A2755

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman ANDREA KATZ

District 8 (Atlantic and Burlington)

Assemblywoman YVONNE LOPEZ

District 19 (Middlesex)

Assemblywoman MITCHELLE DRULIS

District 16 (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman Swain and Assemblyman Tully

SYNOPSIS

Requires State domestic violence public awareness campaign to add information on coercive control; requires annual reporting on activities of campaign and expands range of languages.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.

An Act concerning the State domestic violence public awareness campaign, and amending P.L.2005, c.204.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. Section 2 of P.L.2005, c.204 (C.52:27D-43.36) is amended to read as follows:

2. a. The Director of the Division on Women in the Department of Children and Families, in consultation with the Advisory Council on Domestic Violence and the Commissioners of Human Services and Health and Senior Services, shall establish a domestic violence public awareness campaign in order to promote public awareness of domestic violence among the general public and health care and social services professionals and provide information to assist victims of domestic violence and their children.

b. The public awareness campaign shall include the development and implementation of public awareness and outreach efforts to promote domestic violence prevention and education, including, but not limited to, the following subjects:

(1) the causes and nature of domestic violence;

(2) risk factors, including, subject to the availability of funds, the recognition of the indicators of coercive control, as that term is used in paragraph (7) of subsection a. of section 13 of P.L.1991, c.261 (C.2C:25-29);

(3) preventive measures; and

(4) the availability of, and how to access, services in the community for victims of domestic violence, including, but not limited to, shelter services, legal advocacy services, and legal assistance services.

c. The director shall coordinate the efforts of the division with any activities being undertaken by other State agencies to promote public awareness of, and provide information to the public about, domestic violence.

d. The director, within the limits of funds available for this purpose, shall seek to utilize electronic and print media, and may prepare and disseminate such written information as the director deems necessary, to accomplish the purposes of P.L.2005, c.204 (C.52:27D-43.35 et seq.).

e. The division shall make available electronically on its Internet website in English, [and] Spanish, and such other languages as the Advisory Council on Domestic Violence may recommend, information about domestic violence as described in subsection b. of this section.

f. The director may accept, for the purposes of the public awareness campaign, any special grant of funds, services, or property from the federal government or any of its agencies, or from any foundation, organization, or other entity. The director’s acceptance of such funds, services, or property shall not diminish any State funds appropriated to the public awareness campaign.

g. The director shall report to the Governor and the Legislature, no later than 18 months after the effective date of P.L.2005, c.204 (C.52:27D-43.35 et seq.), and annually thereafter, on the activities and accomplishments of the public awareness campaign.

(cf: P.L.2012, c.16, s.156)

2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill requires the State domestic violence public awareness campaign by the Division on Women in the Department of Children and Families, created pursuant to N.J.S.A.52:27D-43.36, to also include, subject to the availability of funds, information concerning the recognition of the indicators of coercive control.

Under current law, indicators of coercive control by an abuser include, but are not limited to:

(1) isolating a person from friends, relatives, transportation, medical care, or other source of support;

(2) depriving a person of basic necessities;

(3) monitoring a person’s movements, communications, daily behavior, finances, economic resources, or access to services;

(4) compelling a person by force, threat, or intimidation, including, but not limited to, threats based on actual or suspected immigration status;

(5) threatening to make or making baseless reports to the police, courts, the Division of Child Protection and Permanency (DCPP) within the Department of Children and Families, the Board of Social Services, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), or other parties;

(6) threatening to harm or kill an individual’s relative or pet; and

(7) threatening to deny or interfere with an individual’s child custody or parenting time, other than through enforcement of a valid custody arrangement or court order.

Additionally, the bill expands the range of languages for the public awareness campaign beyond English and Spanish to include other languages that the Advisory Council on Domestic Violence may recommend, and requires the Director of the Division on Women to report annually on the activities of the campaign. As amended, the bill further provides that outside funding from the federal government or private organizations accepted by the Director of the Division on Women for the campaign will not diminish any State funds appropriated to the campaign.