(1) Grant program
The Secretary, acting in consultation with the Office of the Violence Against Women 1 of the Department of Justice, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall award grants under this section to eligible entities to carry out programs to provide the assistance described in paragraph (3) with respect to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking and the pets, service animals, emotional support animals, or horses of such victims.
The Secretary may enter into a memorandum of understanding with the head of another Department or agency, as appropriate, to carry out any of the authorities provided to the Secretary under this section.2
(2) Application
An eligible entity seeking a grant under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may reasonably require, including—
(i) a description of the activities for which a grant under this section is sought;
(ii) such assurances as the Secretary determines to be necessary to ensure compliance by the entity with the requirements of this section; and
(iii) a certification that the entity, before engaging with any individual domestic violence victim, will disclose to the victim any mandatory duty of the entity to report instances of abuse and neglect (including instances of abuse and neglect of pets, service animals, emotional support animals, or horses).
In addition to the requirements of subparagraph (A), each application submitted by an eligible entity under that subparagraph shall—
(i) not include proposals for any activities that may compromise the safety of a domestic violence victim, including—
(I) background checks of domestic violence victims; or
(II) clinical evaluations to determine the eligibility of such a victim for support services;
(ii) not include proposals that would require mandatory services for victims or that a victim obtain a protective order in order to receive proposed services; and
(iii) reflect the eligible entity's understanding of the dynamics of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to require—
(i) domestic violence victims to participate in the criminal justice system in order to receive services; or
(ii) eligible entities receiving a grant under this section to breach client confidentiality.
(3) Use of funds
Grants awarded under this section may only be used for programs that provide—
(A) emergency and transitional shelter and housing assistance for domestic violence victims with pets, service animals, emotional support animals, or horses, including assistance with respect to any construction or operating expenses of newly developed or existing emergency and transitional pet, service animal, emotional support animal, or horse shelter and housing (regardless of whether such shelter and housing is co-located at a victim service provider or within the community);
(B) short-term shelter and housing assistance for domestic violence victims with pets, service animals, emotional support animals, or horses, including assistance with respect to expenses incurred for the temporary shelter, housing, boarding, or fostering of the pets, service animals, emotional support animals, or horses of domestic violence victims and other expenses that are incidental to securing the safety of such a pet, service animal, emotional support animal, or horse during the sheltering, housing, or relocation of such victims;
(C) support services designed to enable a domestic violence victim who is fleeing a situation of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking to—
(i) locate and secure—
(I) safe housing with the victim's pet, service animal, emotional support animal, or horse; or
(II) safe accommodations for the victim's pet, service animal, emotional support animal, or horse; or
(ii) provide the victim with pet, service animal, emotional support animal, or horse related services, such as transportation, care services, and other assistance; or
(D) for the training of relevant stakeholders on—
(i) the link between domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking and the abuse and neglect of pets, service animals, emotional support animals, and horses;
(ii) the needs of domestic violence victims;
(iii) best practices for providing support services to such victims;
(iv) best practices for providing such victims with referrals to victims' services; and
(v) the importance of confidentiality.
(4) Grant conditions
An eligible entity that receives a grant under this section shall, as a condition of such receipt, agree—
(A) to be bound by the nondisclosure of confidential information requirements of section
12291(b)(2) of this title; and
(B) that the entity shall not condition the receipt of support, housing, or other benefits provided pursuant to this section on the participation of domestic violence victims in any or all of the support services offered to such victims through a program carried out by the entity using grant funds.
(5) Duration of assistance provided to victims
Subject to subparagraph (B), assistance provided with respect to a pet, service animal, emotional support animal, or horse of a domestic violence victim using grant funds awarded under this section shall be provided for a period of not more than 24 months.
An eligible entity that receives a grant under this section may extend the 24-month period referred to in subparagraph (A) for a period of not more than 6 months in the case of a domestic violence victim who—
(i) has made a good faith effort to acquire permanent housing for the victim and the victim's pet, service animal, emotional support animal, or horse during that 24-month period; and
(ii) has been unable to acquire such permanent housing within that period.
(6) Report to the Secretary
Not later than 1 year after the date on which an eligible entity receives a grant under this section and each year thereafter in which the grant funds are used, the entity shall submit to the Secretary a report that contains, with respect to assistance provided by the entity to domestic violence victims with pets, service animals, emotional support animals, or horses using grant funds received under this section, information on—
(A) the number of domestic violence victims with pets, service animals, emotional support animals, or horses provided such assistance; and
(B) the purpose, amount, type of, and duration of such assistance.
(7) Report to Congress
Not later than November 1 of each even-numbered fiscal year, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report that contains a compilation of the information contained in the reports submitted under paragraph (6).
The Secretary shall transmit a copy of the report submitted under subparagraph (A) to—
(i) the Office on Violence Against Women of the Department of Justice;
(ii) the Office of Community Planning and Development of the Department of Housing and Urban Development; and
(iii) the Administration for Children and Families of the Department of Health and Human Services.
(8) Authorization of appropriations
There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 through 2023.
Of the amount made available under subparagraph (A) in any fiscal year, not more than 5 percent may be used for evaluation, monitoring, salaries, and administrative expenses.
(9) Definitions
In this section:
The term "domestic violence victim" means a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
The term "eligible entity" means—
(i) a State;
(ii) a unit of local government;
(iii) an Indian tribe; or
(iv) any other organization that has a documented history of effective work concerning domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking (as determined by the Secretary), including—
(I) a domestic violence and sexual assault victim service provider;
(II) a domestic violence and sexual assault coalition;
(III) a community-based and culturally specific organization;
(IV) any other nonprofit, nongovernmental organization; and
(V) any organization that works directly with pets, service animals, emotional support animals, or horses and collaborates with any organization referred to in clauses (i) through (iv), including—
(aa) an animal shelter; and
(bb) an animal welfare organization.
The term "emotional support animal" means an animal that is covered by the exclusion specified in section
5.303 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation), and that is not a service animal.
The term "pet" means a domesticated animal, such as a dog, cat, bird, rodent, fish, turtle, or other animal that is kept for pleasure rather than for commercial purposes.
The term "service animal" has the meaning given the term in section
36.104 of title 28, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation).
Except as otherwise provided in this section, terms used in this section
2 shall have the meaning given such terms in section
12291(a) of this title.