Help DVS Provide 24/7 Staff Presence at our Emergency Shelter

Two bills have been offered in the Connecticut General Assembly in support of funding to make it possible for member agencies of the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence – of which DVS is one – to have professional staff on duty at emergency shelters 24/7. Currently, DVS staff members are physically present from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. The most recent, Raised Bill 5836, introduced by Speaker James Amman, would appropriate funds for the Department of Social Services ”for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2009, for the purpose of making grants to domestic violence programs to provide on-site staffing at their emergency shelters twenty-four hours a day.” Hearings on the bill will be held by the Judiciary Committee on Monday, March 10 prior to, it is expected, review by the Appropriations Committee.  Please express your support of this bill, which will help assure the safety and peace of mind of our shelter residents, by contacting your legislators.