STOP Violence Against Women Formula Grants (VAWA)

Law Enforcement - a public agency charged with policing functions, including any of its component bureaus

Prosecution - any public agency charge with direct responsibility for prosecuting criminal offenders, including such agency’s component bureaus

Victim Services - a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization that assists domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assualt, or stalking victims, including rape crisis centers, domestic violence shelters, faith-based organizations, and other organziations, with a documentated history of effective work concerning domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. 

Courts- any civil or criminal, tribal, and Alaskan Village, Federal, State, Local, or Territorial court having jurisdiction to address domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, including immigration, family, juvenile, and dependency courts, and the judicial officers serving in those courts, including judges, magistrate judges, commissioners, justices of the peace, or any other person with decision-making authority. 

Community Based Organization (an organization that):

• Focuses primarily on domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking;
• Has established a specialized culturally specific program that addresses domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking;
• Has a primary focus on underserved populations (and includes representatives of these populations) and domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking; or
• Obtains expertise, or shows demonstrated capacity to work effectively on domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking through collaboration.

STOP funds may be used for/to:

1. 1. Personnel, training, technical assistance, evaluation, data collection and equipment costs to enhance the apprehension, prosecution and adjudication of persons committing violent crimes against women. Children’s services must be inextricably linked to providing services to victims of domestic violence. For example, STOP funds may support the expansion of shelter services for battered women to include programs for their children.
   2. Transportation costs, in limited circumstances, that are reasonable and would enhance a woman’s safety, including transportation out-of-state.
   3. Operational costs of a facility, such as a shelter, however if the project is supported with funds from other sources as well, i.e. VOCA or other funding, the rent and operational expenses must be prorated among the different funding sources. If the shelter owns its own facility, rent for use of that facility may not be charged to the grant at all; however, related expenses such as utilities and building security may be charged to the grant.
   4. Outreach; to support, inform, and provide outreach to victims about available services. For example, a shelter could distribute brochures listing the signs of domestic violence, describing the services available, and providing a hotline number to access the services. Initiatives designed to reach victims, rather than raise awareness generally, may be supported with STOP funds.
   5. Pro-rated share of food for emergency client needs and the pro-rated share of food purchases for domestic violence shelter resident’s use.
   6. Provide services to incarcerated victims but only to address the domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking victimization experienced by the incarcerated individual, including both crimes experienced while incarcerated and crimes experienced at other points in their youth and adult lives.
   7. Gift cards to clients are only allowable to the extent that they are used for allowable costs under STOP, such as the purchase of emergency food for STOP clients or gas for victims to attend court, appointments etc., related to the victimization. However, agencies must acquire a receipt from the client which documents only allowable items (food or gas-in the example) were purchased. Without copies of these receipts, these costs will be deemed unallowable by OCJP and repayment of these funds will be required.
   8. Rent and Deposits; to cover a victim’s first month’s rent. Deposits are also allowable if the subrecipient has an agreement with the landlord that the full/remaining deposit will be returned to the subrecipient and not the victim at the end of the lease.
   9. Meaningful access; agencies are encouraged to allocate funds to support activities that help to ensure individuals with disabilities and deaf individuals and persons with limited English proficiency have meaningful and full access to their programs. For example, grant funds can be used to support American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter services, language interpretation and translation services, or the purchase of adaptive equipment. Applicants proposing to use grant funds to create websites, videos and other materials must ensure that they are accessible to persons with disabilities and grant funds must be allocated for these purposes.
   10. Services to LGBT victims; to provide services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Gay, bisexual, and transgender male victims who request services cannot be refused such services based on their sex.
   11. School programs; to support programs in schools to the extent that they fit within one or more of the STOP program’s statutory program purpose areas. For example, STOP funds could be used to provide support groups that meet at school for dating violence victims or to provide information to students about services available to help victims of dating violence. However, STOP funds may not support general prevention programs in schools.
   12. Civil Legal Assistance; to support civil legal assistance and advocacy services including legal information and resources and divorce for: 1) victims of domestic violence and 2) non-offending parents in matters that involve allegations of child sexual abuse. Applicants should contact OCJP prior to including divorce services in their STOP project.
   13. Co-location of services, such as Family Justice Centers. However, if any of the underlying services at the center cannot be funded through STOP, such as substance abuse counseling, then the staffing for those services still cannot be supported through this purpose area, just the co-location. For example, co-location costs might include a centralized intake person, rent, or security.
   14. SANE/SAFE programs and related activities including: SANE/SAFE personnel; expert testimony of SANE/SAFE personnel; forensic evidence collection kits ("rape kits"); equipment, such as colposcopes, swab dryers, and lights; outreach efforts to inform victims about available services; victim advocate personnel to accompany victims through the forensic examination process; on-going counseling services for victims; and/or on-call time of the SANE/SAFE personnel.

STOP funds may not be used for/to:

1. 1. Children services; to support services that focus exclusively on children.
   2. Curriculum for primary or secondary schools; to support the development or presentation of a domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence and/or stalking curriculum for primary or secondary schools. Funds may not be used to teach primary or secondary school students from an already existing curriculum
   3. Legal or defense services for perpetrators of violence against women. But they may support batterers’ intervention programs, if the intervention is part of a graduated range of sanctions that use the coercive power of the criminal justice system to hold abusers accountable for their criminal actions and for changing their behavior.
   4. Public awareness campaign; the production or broadcasting of public awareness announcements or  media campaigns or community education campaigns or related activities. Grant funds may be used to support, inform, and conduct outreach to victims about available services.
   5. Support  inherently religious activities.
   6. Lease and/or purchase vehicles.
   7. Renovations; including minor renovations such as painting or replacing carpeting.
   8. Moving; moving household goods to a new location or acquiring furniture or housing in a new location when a survivor is leaving a shelter.
   9. Immigration fees; for immigration fees for battered immigrant women.
   10. Law Enforcement Equipment; including uniforms, safety vests, shields, weapons, bullets, and/or armory.
   11. Drug an Alcohol programs; to pay for chemical dependency or alcohol abuse programs that are not an integral part of a STOP supported court-mandated batterer intervention program.
   12. Research; to conduct research.
   13. Construction projects.
   14. Acquisition of land or real property.
   15. Fundraising; including financial campaigns, endowment drives, solicitation of gifts and bequests, and similar expenses incurred solely to raise capital or obtain contributions.
   16. Substance abuse counseling.
   17. Criminal defense work, including defending women who assault, kill, or otherwise injure their abusers.

Unallowable Costs Relating to Activities that Compromise Victim Safety and Recovery

The following activities have been found to jeopardize victim safety, deter or prevent physical or emotional healing for victims, or allow offenders to escape responsibility for their actions and cannot be supported with STOP funds:

1. 1. Procedures or policies that exclude victims from receiving safe shelter, advocacy services, counseling, and other assistance based on their actual or perceived age, immigration status, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental health condition, physical health condition, criminal record, work in the sex industry, or the age and/or gender of their children.
   2. Procedures or policies that compromise the confidentiality of information and privacy of persons receiving OVW funded services.
   3. Offering perpetrators the option of entering pre-trial diversion programs or placing batterers in anger management programs.
   4. Requiring mediation or counseling for couples as a systemic response to domestic violence or sexual assault or in situations in which child sexual abuse is alleged.
   5. Requiring victims to report sexual assault, stalking, or domestic violence crimes to law enforcement or forcing victims to participate in criminal proceedings.
   6. Relying on court-mandated batterer intervention programs that do not use the coercive power of the criminal justice system to hold batterers accountable for their behavior.
   7. Supporting policies or engaging in practices that impose restrictive conditions to be met by the victim in order to receive services (e.g., attending counseling, seeking an order of protection).