General Organizational and Operational Characteristics
Number of Employees: Most VAWA-funded victim service agencies were small organizations, relying heavily on volunteers
- Victim service agencies had an average number of ten full-time employees with more than one-third having five or less full-time employees. The average number of volunteers was 26.
- In prosecution services and law enforcement units, an average of two to three full-time employees were working directly on projects focused on domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
Funding Sources: VAWA funding represented a small portion of victim service agencies' overall funding.
- All victim service agencies received additional funds from other sources to implement the VAWA-funded projects. On average, VAWA funds constituted 12% of agencies' total funds.
- One-fifth of prosecution services received additional funds from other sources to implement the VAWA-funded project. For law enforcement units, VAWA was the only funding source to implement the VAWA project.
Service Capacity: Most VAWA-funded agencies were able to provide timely services for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
- Agencies were asked about their capacity to provide timely services for victims during the past year. About three-quarters of all VAWA-funded agencies reported the ability to provide timely services "most (75%) of the time." About one-third reported the ability to provide timely services "all the time."
Program Services and Activities: VAWA-funded agencies were providing a variety of program services.
- Common victim services provided by VAWA-funded agencies included: shelter/safe house, individual counseling, crisis intervention, criminal justice, legal and medical advocacy, financial assistance, safety planning/lethality assessment, support groups, community education/training, outreach to underserved populations, and transportation. More than 90% of victim service agencies provided these services either directly or indirectly through referral to other agencies.
- Less common services were transitional housing and batterer intervention. About three-quarters of victim service agencies provided these services.
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