Oregon Audits Division Releases Advisory Report on “Breaking the Cycle” of Domestic Violence
SALEM, OR — Oregon needs an integrated, over-arching strategy to best combat domestic violence, according to the Oregon Audits Division. The division today released an advisory report assessing Oregon’s role in addressing this issue and offering suggestions for improvement.[1]
The report’s issuance is timely: October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Domestic violence is behavior that one partner uses to control the other. It can include physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, as well as threats and economic control. Nationwide, 1 in 3 women, and 1 in 4 men, have been physically abused by an intimate partner. In Oregon, over a third of adults experience domestic violence in their lifetimes.
 “Domestic violence is pervasive, immensely harmful, and often fatal,” said Audits Director Kip Memmott. “This is an area where state government can do more to help. As auditors, we are uniquely positioned to provide state leaders with information and offer potential solutions on critical issues of public health and safety.”
Because domestic violence seeps into every aspect of a victim’s life, services to help must be similarly wide-ranging: emergency housing, assistance navigating the legal system, childcare, mental health care, and more. Best practices say addressing domestic violence requires an integrated approach.
Services to prevent domestic violence in the first place are critical. It is equally important victims and survivors are able to protect themselves from abuse that has already occurred by quickly and easily accessing the wide-ranging services that are available. However, multiple barriers stand in the way of access:
- Some barriers are inherent to the nature of domestic violence: fear, isolation, shame, and stigma, as well as financial, mental health, and cultural challenges. Other barriers are functional, like capacity of resource providers and emergency responders or lack of transportation, childcare, and translation services.
- A lack of available housing is a principal reason victims and survivors feel unable to leave or choose to return to their partners.
- Victim and survivor needs have grown increasingly complex. Advocates say they are seeing increased trauma and risk factors like isolation and violence during COVID-19. Victims and survivors may need mental health, counseling, or addiction services.
- Criminal justice interventions are more successful when victims are active participants, but victims may be unable or unwilling to navigate the complex legal system, including having to face their abuser in court.
Oregon’s role when it comes to addressing domestic violence is largely administrative and financial. State agencies pass through federal funds, including funding from the Violence Against Women Act and the Victims of Crime Act, and administer grants like the Oregon Domestic Violence and Sexual Violence Services Fund, aimed at community-based organizations providing these critical services.
But the reliance on grants comes with substantial challenges. Advocates say direct funding to victims is often most helpful, but those types of grants are limited. Rigid grant requirements, including dictating what the money can be spent on and reporting on outcomes, can stifle efforts of resource-strapped organizations.
For example, federally funded temporary domestic violence assistance grants, a primary source of direct victim funding, only provide up to $1,200 over a 90-day period. They are also only available for individuals who qualify for the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program and who are either taking care of a minor child or currently pregnant. The grant was originally intended to help pay emergency rent, but the amount hasn’t increased since 1997, making it insufficient to cover most current rent payments.
 Because addressing domestic violence requires an integrated approach, Oregon needs a similar over-arching strategy to be successful. Currently, many state agencies have roles to play. Unfortunately, there is no single state agency or entity responsible for coordinating a comprehensive statewide response or measuring the overall impact of ongoing efforts.
Auditors have offered some suggested solutions. Policymakers in the state should consider developing a statewide strategy to centralize resources and gather data. Legislators could add stability by making flexible state funds permanent budget items, including adjusting them for inflation, rather than addressing needs through one-time funding.
Read the full report on the Secretary of State website.
[1] A distinction important to the Audits Division is that today’s report is not an audit, but an advisory report. Because there is no one state agency responsible for addressing domestic violence, auditors did not have an “auditee” to which they could address recommendations.
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