Please take a few minutes on Tuesday, May 14, to email your legislators and ask them to support the thousands of New Yorkers experiencing domestic violence every day. DV survivors require access to resources and services that can enhance their own safety, and the safety of their families, and rebuild their lives.
Below you will find a template email and link to talking points. We encourage you to tailor the sample email to highlight any other information you feel your legislators should be aware of (e.g., impacts to your program, what you are seeing in the field, nuances specific to DV programs and the victim/survivors you work with, etc.). When sending your email, please attach the supporting documents in the Legislator Packet (attached below).
Sample Outreach Email
Subject: NYSCADV’s 2024 Legislative Day of Action
Dear {Assembly member/Senator + last name},
I am writing to you today as a/an {advocate, program director, executive director, etc.} at {your organization}.
Domestic violence (DV) victim advocates, survivors, allies, and community members from across the state are joining together today for the New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence’s (NYSCADV’s) 2024 Day of Action. Our message to state legislators is clear: Thousands of New Yorkers experience domestic violence every day. They require access to resources and services that can help them enhance their own safety, and the safety of their families, and rebuild their lives. By investing in critical, life-sustaining services, legislators can ensure survivors have the support they need to heal and move forward.
Unfortunately, New York State continues to have the highest demand for domestic violence services in the country. According to the National Network to End Domestic Violence’s national Domestic Violence Counts survey, on one day in New York in 2023, 9,411 adult and child victims of DV received services – a 62% increase in demand since before the pandemic. More troubling, on that same day, more than 1,000 victims did not receive the help they requested due to a lack of resources and staff.
DV advocates are supporting the following legislation to enhance the ability of survivors to access assistance and enhance their safety, and to support DV advocates in their work:
1. A.8437A Hevesi/S.7793A Persaud: Would add residential and non-residential DV programs, OVS-licensed crime victim service programs and DOH-licensed rape crisis programs, among others, to designated human services programs eligible for cost-of-living adjustments;
2. A.3346C Hevesi/S.3170C Skoufis: Called Kyra’s Law, would require courts to conduct a prompt evidentiary hearing to review any findings or allegations of DV, child abuse, and child neglect before issuing orders of custody or visitation;
3. A.2583 Hevesi/S.15 Gounardes: Called the Securing Access to Fair and Equal (S.A.F.E.) Shelter Act, would expand shelter capacity for single adult DV victims by requiring the state to provide full reimbursement when a shelter room intended for double occupancy is used to house a single individual;
4. A.1309B L. Rosenthal/S.2278A Cleare: Would permit DV survivors to dispute coerced debt; and,
5. A.9616 L. Rosenthal/S.9174 Gounardes: Would require vehicle manufacturers and dealers to terminate an abuser’s access to remote vehicle technology at the request of a DV survivor who shows proof of ownership and an Order of Protection.
If you would like more information, I can be reached at {phone number}, or you can contact Joan Gerhardt, Director of Public Policy and Advocacy at NYSCADV, at jgerhardt@nyscadv.org.
Sincerely,
{Your name and title}
LEGISLATOR PACKET ATTACHMENTS
- Day of Action Priorities
- 5 Memos of Support
- DV Counts Summary
- DV Counts Flyer
