Explanation
Background:
This legislation authorizes the City of Columbus to accept and appropriate two federal Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) subawards from the Franklin County Board of Commissioners Office of Justice Policy and Programs to the City Attorney’s Office. Grant awards support specialized prosecution and victim advocacy services for survivors of domestic violence and stalking. Award dollars fund 1) a portion of salary expenses for two specially trained domestic violence prosecutors, 2) total compensation for one specially trained stalking victim advocate, 3) registration fees for professional development, and 4) contract fees for interpretation and translation services.
The Columbus City Attorney’s Domestic Violence & Stalking Prosecution Unit provides best-practice prosecution services for victims of misdemeanor domestic violence and stalking offenses. The unit is staffed by six highly trained and experienced domestic violence prosecutors, twenty victim advocates, one stalking investigator and one stalking victim advocate.
The unit’s services are modeled on the National Domestic Violence Prosecution Best Practice Guide developed by the National District Attorneys Association. These services are designed to promote victim safety and empowerment, increase victim engagement in the criminal justice processes, reduce recantation and strengthen collaboration among community partners and law enforcement agencies.
This ordinance authorizes the acceptance and appropriation of grant funds to support these services.
Fiscal Impact: VAWA subawards require a 25% city cash match. The cash match ($63,241.51) is tracked by the CAO fiscal team with records of expenses maintained in grant files.
Award # Award Match
25-WF-VA2-8758 $107,499.00 $35,833.30
25-WF-VA2-4600 $84,186.00 $28,062.00
2025 VAWA total $191,685.00 $63,895.30
Emergency Action:
Executed grant contracts from the Franklin County Board of Commissioners were delayed, therefore emergency act...
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