There is now available new and more accurate data about the extent of violence against women. According to a newly designed Bureau of Justice Statistics survey, “women annually reported about 500,000 rapes and sexual assaults…” Legislation proposing a Federal response to the problem of violence against women was first introduced in 1990. Over the next several years, congressional actions to address public concerns about this problem culminated in the enactment of new penalties under the Violence Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, and the establishment of several grant programs under its Title IV, the Violence Against Women Act (P.L. 103-322). Within the FY1996 appropriations process, the House and Senate have approved funding for several programs under the Violence Against Women Act.