MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2014 Regular Session
To: Public Health and Human Services
By: Representative Currie
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 93-21-101, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO DEFINE CERTAIN TERMS FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE GRANT PROGRAM FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTERS; TO AMEND SECTION 93-21-107, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT ANY STATE-SOURCE GRANT TO A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTER SHALL BE MATCHED WITH A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF LOCAL FUNDS; TO PROVIDE THAT GRANTS MADE TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTERS WITH STATE FUNDS SHALL BE INFLATED BY A GENERAL CPI INFLATOR TO MAINTAIN THE BUYING POWER OF THE GRANTS; TO AMEND SECTION 93-21-109, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT ANY EMPLOYEE OR AGENT OF A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTER WHO DISCLOSES ANY CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION OR MAKES ANY COMMENT ABOUT THE IDENTITY OR CONDITION OF ANY PERSON ADMITTED TO THE SHELTER IS CIVILLY LIABLE TO THE PERSON WHOSE PERSONAL INFORMATION WAS DISCLOSED; TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 93-21-103, 93-21-105, 93-21-111, 93-21-113, 93-21-115 AND 93-21-117, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR THE PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 93-21-101, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
93-21-101. As used in Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a) "Abuse" means the occurrence of one or more of the following acts between family or household members who reside together or who formerly resided together:
(i) Attempting to cause or intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causing bodily injury or serious bodily injury with or without a deadly weapon;
(ii) Placing, by physical menace or threat, another in fear of imminent serious bodily injury; or
(iii) Criminal sexual conduct committed against a minor within the meaning of Section 97-5-23.
(b) "Domestic violence shelter" means a place established to provide temporary food and shelter, counseling, and related services to victims of domestic violence or interpersonal violence.
(c) "Interpersonal violence" means any behavior between family members and intimate partners, but also between acquaintances and strangers, that causes physical, psychological, or sexual harm and includes the crimes of domestic violence, stalking, sexual assault, trafficking, child sexual abuse, and related crimes.
(d) "Batterer intervention program" means a program that focuses on behavior modification for perpetrators of domestic violence in an effort to prevent domestic violence from reoccurring. This does not include programs focusing on anger management or marriage counseling. Any batterer intervention program must document cooperation with a domestic violence shelter.
SECTION 2. Section 93-21-103, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
93-21-103. There is hereby established a program for victims of domestic violence through domestic violence shelters.
SECTION 3. Section 93-21-105, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
93-21-105. The criteria which must be met by domestic violence shelters to qualify for state funding shall include all of the following:
(a) Geographic distribution throughout the entire State of Mississippi requiring that there be at least one (1) shelter in each of the nine (9) districts of the Mississippi Highway Safety Patrol as such districts existed on July 1, 1982, prior to funding more than one (1) shelter in a highway safety patrol district. More than one (1) shelter may be funded in a highway safety patrol district upon a showing of documented need.
(b) The shelter's ability to provide services.
(c) The shelter's ability to secure community support, including written endorsements of local officials and organizations.
(d) The shelter's administrative design and efficiency. However, domestic violence shelters in existence on the effective date of Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113 which have met the requirements of Section 93-21-107 shall be given priority in funding.
SECTION 4. Section 93-21-107, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
93-21-107. (1) To qualify for funds under the provisions of Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113, a domestic violence shelter shall meet all the following requirements:
(a) Be incorporated in the state or recognized by the Secretary of State as a private or public nonprofit corporation. Such corporation shall have a board of directors and/or an advisory committee who represents the racial, ethnic and social economic diversity of the area to be served, including, if possible, at least one (1) person who is or has been a victim of domestic violence.
(b) Have designed and developed a program to provide the following basic services to victims of domestic violence and their children:
(i) Shelter on a
twenty-four * * *-hour
a day, seven * * *-day
a week basis.
(ii) A twenty-four * * *-hour, seven * * *-day a week switchboard for
crisis calls.
(iii) Temporary housing and food facilities.
(iv) Group support and peer counseling.
(v) Referrals to existing services in the community and follow-up on the outcome of the referrals.
(vi) A method of referral for medical care, legal assistance and group support and counseling of victims of domestic violence.
(vii) Information regarding reeducation, marriage and family counseling, job counseling, and training programs, housing referrals, and other available social services.
(viii) A referral program of counseling for the victim and the offender.
(2) Domestic violence shelters shall establish procedures for admission of victims of domestic violence who may seek admission to these shelters on a voluntary basis.
(3) A domestic violence shelter shall not qualify for funds if it discriminates in its admissions or provision of services on the basis of race, religion, color, age, marital status, national origin or ancestry.
(4) Any state-source
grant made to a domestic violence shelter shall be matched with local funds in
an amount not less than twenty-five percent (25%) of the operational cost
of * * * the
domestic violence shelter * * *shall be derived from local revenue sources of the local community served
by the program. The local contribution may not include in-kind
contributions.
(5) A domestic violence shelter receiving state funding under the provisions of Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113 shall not be prohibited from accepting gifts, trusts, bequests, grants, endowments, federal funds, other special source funds or transfers of property of any kind for the support of that shelter program.
(6) * * * The
State Department of Health shall insure that no grant made to a domestic
violence shelter with state funds is in an amount that exceeds Fifty Thousand
Dollars ($50,000.00) inflated by a general CPI inflator to insure that the
grant offers domestic violence shelters the same buying power that a grant of
Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00) provided in 1983.
(7) A domestic violence shelter shall require persons employed by or volunteering services to the shelter to maintain the confidentiality of any information that would identify individuals served by the shelter.
(8) A domestic violence shelter shall provide educational programs relating to battered spouses and domestic violence designed for both the community at large and/or specialized groups such as hospital personnel and law enforcement officials.
(9) No child shall be placed in any domestic violence shelter that receives state funding under these provisions of Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113, and no domestic violence shelter that receives state funding under these provisions may admit or accept any child, unless the child is accompanied by his parent or guardian and such parent or guardian will remain with the child in the shelter until the child leaves or is released from the shelter. However, this subsection shall not prevent any rape crisis center from providing care, counseling and related services to any child who is a victim of rape, attempted rape, sexual battery or attempted sexual battery and who is not accompanied by his parent or guardian.
SECTION 5. Section 93-21-109, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
93-21-109. (1) Records maintained by domestic violence shelters, except the official minutes of the board of directors of the shelter, and financial reports filed as required by statute with the board of supervisors or municipal authorities or any other agency of government, shall be withheld from public disclosure under the provisions of the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983.
(2) Any employee, contractor, volunteer, or agent of a domestic violence shelter who discloses any information that is exempt from disclosure under the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983, or makes any observation or comment about the identify or condition of any person admitted to a domestic violence shelter unless directed to do so by an order of a court of competent jurisdiction, shall be civilly liable to the person whose personal information was disclosed in the amount of Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), plus any compensatory damages that the person may have suffered as the result of the disclosure.
(3) (a) No employee, contractor, volunteer, or agent of a domestic violence shelter shall be compelled to testify in any civil matter, or surrender any documents, files, or other records of the shelter, regarding a victim of domestic violence or sexual assault without the consent of the victim, except as provided in this section.
(b) A defendant may request from the court an in camera review of the materials in possession of any shelter employees, contractors, agents, or volunteers to determine if
there would be a good cause for allowing disclosure of these materials. In deciding on disclosure, the court shall consider the following factors:
(i) The materiality of the information to the defense; and
(ii) The effect that disclosure may have on the victim and the victim's relationship with the employee, contractor, volunteer, or agent of the shelter.
(4) A resident or staff member of a domestic violence shelter shall not be required to disclose the street address or physical location of that shelter to any public or private agency. In all cases where the provision of a physical address is required, a post office box address for the domestic violence shelter shall be deemed sufficient.
SECTION 6. Section 93-21-111, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
93-21-111. A domestic violence shelter that receives funds pursuant to the provisions of Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113 shall file at a minimum an annual report with the commission of budget and accounting and other data reports as requested. A copy of the annual report shall also be furnished to the chairmen of the pensions, social welfare and public health committee of the Mississippi House of Representatives and the public health and welfare committee of the Mississippi Senate. The annual report shall include statistics on the number of persons served by the shelter, the relationship of the victim of domestic violence to the offender, the number of referrals made for medical, psychological, financial, educational, vocational, child care, or legal services, and shall include the results of an independent audit. No information contained in the report shall identify any person served by the shelter, or enable any person to determine the identity of any such person.
SECTION 7. Section 93-21-113, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
93-21-113. Domestic violence shelters through their employees and officials shall, on every occasion other than the initial request for assistance, report to the district attorney, the county attorney, or the appropriate law enforcement official or other state agencies any occurrence or instance coming to their attention which would involve the commission of a crime or the failure to perform or render a service or assistance to a victim of domestic violence when required by law to do so.
Every municipal prosecutor, county attorney, district attorney or other appropriate law enforcement official who, having had reported to him a case of domestic violence, if the facts submitted be sufficient, shall immediately file charges against the offender on the behalf of the victim. Such prosecutor may in plea bargaining with the offender enter into an agreement whereby the offender shall receive counseling in lieu of further prosecution, and if the offender shall successfully attend counseling as agreed upon for the period of time agreed upon, the municipal prosecutor, county attorney or district attorney, as the case may be, shall pass such case to the file.
No municipal prosecutor, county attorney or district attorney shall grant such right in plea bargaining to the same offender more than once.
SECTION 8. Section 93-21-115, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
93-21-115. The governing authorities of any municipality in the state are hereby authorized and empowered, in their discretion, to donate annually out of any money in the municipal treasury such sums as the governing authorities deem advisable to support any domestic violence shelter or rape crisis center operating within or serving its area. For the purposes of this section, "rape crisis center" means a place established to provide care, counseling and related services to victims of rape, attempted rape, sexual battery or attempted sexual battery.
SECTION 9. Section 93-21-117, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
93-21-117. (1) There is hereby created in the State Treasury a special fund to be known as the "Victims of Domestic Violence Fund." The fund shall be a continuing fund, not subject to fiscal-year limitations, and shall consist of:
(a) Monies appropriated by the Legislature;
(b) The interest accruing to the fund;
(c) Monies received under the provisions of Section 99-19-73;
(d) Monies received from the federal government;
(e) Donations;
(f) Assessments collected pursuant to Section 83-39-31; and
(g) Monies received from such other sources as may be provided by law.
(2) The circuit clerks of the state shall deposit in the fund on a monthly basis the additional fee charged and collected for marriage licenses under the provisions of Section 25-7-13, Mississippi Code of 1972.
(3) All other monies received from every source for the support of the program for victims of domestic violence, established by Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113, shall be deposited in the "Victims of Domestic Violence Fund." The monies in the fund shall be used by the State Department of Health solely for funding and administering domestic violence shelters under the provisions of Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113, in such amounts as the Legislature may appropriate to the department for the program for victims of domestic violence established by Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113. Not more than ten percent (10%) of the monies in the "Victims of Domestic Violence Fund" shall be appropriated to the State Department of Health for the administration of domestic violence shelters.
SECTION 10. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2014.