What Have the Biden-Harris Administration and Dems Done?

• • Forgave nearly $400B in student loans and student loan interest which will significantly benefit women who hold ⅔ of all student loan debt and women of color who hold more debt than white women. On August 24, 2022, President Biden announced his historic plan to address student loan debt – for more details, see the Education & Student Loans section.
  • Passed a bill to codify Roe v. Wade. House Democrats passed a bill in the House to codify Roe. (Blocked by Senate Republicans.)
  • Passed a bill to protect the right to interstate travel by people seeking an lawful abortion. (Blocked by Senate Republicans.)
  • Taken extensive action to protect the right to abortion and reproductive care. See the Abortion and Reproductive Care section for more details.
  • Passed the American Rescue Plan (ARP) and Build Back Better (in the House only) – both of which expanded (and would further expand) economic opportunities and support for women in the workforce.
    • • ARP provided (and continues to provide) economic relief, reduced healthcare costs, reduced childcare costs, reduced child poverty, reduced housing costs (the majority of emergency rental assistance went to female-headed household), expanded postpartum healthcare coverage, and protected pensions in danger of failing. All of which helped women and especially working mothers and single mothers: in 2021, women’s unemployment fell from 16.1% to 3.5% between April 2020 and April 2021.
      • BBB, if passed in the Senate, would increase investment in education, child and eldercare, paid family and medical leave and housing – all of which will enable women to work and earn more income. (Note: Because of the high cost of childcare and elderly care, US female participation in the workforce is among the lowest for developed countries.)
  • Passed the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization. After Republicans prevented the VAWA’s reauthorization in 1994, Democrats finally reauthorized VAWA as part of the 2022 Omnibus Reconciliation Bill. This legislation includes:
    • • Expanded criminal jurisdiction for Tribal courts to prosecute non-Native perpetrators.
      • Increased services and support for sexual assault/domestic violence survivors in underserved communities.
      • Established a federal “civil cause of action” for individuals whose private images are shared without their consent, allowing victims to recover damages and legal fees.
      • Created a new National Resource Center on Cyber Crimes Against Individuals.
      • Implemented the Fairness for Rape Kit Backlog Survivors Act, requiring victim compensation programs to allow sexual assault survivors to file for compensation without being unfairly penalized due to rape kit backlogs.
      • Supported rape prevention and sexual assault survivor programs.
      • Updated the SMART Prevention Program and the CHOOSE Youth Program to reduce dating violence, help children who have been exposed to domestic violence, and engage men in preventing violence.
      • Improved the healthcare system’s response to domestic violence and sexual assault, including through enhanced training for sexual assault forensic examiners.
  • Raised the federal minimum wage for federal contractors and workers through Biden’s executive order. Biden’s executive order increased the minimum wage for federal contractors and workers significantly benefitting women and women of color who make up a significant percentage of the federal workforce.
  • Increased funding for domestic violence and sexual assault services. The American Rescue Plan earmarked $1B for these services, and $50M for culturally-specific community-based organizations that help survivors in marginalized communities access services and support.
  • Provided 70K housing vouchers for victims of domestic violence or sexual assault. The American Rescue Plan provided housing choice vouchers to local Public Housing Authorities for people fleeing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, or human trafficking.
  • Reformed policies for investigating and prosecuting sexual assault and harassment in military courts. The National Defense Authorization Act included reforms fundamentally shifting how the military prosecutes and investigates sexual assault, domestic violence, sexual harassment, and other serious crimes, and increases prevention initiatives and support for survivors.
  • Instructed the government to develop policies and procedures to increase pay equity among federal contractors.
  • Worked to improved safety and justice for Native American & Indigenous women. Biden issued an executive order directing the DOJ, Interior, Homeland Security and HHS to improve public safety and justice for Native Americans and to address the epidemic of missing or murdered Indigenous peoples, which disproportionately affect Native women, girls, and LGBTQI+ individuals. Interior also established the Missing and Murdered Unit to pursue justice for missing or murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives.
  • Implemented policies to reduce maternal mortality. Biden implemented policies to reduce unacceptably high maternal mortality rates among Black and Native American women.
  • Expanded Medicare and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) postpartum care. The American Rescue Plan (ARP) allows states to increase pregnancy-related Medicaid and CHIP coverage from 60 days to 12 months postpartum. To date, over 250K people have gained coverage through these Medicaid postpartum extensions.
  • Nominated and confirmed a record-breaking 84 of the most diverse and qualified federal judges . Over 65% of the judges are BIPOC and over 70% of the judges are women.
  • Reached gender parity in the President’s Cabinet for the first time. As part of Biden’s commitment to making diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility a priority in his appointments, Biden has appointed a record number of women and women of color in the federal government – including the first woman to serve as Treasury Secretary, the first woman to serve as Director of National Intelligence, the first Native American woman to serve in the Cabinet, and the first openly transgender, Senate-confirmed federal official.
  • Established the Gender Policy Council (GPC) to advance gender equity domestically and internationally. It is the first free-standing policy council focused on gender equity and equality within the Executive Office of the President.