I
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2779
To provide grants to establish and operate supervised visitation centers for
the purposes of facilitating supervised visitation of children and visitation
exchange.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
OCTOBER 30, 1997
Mrs. MORELLA (for herself, Mr. SCHUMER, Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut,
Mr. DAVIS of Virginia, Ms. FURSE, Ms. CARSON, Mr. VENTO, Mr.
STARK, Mr. FROST, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. HINCHEY, and Mr. SANDERS) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Ju-
diciary
A BILL
To provide grants to establish and operate supervised visita-
tion centers for the purposes of facilitating supervised
visitation of children and visitation exchange.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Safe Havens for Chil-
dren Act of 1997’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following:
(1) Family violence does not necessarily cease
when family victims are legally separated by divorce
or otherwise not sharing a household.
(2) According to a 1996 report by the American
Psychological Association, custody and visitation dis-
putes are more frequent when there is a history of
domestic violence.
(3) Family violence often escalates following
separation and divorce, and child custody and visita-
tion arrangements become the new forum for the
continuation of abuse.
(4) According to a 1996 report by the American
Psychological Association, fathers who batter moth-
ers are twice as likely to seek sole custody of their
children. In these circumstances, if the abusive fa-
ther loses custody he is more likely to continue the
threats to the mother through other legal actions.
(5) Some perpetrators of violence use the chil-
dren as pawns to control the abused party and to
commit more violence during separation or divorce.
In one study, 34 percent of women in shelters and
callers to hotlines reported threats of kidnapping, 11
percent reported that the batterer had kidnapped
the child for some period, and 21 percent reported
that threats of kidnapping forced the victim to re-
turn to the batterer.
(6) Approximately 90 percent of children in
homes in which their mothers are abused witness the
abuse. Children who witness domestic violence may
exhibit more aggressive, antisocial, fearful, and in-
hibited behaviors. Such children display more anxi-
ety, aggression and temperamental problems.
(7) Women and children are at an elevated risk
of violence during the process of separation or di-
vorce.
(8) Fifty to 70 percent of men who abuse their
spouses or partners also physically abuse their chil-
dren.
(9) Up to 75 percent of all domestic assaults
reported to law enforcement agencies were inflicted
after the separation of the couple.
(10) In one study of spousal homicide, over 1⁄2
of the male defendants were separated from their
victims.
(11) Seventy-three percent of battered women
seeking emergency medical services do so after sepa-
ration.
(12) The National Council of Juvenile and
Family Court Judges includes the option of visita-
tion centers in their Model Code on Domestic and
Family Violence.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of section 2 are—
(1) to protect children from the trauma of wit-
nessing or experiencing violence, sexual abuse, ne-
glect, abduction, rape, or death during parent and
child visitation and visitation exchanges;
(2) to protect victims of domestic violence from
experiencing further violence, abuse, and threats
during child visitation or visitation exchanges; and
(3) to provide an ongoing safe haven for par-
ents and children during visitation or visitation ex-
changes to promote continuity and stability.
SEC. 2. GRANTS TO STATES TO PROVIDE FOR SUPERVISED
VISITATION CENTERS.
(a) GRANTS TO STATES.—The Attorney General may
award grants to States to enable States to enter into con-
tracts and cooperative agreements with public or private
nonprofit entities to assist such entities in establishing
and operating supervised visitation centers for the pur-
poses of facilitating supervised visitation and visitation ex-
change. At least 50 percent of all grants awarded under
this subsection shall be used by State grantees for con-
tracts and cooperative agreements with nonprofit, non-
governmental entities.
(b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In awarding grants under
paragraph (1), the Attorney General shall take into ac-
count and in awarding contracts and cooperative agree-
ments a State which received such a grant shall take into
account—
(1) the number of families to be served by the
proposed visitation center to be established under
the grant;
(2) the extent to which supervised visitation
centers serve underserved populations as that term
is defined in section 2003(7) of the Omnibus Crime
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C.
3796gg–2(7));
(3) the extent to which the applicant dem-
onstrates cooperation and collaboration with non-
profit, nongovernmental entities in the local commu-
nity served, including the State domestic violence co-
alition centers and other local shelters and programs
for domestic violence victims, including programs
providing legal assistance to domestic violence vic-
tims; and
(4) the extent to which the applicant dem-
onstrates coordination or collaboration with State
and local court systems, including mechanisms for
communication and referral.
(c) USE OF FUNDS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Amounts provided under a
grant under subsection (a) or provided by a State
grantee under a contract or cooperative agreement
shall be used to establish supervised visitation cen-
ters and for the purposes described in section 1(b).
In using such amounts, grantees and persons award-
ed a contract or cooperative agreement shall target
the economically disadvantaged and those individuals
who could not otherwise afford such visitation serv-
ices. Individuals shall be permitted to use the serv-
ices provided by the center on a sliding fee basis.
(2) REGULATIONS
AND
APPLICANT
REQUIRE-
MENTS.—The Attorney General shall award grants
to States and States shall enter into contracts and
cooperative agreements under such grants in accord-
ance with such regulations as the Attorney General
may promulgate. The Attorney General shall give
priority in awarding grants and States shall give pri-
ority in awarding contracts and cooperative agree-
ments under such grants to States that consider do-
mestic violence in making a custody decision. An ap-
plicant awarded a grant from the Attorney General
or an applicant awarded a contract or cooperative
agreement by a State grantee shall—
(A) demonstrate recognized expertise in
the area of family violence and a record of high
quality service to victims of domestic violence;
(B) demonstrate collaboration with and
support of the State domestic violence coalition
and local domestic violence shelter or program
in the locality in which the supervised visitation
center will be operated; and
(C) provide long-term supervised visitation
and visitation exchange services to promote con-
tinuity and stability.
(d) REPORTING.—Not later than 60 days after the
end of each fiscal year, the Attorney General shall report
to Congress information concerning—
(1) the number of individuals served and the
number of individuals turned away from services
categorized by State, the number of individuals from
underserved populations served or turned away from
such services, and the type of presenting problems
that underlie the need for supervised visitation or
visitation exchange, such as domestic violence, child
abuse emotional or other physical abuse, or a com-
bination of such factors;
(2) the numbers of supervised visitations or vis-
itation exchanges ordered during custody determina-
tions under a separation or divorce decree or protec-
tion order, through child protection services, or
through other social services agencies;
(3) the process by which children or abused
partners are protected during visitations, temporary
custody transfers and other activities for which the
supervised visitation centers are created;
(4) safety and security problems occurring dur-
ing the reporting period during supervised visitations
or at visitation centers including the number of pa-
rental abduction cases;
(5) the number of parental abduction cases in
a judicial district using supervised visitation services,
both as identified in criminal prosecution and cus-
tody violations; and
(6) any other appropriate information des-
ignated in regulations promulgated by the Attorney
General.
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of awarding
grants under this section, there are authorized to be
appropriated $75,000,000 for fiscal year 1998,
$85,000,000 for fiscal year 1999, and $95,000,000
for fiscal year 2000.