Public Policy

For more than 30 years, IowaCASA has advocated on behalf of sexual assault survivors, their families, and the victim service programs that serve them. We actively work with state and federal officials to shape public policy and legislation that empowers survivors and maintains consistent funding for services.

Click here to view our 2022 Legislative Priorities.

Since its inception, the coalition has celebrated a number of legislative victories, most notably:

1989: The coalition helped pass legislation to criminalize marital rape in Iowa. By 1993, all 50 states enacted similar legislation.

Gov. Branstad signed the Sexual Assault Civil Protective Order in May 2017.

1998: The coalition passed laws related to victims of crime, including some important provisions for survivors, such as the right to confidentiality; the right to have a victim counselor present; the right to make a victim impact statement; training requirements for victim advocates; victim compensation; and more!
2009: ensuring that sexual assault services program funding became a reality for victim service programs.
2017: After a 10-year fight, we passed civil protective order legislation for sexual assault survivors. Up until that point, only domestic violence survivors were able to attain a civil protective order against the person who harmed them.
2017: During the 2017 legislative session, policymakers cut victim service budgets by 26 percent. This cut greatly limited access to services and options for some of Iowa’s most vulnerable community members. We continue our work every year at the state legislature to make the case for sustained funding of victim services.