PRINTER'S NO. 4676
No. 870 Session of 2006
INTRODUCED BY HARHART, ARGALL, BAKER, BALDWIN, BENNINGHOFF,
BISHOP, BOYD, CAUSER, CAWLEY, CLYMER, CORNELL, CRAHALLA,
CREIGHTON, DONATUCCI, FAIRCHILD, FICHTER, FLEAGLE, FREEMAN,
GEORGE, GINGRICH, GOOD, GRUCELA, HARPER, HENNESSEY, HESS,
HUTCHINSON, KENNEY, KILLION, LEDERER, MAJOR, MANDERINO,
MARKOSEK, McCALL, McILHATTAN, S. MILLER, MUNDY, MUSTIO,
NAILOR, O'NEILL, PALLONE, PARKER, PAYNE, PHILLIPS, PICKETT,
PISTELLA, RAMALEY, REICHLEY, ROBERTS, ROSS, RUBLEY, SCAVELLO,
SEMMEL, SOLOBAY, STERN, R. STEVENSON, TANGRETTI, TIGUE,
TURZAI, YOUNGBLOOD, B. SMITH, SANTONI, HERSHEY AND
E. Z. TAYLOR, OCTOBER 3, 2006
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
OCTOBER 3, 2006
A RESOLUTION
1 Designating the month of October 2006 as "Domestic Violence
2 Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania.
3 WHEREAS, Home should be a place of warmth, unconditional
4 love, tranquility and security; and
5 WHEREAS, For most of us, home and family are among our
6 greatest blessings, but for many families, these blessings are
7 tarnished by violence and fear; and
8 WHEREAS, The crime of domestic violence violates an
9 individual's dignity, security and humanity through the
10 systematic use of physical, emotional, sexual and psychological
11 control or abuse; and
12 WHEREAS, Every risk, every injury and every disruption
13 domestic violence victims endure is one that their children
1 experience as well; and
2 WHEREAS, In 90% of elder abuse and neglect incidents, the
3 perpetrator is a family member; and
4 WHEREAS, Each year in the United States close to 1 million
5 individuals are victimized and more than 1,000 die as the result
6 of domestic violence; and
7 WHEREAS, Each year in Pennsylvania more than 100,000 victims
8 and their children seek services from community-based domestic
9 violence programs which provide 24-hour emergency hotlines,
10 shelter, counseling, legal advocacy, health advocacy, children's
11 programs, transitional housing and many other free, confidential
12 services; and
13 WHEREAS, In 2005, 150 women, men and children were murdered
14 by family members or intimate partners in 122 domestic violence
15 incidents in this Commonwealth; and
16 WHEREAS, Employers are realizing that domestic violence can
17 have dramatic and far-reaching consequences in their workplaces;
18 and
19 WHEREAS, Research shows that the annual cost of lost
20 productivity due to domestic violence is estimated at $727.8
21 million, including more than 7.9 million paid workdays lost each
22 year; and
23 WHEREAS, The health care-related costs of rape, physical
24 assault, stalking and homicide by intimate partners exceed $5.8
25 billion each year, with nearly $4.1 billion of this amount spent
26 on direct medical and mental health services and $1.8 billion
27 attributable to productivity losses; and
28 WHEREAS, There remains a critical need for funding to enhance
29 safety for families and communities, secure justice for victims
30 and create lasting systems for social change; therefore be it
20060H0870R4676 - 2 -
1 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives designate the
2 month of October 2006 as "Domestic Violence Awareness Month" in
3 Pennsylvania and encourage all Pennsylvanians to take steps in
4 their personal and professional lives to promote victim
5 assistance and offender accountability and to support local
6 domestic violence programs.
I26L82JS/20060H0870R4676 - 3 -