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POLICY & LEGISLATION
Lasting change requires policies that support survivors and strengthen the systems that serve them
The Alliance Against Sexual Violence (The Alliance) works at the city, state, and federal levels to advance policies that strengthen the sexual violence sector and create meaningful change for survivors and communities. Our policy priorities center on three areas: Stabilizing the Sector, Addressing System Gaps, and Improving Survivor Supports.
Our policy advocacy focuses on achieving three key goals:
Improve Survivor Supports
Strengthening the supports and resources available to survivors throughout their healing and recovery.
Address System Gaps
Advancing more coordinated, equitable, and effective responses to sexual violence across institutions and communities.
Stabilize the Sector
Building a strong, sustainable sexual violence sector equipped to serve survivors and communities.
$12.6M included in the 2025 New York State Budget for sexual violence response as a result of The Alliance’s advocacy.
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NEW YORK STATE
Ensures that truthful statements made about a survivor’s experience are protected from retaliatory defamation lawsuit.
Prevents cases filed under the Child Victims Act & Adult Survivors Act from being unnecessarily dismissed.
Cases against a public entity require stricter pleading requirements and specific information about time and place of incident that many survivors cannot produce due to trauma or other factors.
This bill would ensure these rigid requirements do not result in further cases being dismissed.
NEW YORK CITY
The Sexual Assault Initiative (SAI) is composed of five New York City based sexual violence intervention programs: The Alliance, Crime Victims Treatment Center (CVTC), Kingsbridge Heights Community Center (KHCC), Mount Sinai’s Sexual Assault and Violence Intervention Program (SAVI), and North Brooklyn Coalition Against Family Violence.
SAI focuses on implementing primary and secondary prevention efforts to decrease how often sexual violence occurs and to advocate for systemic change to ensure survivor support services are: survivor-centered, trauma informed, and holistic.
FEDERAL
VOCA funds – obtained from criminal fines and penalties, not taxpayer dollars – enable domestic violence programs and rape crisis centers to serve over six million survivors annually with essential services like shelter, counseling, and legal advocacy.
Annually, VOCA disbursements are $2 Billion.
We have much work ahead of us, but I know that staying grounded in the needs of partner organizations and the survivors we ultimately serve will point us in the direction of a brighter future.
Emily Miles
Executive Director
Learn More About Our Work
Training & Technical Assistance
Students, faculty, and staff, have been trained, helping them foster a culture of prevention, support, and accountability on their campuses
Prevention
Students, faculty, and staff, have been trained, helping them foster a culture of prevention, support, and accountability on their campuses
Research
Nightlife staff members across all five boroughs have been trained to respond to sexual violence and in lower rates of harm at venues.