The amendment bill is the same one the party tried to introduce in March 2024 which would criminalise coercive control or “abusive conduct” against a partner or former partner.
But stakeholder organisations have said further education is needed before any laws can be enacted.
ACT Victims of Crime Commissioner Margie Rowe said training and resourcing for police was especially important, as any coercive control law would require officers to investigate patterns of behaviour rather than single incidents.
Ms Rowe said further consultation was particularly needed with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, multicultural groups and LGBTQIA+ communities, as they experienced coercive control in particular ways.
“Further, there needs to be a consideration of how to frame the legislation, to include family violence and not just intimate partner relationships,” she said.
“This is particularly important for older people experiencing elder abuse, which is overwhelmingly coercive. The broader definition of family violence will also capture kinship and family structures for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families.”