(a) In order to be certified, each domestic violence center shall do all of the following:
(1) Provide a facility that shall serve as a center to receive and house persons who are victims of domestic violence. For the purpose of this chapter, minor children and other dependents of a victim, when the dependents are partly or wholly dependent on the victim for support or services, may be sheltered with the victim in a domestic violence center.
(2) Provide minimum services which shall include, but not be limited to, information and referral services, counseling and case management services, temporary emergency shelter for more than 24 hours for adult victims and their accompanying children, a 24-hour hotline, training for law enforcement personnel, assessment and appropriate referral of resident children, outreach services as defined by standards for counties without a physical emergency shelter facility, and educational services for community awareness relative to the incidence of domestic violence, the prevention of domestic violence, and the care, treatment, and rehabilitation for persons engaged in or subject to domestic violence. If a 24-hour hotline, professional training, or community education is already provided by a certified domestic violence center within its designated service area, the director may exempt the certification requirements for a new domestic violence center serving the same service area in order to avoid duplication of services.
(3) Comply with the requirements for training and continuing education adopted by the director.
(4) Comply with rules adopted pursuant to this chapter.
(5) Comply with rules adopted by the director relating to confidential communications and privileges under this chapter.
(6)a. If the domestic violence center is a new center applying for certification on or after January 1, 2016, demonstrate that the services provided address a need identified in the most current statewide needs assessment approved by the director. If the center applying for initial certification proposes providing services in an area that has an existing certified domestic violence center, the center applying for initial certification shall demonstrate an unmet need in that service area and describe its efforts to avoid duplication of services.
b. The Department of Economic and Community Affairs may adopt rules for the implementation of this subdivision.
(b) Each domestic violence center shall satisfy domestic violence standards adopted by the director.
(c) If the director finds that there is a failure by a domestic violence center to comply with the requirements and standards established under this chapter or with any rules adopted pursuant thereto, the director may deny, suspend, or revoke the certification, or may temporarily extend the certification to allow the domestic violence center to implement a corrective action plan.
(d) The annual certificate automatically expires on June 30 of each year unless it is renewed. This subsection applies to a center operating on or before January 1, 2016.
(e) Domestic violence centers shall establish procedures pursuant to which persons subject to domestic violence may seek services from these facilities on a voluntary basis.
(f) Each domestic violence center shall be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation and shall have a board composed of at least three citizens, one of whom shall be a member of a local, municipal, or county law enforcement agency.
(g) In order to receive funding from the Domestic Violence Trust Fund and other state funds, a domestic violence center shall do all of the following:
(1) Obtain certification pursuant to this chapter; provided, however, the issuance of a certification does not obligate the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs to provide monies distributed through the Domestic Violence Trust Fund.
(2) Receive at least 10 percent of its funding from one or more local, municipal, or county sources, public or private, provided contributions in kind, whether materials, commodities, transportation, office space, other types of facilities, or personal services, may be evaluated and counted as part of the required local funding.
(h)(1) All funds collected and appropriated for certified domestic violence centers shall be distributed equitably by the director.
(2) A contract between the director and a certified domestic violence center shall contain provisions ensuring the availability and geographic necessity of services throughout the service area. For this purpose, a center may distribute funds through subcontracts or to center satellites, if such arrangements and any subcontracts are approved by the director.
(3) The director may allocate funds from the Domestic Violence Trust Fund for the administration and enforcement of Act 2015-493, including law enforcement training.
(i) If any of the minimum services provided under this section are exempted from certification by the director under this section, the domestic violence center may not receive funding from the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs for those services.
Last modified: May 3, 2021