith to make our way through the issues that affect so many women in abusive situations, partners in abusive situations, domestic violence situations where children are involved, where children are involved, to find a common path forward, to have this bill reauthorized, again, with as much possible support in this body at a time when America views us as so politically divided. What could bring us together? The issue of violence directed at women and children and survivors of sexual assault. That should bring us together. Months of bipartisan effort. Bipartisan effort. But pressure was given to immediately introduce the House bill, the House-passed version of violence against women. We were moving ahead with steady progress in a number of these areas. But again, political pressure to introduce the House-passed version of the bill, not one that we could come together with on the floor of this Senate, one that even the Democrats in their release, in their press gaggle addressing the House version of violence against women, they said would never make it through the Senate. Why on earth would we introduce a piece of legislation that will not make it through this body? Shouldn't we be working together to find a path forward? We should continue to work on that. And I hope sincerely that by the end of this year, we can come together as Republicans and Democrats and not present a Republican version or a Democratic version, but produce a version that will pass this body and protect those that are in a very vulnerable state. I have been in that vulnerable state before. And I appreciated the assistance that was given to me by folks that were funded by this piece of legislation. Great. Next slide, please. So on this slide, we'd like to recognize the work that all of you put forth to make VAWA reauthorization a reality, starting with legislative input. IAFN conducted outreach to key committees and members of Congress who were closely involved in reauthorization. This included outreach to the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, nicknamed the HELP Committee, and to leaders like Senators Murkowski and Ernst to communicate how IAFN members received and responded to bill drafts and proposals like SASCA, EFCA, and the SANE Act. While most of the action here was focused on the Senate, we also had dialogue and did check-ins with House champions of SASCA in particular. Next, this year's Advocacy Day, both virtually and in person, was foundational in IAFN's efforts to inform policy and get VAWA to the finish line. This includes your direct lobbying outreach, but more than just setting up an appointment and filling a room, your participation allowed you to share your professional and personal expertise on these issues. You are a resource and a wealth of on-the-ground experience that staffers crave and need to hear. IAFN also engaged in letter writing and mobilizing. This included a letter led by the Association to the House and Senate Spending Committees urging them to include a Forensic Nursing Center of Excellence in their fiscal year 2022 spending bill. Some of you on the call today may have looked at or even signed on as one of the 21 signatories of the letter, and we thank you for that. The letter was an action item directly requested by congressional staff to help them in final negotiations, and we appreciate your responding to their request. IAFN leadership also sent letters to female GOP senators urging their support of VAWA, and again, IAFN was able to respond to a direct request for action from our Capitol Hill allies and champions. Lastly, IAFN worked on your behalf to build relationships with partners on Capitol Hill. We made it a goal early on to become a resource to the four bipartisan Senate stakeholders and their staff, and this included regular phone calls, emails, and meetings with IAFN leadership. We were very pleased and excited, of course, that these efforts were ultimately successful, and they even culminated in our very own Jen Pierce Weeks being quoted in a press release from Senator Murkowski's office announcing the introduction of the Senate compromise bill earlier this year. So this is just a quick summary of your contributions, but you should all be proud of your work and success. With that, I will turn it over to Tim. Thank you, Sylvia. Christina, could we get the next slide? So I'd like to take the next few minutes to talk a little bit about what the VAWA reauthorization looked like, legislatively speaking, and as Sylvia alluded, the VAWA reauthorization package was included in a much larger legislative vehicle, and that was the Consolidated Appropriations Act for fiscal 2022. This Consolidated Appropriations Act, this is the funding bill or the bill that provides funding for all federal programs, and it's a massive piece of legislation, lots and lots of pages, but within that was a separate section and a whole division that was dedicated to the VAWA reauthorization, and we speak of this VAWA reauthorization as a package because it brought together several different pieces of legislation. First was an actual reauthorization of Violence Against Women Act programs that are out of the Department of Justice and the Health and Human Services Department, but also newer pieces of legislation that also had similar aims and goals, and also provided additional monies and authorities for the federal government, but in the same space, and so these related pieces were all bundled together and put into this one separate division within the broader appropriations bill, and so let's just spend a few minutes talking about each one, but you'll definitely hear me repeat certain themes, so if you're playing bingo there in the office, you'll easily win. There are no prizes except VAWA reauthorization is the prize, right? Christina, how about the next slide? Okay, so let's focus on the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, and Nicole started off our presentation with a question, which was really great, about what did the VAWA reauthorization do? Well, in short, it reauthorized both existing programs, but it also provided some new authorities and some revisions to the Violence Against Women Act, and this is a piece of legislation that's been around since, I believe, 1994. It was championed by then Senator Joe Biden, and so it was very fitting for him to be president when this reauthorization came up, and for him to sign it into law. So for our version, our 2022 version of the VAWA reauthorization, you see, I'm not going to read through this list, and Nicole did a good job explaining the difference between some of these grant programs and the distinctions there, but this is a list of all of the VAWA programs that were reauthorized in the bill. Most of these, again, to kind of repeat what Nicole was saying, come out of the Department of Justice. A few of them come out of HHS. DOJ, or the Department of Justice, really does have the bulk of the authority over these programs, and just as a point of interest, and Nicole is doing a great job there going through the basic civics, reauthorizing, what does that mean? Well, Congress legislation sometimes has an expiration date, if you will, and requires Congress to renew it every so often. These typically go for, you know, probably three to seven years. It just depends on what the cost of the overall legislation is, how long policymakers think that it should go before it's renewed or looked at again. Obviously, it's really important for our policymakers and lawmakers in Congress to examine and reevaluate legislation to make sure that it's meeting the needs of the American people. In this case, VAWA programs expired years ago, two years prior, and or three years prior, excuse me, and now that didn't mean that they did not receive funding, but it meant that they received flat funding, which with inflation, and we all know all too well about what inflation looks like these days, but with inflation that actually ends up being a cost cut, right, or a cut in the number of programs that are a cut in the funding for those programs, and so this reauthorization process renews Congress's commitment to this legislation, these very valuable programs, and it also ups the funding to appropriate levels, and maybe there were some programs that weren't working as well as others or maybe some that were that the administration and Congress wanted to emphasize more and they plussed up those, so that's a little bit of what the reauthorization process entails. So this slide touches on the VAWA programs that were existing and new ones that came out of, and some of the new authorities that came out of that reauthorization process. Next slide, please. So SASCA, or the Survivors Access to Supportive Care Act, it has been a top legislative priority for IAFN for the last few years, and this is legislation that was championed by Senator Patty Murray, who's in the lower picture there, a Democrat from Washington state. She championed it in the Senate, and the picture above is Congresswoman Jayapal, who is a Democrat from Washington state also. These two members of Congress championed this legislation and put it out there. SASCA has the same aim. The goal of SASCA is obviously to strengthen the sexual assault examiner workforce, encourage recruitment and training and retaining that workforce. So when they packaged SASCA in with the VAWA reauthorization, this is all new. SASCA had not yet been passed by Congress, so these were all new programs. And one of the special things about SASCA is that it really targets federal funding in areas of national need. And so SASCA is geared toward finding out where there is need and targeting those federal monies in that way. And that has a lot to do with a federal and state level coordination of need. But again, the goal of this legislation is to increase patient access to forensic nurse examiners, and we're so excited to see this piece of legislation come to fruition. Next slide, please. So another new piece of the VAWA puzzle, if you will, was the SANE Act, or Supporting Access to Nurse Exams. And this piece of legislation has been around and been a priority for IAFN and other stakeholders in this broader community. But one of the interesting things about this piece of legislation is that it came into the VAWA package kind of late in the process. And as Sylvia had mentioned, this piece of legislation, the VAWA reauthorization package, was very much a compromise package. You heard Senator Ernst speaking to that point precisely. And that was two years before the framework, the compromise and bipartisan compromise framework was announced. So this piece of legislation was something that Senator Cornyn, Republican from Texas, has been a champion of and felt very strongly that this needed to be included in the VAWA reauthorization package. Part of what he wanted to do was bring this legislation in and, as a result of that, make it more appealing for Republicans to be supportive of. And it was very successful in that endeavor by winning and securing broad bipartisan support for the entire VAWA package. So, again, this is a new piece to the VAWA reauthorization package. And you see where it authorizes $30 million per fiscal year. So this adds even more money, federal funding for grants to the VAWA programs. So this is a great win. Next slide, please. So those first three slides I talked about have to do with the VAWA package and the development of the programs. This Forensic Nursing Center of Excellence is something that came out of the Appropriations Committees, and Sylvia talked a little bit about this, but let me drill down very quickly on this. And this Center of Excellence was created by the Appropriations Committees. It was included in one of the committee reports that accompanies the overall appropriations bill. So what this will do is set aside $2 million for the development of this Center of Excellence. And Centers of Excellence are just a great way for Congress to highlight certain areas, certain policy areas that need additional focus, additional resources. What this Center of Excellence will do is it will promote the training of forensic nurse examiners, the recruitment of those forensic nurse examiners, focus them in rural areas to increase access there. And the Centers of Excellence are always really great about developing best practices where, you know, the practice of forensic nursing can be enhanced and make sure that all practitioners or all forensic nurses are providing certain levels of care. And that's a wonderful thing there. So we were so excited to see this in the package as it developed, and IAFN worked very closely with 21 other forensic nursing stakeholders and signed this letter and sent this letter to the Appropriations Committee. It's just in the House version. And as we all remember from high school physics, physics, civics, high school civics, I don't remember high school physics very well except the parabola. That's the only thing I remember. Right, both the House and the Senate have to agree on what a legislation does. They have to pass the same thing for a piece of legislation to come in to be signed into law. And so we advocated, these 22 forensic nursing organizations advocated for the Senate to include what the House had put in their report, and it was. And we're so excited to see this in there and excited to see the fruits of what the Center of Excellence is going to produce over the next coming years. Next slide please. Okay, yeah, so this is where we, you know, wave the flag. This is really a huge and wonderful win, and clearly a team effort. Clearly, just you see grassroots effort really coming to get this bill across the finish line. Hard fought, you know, over multiple years but what a wonderful and sweet victory. This is so congratulations to all of you in doing that. You know, Tim, I was just going to say. Oh sure. Well, you know, just one observation as you were going through this legislation I was just thinking about the timing of our advocacy day this year coinciding with all of that. We have a few minutes before our next panel arrives from Capitol Hill. I thought this would be a good time to just talk about, again, the timing of all of this but really how much more impactful it was to have a number of forensic nurses come and swarm the hill both virtually and in person. You know, you're, you're exactly right. So, the, the bipartisan framework that came out of the Senate and the Senate really took the lead on getting this legislation, this legislative package is compromise package out there and and took the, the leadership of this, this, this finishing run if you will. And so that came out in December, and with the with the advocacy day being in February, this just ended up being the perfect timing for forensic nurses to weigh in with their legislators with their members of their house member, and their two Senate offices and encourage this legislation to be passed. You know, it's, it's so necessary for individual stakeholders to weigh in. Members of Congress do not want to do anything you know that they cannot defend that they don't want to do anything that doesn't benefit their constituents, and so if they don't hear from constituents, they're probably not going to do something, but for them to hear from you. This absolutely was able to give them the opportunity and the cover and the encouragement to to do the right thing by passing this legislation. Absolutely. And I also do recall hearing a couple of good discussions that came out of it, even if there are provisions that perhaps were not included in reauthorization this time around. I think one of the other things about advocacy day that folks overlook is even if you don't get all your asks in, in this particular instance, staff is always looking for ways to kind of do what they can to propose legislative ideas for their boss and future iterations. So I suspect certainly a lot of the questions that were asked of if and numbers. I start to see some of those ideas kind of percolate and legislative language down the road. So I do feel the need to make that plug to let you know, Tim and I are both former staffers of course, um, you know, there's always an eye towards what might the next bill hold. So again, you know, we just, we wanted to raise that because we get excited anytime we talk about advocacy day. Oh, absolutely. And if I could just. I can't stop talking. I have a problem with a lobbyist, it's hard to stop talking, you know, the. Even though we have this great win. We don't want to wait years and years and years for the next reauthorization process. And we don't have to we have an opportunity to constantly weigh in with members of Congress, weigh in with policymakers and encourage to improve upon the programs that we have here there. This, this, and I think we'll hear this from our, our staffers congressional staffers who are going to join us shortly will, you know, because not everything that every member of Congress wanted included in here. There, there are definitely items and areas where, you know, there might need to be more resources placed. So, this is, this is definitely something that is an evolving process and it's, it's a, it's a, it's a process right it. It keeps on going. Absolutely. And Christina this might be a good opportunity for you as well to talk about some of the work internally that the Government Affairs Committee does. Excellent. Well thank you both so much for that great presentation it was so it's good to learn a little bit more from both of you we really appreciate it and all your hard work with us on getting that passed. I would like to invite everybody on the call to join us for our Government Affairs Committee meetings, we meet monthly. And the first Tuesday of the month, and that is a really good opportunity to be kept informed of our ongoing legislative efforts. Tim and Sylvia provide a monthly update. And then beyond that there is a discussion about state legislation that also takes place at each meeting, and any members submitted topics. So if there's something that you're working on either. Maybe you have an idea about a federal piece of legislation that you wanted to raise or if there's something state specific that you want to discuss that you're working on or you hope to work on or you have a question about what's going on in other states. That would be a great place to coordinate with other members. And, you know, I think have Tim and Sylvia is excellent perspective as well on those conversations so I would really encourage anyone to attend those meetings they're excellent. So, one of our panelists has already joined us we're just waiting on one other, you know, one of the things I just like to add about advocacy day. The question that came up. I should say one of the questions that came up frequently was, how were the meeting schedules determined and the answer for that is very simple we look at where we have representation, it is obviously a priority for us every year to make sure that if you are and you are generous with your time and energy that we set you up with your own hometown representatives and senators. But we also think it's important to look at committees of jurisdiction, and as you all know, VAWA is such a big bill it touches so many different areas. So we look at committees for instance like judiciary, like health education labor and pensions or energy and commerce in the house, and our goals to make sure that this is as multifaceted as possible. But you know going back to Christina's point we also do encourage you if you have thoughts on who we should be meeting with, or if there are certain experiences that you have on the ground that you'd like to bring to our attention, please don't hesitate to participate in the monthly government affairs committee meetings, or shoot Christina and Nicole and Megan an email I know that we're all ears on what we can be doing to make sure that these experiences are, are the best for you, and that you're getting what you want out of it. Yeah, those are really great questions filtering it in the chat so we will address some of those. After I didn't want to state to you that we actually Nicole, Tim and Sylvia all talked about different funding opportunities as members of IFN, we put those So you'll see those very frequently that come from us. Wonderful. So I think at this point, what, what I'd like to do is introduce one of our panelists Christina if you're ready for us. We are honored to have Christina Cessna with us for the second, or I should say the last segment of today's panel which we're envisioning to be a q amp a with Capitol Hill staff. So let me just pull up my bio which Christina was generous enough to share with us this morning I want to make sure I got this right. So Christina serves as general counsel for Senator Joni Ernst Republican from Iowa and handles all judiciary matters. She was previously a senior counsel on the Senate Judiciary Committee, working for both Chairman Lindsey Graham Republican from South Carolina and ranking member Chuck Grassley Republican from Iowa. Christina is a Wisconsin native graduating with a JD from Marquette University Law School Milwaukee, and with a BA in political science from Carroll University in Waukesha. So welcome, Christina. Pleasure to see you. Thank you might be on mute. Let's see. Not just yet. This is a really good webinar if there isn't one audio. But so it looks like she's my call in. Hold on for a moment and things I really appreciate all of you putting in some really good questions in the chat so if anything that we've already presented, please, you know, please put those questions and we will get to many of them. And if you are interested in the government affairs you can email myself or Nicole, and we can get you added to that committee, and you will receive a calendar invite, as well as an email with some more information. And I also see that we have our second panelist who joined Anna Dietrich Anna Can you hear us okay. Yes, I can. Thank you so much. Oh, wonderful. So we just went ahead and introduce Christina. Thank you so much for having me. I didn't realize you were doing double duty working and going to school, while follows happening so kudos to you. Thanks. So Christina, are you dialed in, or let's see if we can hear you. Still not sure. Okay. Great. I think we should, we have a number of questions that we'd love to pick your brain about so maybe we should get started. Tim, why don't you kick things off. Yeah, that. That'll work. Christina if if you want to log out and log back in that might be something that resolves the mute issue, I don't know if I'm not a tech guy, you know if I'm your tech guy you're in trouble. But we can, we can go ahead and jump in on the, on the first question and then go from there but so I have been closely followed by reauthorization and and recognizes that this was a labor of love, and in a multi year effort, resulting in very much a compromise agreement. Would you be willing to describe for us the planning and the coordination process that took place in Congress, particularly within the Senate. Sure. Yeah, I'll jump right in. And Christina we still can't hear you right, we're still working on it. I think maybe you have me. Oh, there she is. Yeah. Wonderful. Good. Do you want me to go ahead Christina. Yeah. Okay. So, it was a long process of collaboration, essentially, we were working on this reauthorization for not us individually but I would say, one of Christina's colleagues Cory Booker. Cory Booker Wow I'm really exhausted. This is Senator, and the Christina's legislative director Cory, and he had been working on it for around four years, and so I started working on the reauthorization actually as a junior staffer in the office in 2018. years ago, actually also as well. And there is, there's kind of a saying here in Congress that something has to fail two or three times before it ever becomes a law. And there are definitely a lot of efforts to come together around the issues and try to figure out a path forward for a bipartisan reauthorization that failed. I would say, most prominently, there were some efforts in 2019 that resulted in two different bills. One was a republican bill was a democratic bill. And that was, you know, I think, difficult for everyone because there's been negotiations going on and I think a really good faith effort then to try to figure out a path forward. But then we came back together. I would say, in 2021, and I was kind of in and out of conversations I became more involved in the summer of 2021 with the negotiations personally. And so, the Senate process is also I think very different than the House process, which was, I would say the House process was actually more partisan than the Senate process was really driven by the House Democrats, I would say that the Senate process, a lot of give and take a lot of trust building, and a lot of compromise I mean it was a very difficult negotiations process on both sides, you know, we have to tackle issues kind of outside of the forensic nursing space that were incredibly controversial that we have never seen really successful efforts to address these issues, pass the Senate, let alone the House, let alone the Secretary of Law, so it was definitely a labor of love, for sure. Yeah, no, we certainly appreciate that you know that's something that we've been working with IFN and members I think throughout this process to kind of let them know, not everyone is going to get everything they want, you know, to a certain extent if you make everyone unhappy maybe that's an indication you're doing something right on some level. But Christina to pull you into this as well, you know I'm just curious from the committee perspective and even though you're with Senator Ernst now. Can you speak a little bit to the dynamic at the committee level and kind of the intersection between what committees are hearing versus personal offices and how all that gets wrapped up into crafting a bill? Sure, so I think this is probably a unique circumstance in that this bill did not go through committee directly. They did have a VAWA reauthorization hearing, but instead of moving it through the committee process, we ultimately took the bill and did what's called a rule 14. So it bypassed the committee and went straight to the floor. This was done because there were a couple of challenging pieces that were in the bill that we knew would hold it up among Republican members. So we knew it would not get the requisite votes to pass out of committee. This isn't a process that's done very often, but we also had 11 Republican co-sponsors on that. Some were on committee, some were not, but we had the number to get the votes, to get the bill passed on the floor, which I think was kind of the ultimate determination of not having it moved directly through committee. It's kind of a roundabout manner that's not the typical process of getting a bill done. I think ultimately, because we have the number of co-sponsors in the number that we needed to get it passed it was included in the omnibus spending bill. And that's how we got it across the finish line in the Senate. Great. Well, so you're saying it's not like schoolhouse rock. I mean, schoolhouse rock would have been about a 20 minute longer song had we actually included everything about becoming a bill to becoming a law. Oh, wonderful. I will say Tim and I are quite fond of bringing up schoolhouse rock any chance we can get. I don't know why we always go back to that song but somehow we do. In almost every presentation, I think. Well, I think that background just underscores how valuable the communication with you was throughout this process. And we're wondering sort of along those lines if you could tell us in your role as congressional staffer how do you see advocacy impacting legislation like this? Obviously it was a moving target and sort of as a follow-up what advice would you give to groups like IAFN in future reauthorization efforts? I can start and then I think Anna can. I'll be right back. I'm sorry, our recent appropriations deadlines. Let me just go put it. I'll be right back. I can start and take this. So for me, the previous three years on committee I dealt with crime and national security issues as well as civil liability issues. I came into the Ernst office in October, right? Kind of towards the end of negotiations on VAWA. And advocacy was extremely helpful for me in getting me up to speed on a lot of these issues. So we're not experts in everything. I cover the entirety of the judiciary portfolio which is everything from immigration to criminal law to civil law, to VAWA, to everything in between. I think the advocates were extremely helpful in describing priorities, some of the pitfalls some of the previous legislative history and then helping me get up to speed on what should or should not be included in the bill. Obviously we're hearing that from both sides of the aisle advocates on both sides. And I think ultimately that helps to improve the bill and helps to make it better in that you're hearing two different sides. Obviously there is always a middle but it was really necessary for me to get me up to speed on a lot of the issues that were included in the bill. Great. And kicking it over to you, Anna, is there any advice you'd give us in future reauthorization efforts? I mean, we know that the ink is just sort of dry, not quite yet, already looking ahead hopefully to five years from now where we might sit. Is there anything that groups like IAFN should be doing or gearing up for? Yeah, I think that figuring out figuring out the dynamics kind of between groups and other groups is really helpful before you come to Capitol Hill. I will say that I feel like Christine and I spent a lot of time as well as not just Christine and I but the team, it was really five of us spent a lot of time trying to juggle the dynamics between different groups and the coalition of groups that were most successful were the groups that kind of were able to deal with different policy differences or concerns amongst themselves without bringing those issues to staff to try to be the referee about. And so I do think, now that's not easier said than done. And it takes, I think organizations sometimes years, 20 to 30 years to be established with, have relationships with other organizations to figure out certain policy issues. But as we expand access to forensic nursing programs and as we're going to see other professional organizations come about that represent forensic nurses or healthcare professionals who are interested in doing forensics, as well as advocates, as well as kind of a more broader view, there's gonna be organizations who want to try new initiatives like mail at home, forensic exams and things like that. And as more players come into this space, I think figuring out how you can work with those organizations and build a coalition and really support each other and figure out, making sure there's space for everyone to be in the game. I think that is gonna be essential to make sure that all of these programs that are now being authorized at the DOJ are successful and they continue to receive funding. Because even though we just passed VAWA across the finish line, the work is really just beginning. We have to request funding for all of these programs And so the advocacy that is gonna be necessary to support all of the programs that we worked so hard to authorize is going to be substantial. And I will say it's power in numbers. So as many groups as you can get to ask for these programs, right? It's very powerful to have partnerships with other organizations and to be able to go to broad coalitions and get as many organizations as possible asking for funding for these forensic nursing programs. So that is gonna be something that I think IEFN can think about for the future. I would also say- Thanks, Anne. Oh, go ahead. I would say continued education and keeping the issues at the forefront is very helpful. We have some groups that came in with terrific apps and programs that they wanted included, but it was at the last minute. And by that time, everything was baked. So I would say if there's already standalone bills that are out there that have bipartisan support, it was easier to include those in the VAWA reauthorization than it was to start from scratch right at the end. So if there's changes or alternative programs or different funding that you all are looking for in the next reauthorization, I think educating and starting those apps earlier than later. So they're socialized with staff, with members, and there's bipartisan support. That makes it more realistic that it'll be included in the final package. Thanks so much for that. And you guys really proved that you're good staffers because you've answered all the questions I had, even my follow-up question that we didn't give to you beforehand. That's fabulous. But along the lines of implementation, you make such a good point that it's so important to advocate both the Hill, but also the administration as it carries out this new law. I guess you raised a good point about coming to you and sharing with you feedback and advocacy and needs and understanding that. But because the VAWA reauthorization package, it has lots of different grant programs that were part of legacy VAWA, then SASCA was added in and the SANE Act. And we've got a lot of these programs that are now, that it would be very easy for each one to have a separate constituency and kind of dilute the overall message of, hey, we need to increase access to forensic nurses. We need to make sure that the care patients get is top-notch. So beyond working with other organizations, how do we ensure that the message isn't diluted? And one group just says, hey, only SASCA is necessary or, hey, only the SANE Act, that's the most important thing. How do we ensure that the whole package really grows? And as you all and your bosses work to fund this every year, how do we keep that message really focused on the whole thing? Yeah, I think you raised some really good points. And I think what I intend to do is really work with the administration and educate them on the intention behind all the initiatives, because I think unless you really know the issues, it is confusing about, I mean, there's so many programs that look similar, honestly. But I think the reason that we came to this conclusion to put all these different programs is that there's needs specifically that need to be addressed through all of those programs. So the need is there, right? And making sure that they understand that they're not duplicative, they understand that they're not just for one constituency is gonna be key. And that's why I think it's key for you all to identify all of the stakeholders, who are those different constituencies that were behind these different initiatives? They all clearly have a voice, all clearly are representing need in this space. Work with them ahead of time, make sure everyone's on the same page and go to the administration kind of together as a coalition if not as a coalition with already having several conversations. Because I think the hardest thing at the executive level, at the legislative level is that it's so hard that we don't have the time necessarily to work through dynamics between different groups representing different constituencies, we're just trying to meet needs. And so it's much, I think the NTF, the National Task Force to End Domestic Violence is a really, really, really good example. They've been around for a long time and they have a really broad, vast coalition with different perspectives. And they argue a lot about different priorities and figuring out like how to serve all of their constituencies. But what they do is they kind of go on their own, they have their arguments on their own and they kind of decide collectively, okay, even though this, let's work together to make sure the broader need is getting met, even if we have disagreements on kind of a policy level with different groups perspective, and they're able somehow, with I think they have 30 or 40, I know it's not really public amount of members they have, but they're able to come to the Hill together and they are one of the most powerful, sometimes difficult coalitions to work with and most affable because they're so powerful, because they have so many groups and so many people behind them. So I think it's an example of where if it's done well, it could be very successful, but it's very difficult. And we understand also as a staff level that it can be challenging to have some of those conversations for sure. I would add that I think oftentimes a breakdown and giving staffers, particularly on the appropriations committee, a breakdown of the different programs that are important and why they don't overlap, just very top line, because as Sylvia and Tim will tell you, if you hand us more than a page of information, we probably aren't gonna read all of it. But if you give us the very top line of, this is the program, this is why it's important and why it's distinct from the others on the list, I think that is really helpful in distinguishing different priorities and why they are not overlapping necessary in their own right. Oh, thank you, that's really helpful. And obviously, yeah, there's always more strength in numbers and it makes a great deal of sense to work within the community. And I think that we saw that certainly in this case. Christina, Nicole, are there questions from the chat? I haven't been following that. Are there questions from the chat to highlight? There are. So one of the big questions that I think we had a few times was when will new programs filter down to the state level and what does that process look like? Christina, you're nodding. Do you wanna take that one? I can. Do you want me to jump in, Christina? Because it's appropriations and we're in the middle of that right now. Yeah, go. So we're actually in the middle of appropriations for fiscal year 23 right now. So even though the bill has been passed into law, the agencies cannot put out the RFPs or anything like that for these programs until they receive funding for the programs. So I think that's a big misconception that once something gets passed into law and we authorize funding, the money's right there and the agencies can go right in and start right away. But we actually have to secure funding for all the programs, the new programs that we recently authorized in VAWA. So we're working directly with the Appropriations Committee right now, but that process could take anywhere from six months to a year, depending on Congress. And I'm hoping, hoping, hoping we pass the budget before the end of the year, this year. But who knows? It's an exciting game here in Washington, DC. If I could really tell you, I would, but I truly do not know. But once we have done that, then we will actually know which programs have received funding and we'll have a better sense of when they'll be available at the state level. But I know everyone is eager to start the work and start the training programs, but we do have some hurdles to just jump through before we can do that. Yeah, I think we certainly appreciate that perspective. And, you know, I think a follow-up question we might get, this group, of course, is very familiar with all the letter writing and the mobilizing that we did during VAWA. Is there something similar that might be appropriate during this process? And you're right, you know, it is a process six months to a year, but are there things or ways we can advocate and is the timing where it needs to be right now where our voice would still have influence? Yes, I think there's two things. You should definitely be engaging with HRSA and the implementing agencies, even while we wait on the funding, because there's still gonna be things like the Technical Assistance Center. I mean, pretty much, if I think back to SASCA and the other forensic programs, all of it pretty much does require funding and has authorizations for funding. So we will kind of be in a waiting game, but still engaging with them and saying, well, hi, this is a program that we're working on, but still engaging with them and saying, well, hi, we're IAFN, we worked really hard on this bill. This is our intentions, because this is a really important opportunity to clarify what was the intent behind our legislation and what we meant, because the interpretation of that can, as we know, can always be vastly different. And so engaging on that is gonna be important while you're engaging with the Appropriations Committee and trying to ask for additional funding. And I'm sorry for the noise here. We're all trying, Labor H is actually due today for staff, so we're scrambling to get it all in. Understood, understood. Well, we have a couple of minutes left. Certainly wanna look through the chat and see if there are any other big questions we missed. Also, now that, like I said, the ink is sort of dry, we can't thank you enough, both Christina and Anna, if there are any war stories you'd like to entertain us with for a couple of minutes. We also understand the need to kind of vent or release. This is certainly a friendly audience. And again, we can't thank you enough for all the work that you've done for forensic nurses and the populations they serve. I just wanna say thank you for all you do on a day-to-day basis. It is critically important, and we know there are more resources needed. For example, in Iowa, we've heard that there is only one 24-hour SANE nurse on call and there definitely needs to be more funding, more resources, more help there. And it's a hard job. And I know the Senator really appreciates everything everybody does, and it is vitally important. Well, we are so grateful. I'm sorry, Anna, I saw you come off mute, go ahead. No, I just wanted to say that I agree with Christina and I really have a newfound respect for Senator Ernst, Feinstein, Durbin, and my boss. Seeing them, I think the five of us staff have become really close, but also just seeing the members interact themselves and some good war stories are that there were multiple times where we had hurdles getting in our way to passing VAWA, and our members all came together and were just all so passionate and all so focused. And if it wasn't for their personal drive to get this done, no matter what, despite politics, we wouldn't be here. So it's pretty inspiring. I think it's hopeful in this very partisan world that we live in. But I love talking about VAWA because it really is pretty amazing what happened that we got it done. Just from the boss's perspective, they pushed so hard, so. Well, you raise an awesome point. It's easy to watch the news or read the news and become discouraged about partisanship and how our country cannot come together, but really awesome. What a great little vignette, right? Something that we can point to that where both parties came together and passed really meaningful legislation that's gonna result in helping patients. And that's really ultimately what it's about. And so we really are very grateful to both of you. We know that not everybody on the call may realize how many hours you all put in and how many weekends you sacrifice and evenings. And so we thank you for that. We thank you for taking time out of a busy, very busy schedule this week to talk to us. So thank you. And so we're at time, but thank you everyone for being here today. We really appreciate Christina and Anna. Thank you so much. And thanks to all of our members. Amy just did add in the chat that the webinar will be loaded into the Online Learning Center by the end of the week. You will receive an email for that. Please remember to complete the evaluation to receive your CE. And thank you. We really hope you all have a wonderful afternoon.

Violence Against Women Act

VAWA

reauthorization

advocacy efforts

collaboration

education

clear messaging

legislation

implementation process

engagement

implementing agencies

funding

program success