HB-5278, As Passed House, June 12, 2018
HB-5278, As Passed Senate, June 12, 2018
SUBSTITUTE FOR
HOUSE BILL NO. 5278
A bill to amend 1978 PA 389, entitled
"An act to provide for the prevention and treatment of domestic
violence; to develop and establish policies, procedures, and
standards for providing domestic violence assistance programs and
services; to create a domestic violence prevention and treatment
board and prescribe its powers and duties; to establish a domestic
violence prevention and treatment fund and provide for its use; to
prescribe powers and duties of the family independence agency; to
prescribe immunities and liabilities of certain persons and
officials; and to prescribe penalties for violations of this act,"
by amending the title and sections 1, 2, 4, and 11 (MCL 400.1501,
400.1502, 400.1504, and 400.1511), the title as amended by 2001 PA
192, section 1 as amended by 2000 PA 84, and section 11 as amended
by 2002 PA 732.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
TITLE
An act to provide for the prevention and treatment of domestic
and sexual violence; to develop and establish policies, procedures,
and standards for providing domestic and sexual violence assistance
programs
and services; to create a declare
the powers and duties of
the Michigan domestic and sexual violence prevention and treatment
board; and
prescribe its powers and duties; to establish a domestic
violence prevention and treatment fund and provide for its use; to
prescribe
provide for the powers and duties of the family
independence
agency; certain state
governmental officers and
entities; to prescribe immunities and liabilities of certain
persons and officials; and to prescribe penalties for violations of
this act.
Sec. 1. As used in this act:
(a) "Board" means the Michigan domestic and sexual violence
prevention
and treatment board created in section 2.created under
Executive Order No. 2012-17.
(b) "Dating relationship" means frequent, intimate
associations primarily characterized by the expectation of
affectional involvement. Dating relationship does not include a
casual relationship or an ordinary fraternization between 2
individuals in a business or social context.
(c)
"Department" means the family independence
agency.department of health and human services.
(d) "Domestic violence" means the occurrence of any of the
following acts by a person that is not an act of self-defense:
(i) Causing or attempting to cause physical or mental harm to
a family or household member.
(ii) Placing a family or household member in fear of physical
or mental harm.
(iii) Causing or attempting to cause a family or household
member to engage in involuntary sexual activity by force, threat of
force, or duress.
(iv) Engaging in activity toward a family or household member
that would cause a reasonable person to feel terrorized,
frightened, intimidated, threatened, harassed, or molested.
(e) "Family or household member" includes any of the
following:
(i) A spouse or former spouse.
(ii) An individual with whom the person resides or has
resided.
(iii) An individual with whom the person has or has had a
dating relationship.
(iv) An individual with whom the person is or has engaged in a
sexual relationship.
(v) An individual to whom the person is related or was
formerly related by marriage.
(vi) An individual with whom the person has a child in common.
(vii) The minor child of an individual described in
subparagraphs (i) to (vi).
(f) "Fund" means the domestic violence prevention and
treatment fund created in section 5.
(g) "Prime sponsor" means a county, city, village, or township
of this state, or a combination thereof, or a private, nonprofit
association or organization.
Sec. 2. (1) The domestic and sexual violence prevention and
treatment
board is created in the department. The board shall
consist
under Executive Order No.
2012-17 consists of 7 members,
all
of whom shall must have experience in an area related to the
problems
of domestic or sexual violence. The members shall must be
appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the
senate.
(2)
The term Members of office of a member the board shall be
serve
for terms of 3 years , except that
: of the members first
appointed , 2 shall serve for a term of 1 year, 2 shall serve
for a
term
of 2 years, and 1 shall serve for a term of 3 years. ;
and of
the
2 additional members appointed under this 1979 amendatory act,
1
shall serve for a term of 2 years and 1 shall serve for a term of
3
years. A member appointed to fill a
vacancy occurring other than
by
expiration of a term shall must
be appointed for the remainder
of the unexpired term.
(3) The governor shall designate 1 member of the board to
serve
as chairperson. A majority of the members shall of the board
constitute a quorum.
(4) The per diem compensation of the board and the schedule
for
reimbursement of expenses shall will
be established annually by
the legislature.
Sec. 4. The department shall provide staff to enable the board
to carry out the following powers and duties established under
Executive Order No. 2012-17:
(a) Coordinate and monitor programs and services funded under
this act for the prevention of domestic and sexual violence and the
treatment of victims of domestic and sexual violence.
(b) Develop standards for the implementation and
administration of services and procedures to prevent domestic and
sexual violence and to provide services and programs for victims of
domestic and sexual violence.
(c) Provide planning and technical assistance to prime
sponsors for the development, implementation, and administration of
programs and services for the prevention of domestic and sexual
violence and the treatment of victims of domestic and sexual
violence.
(d) Conduct research to develop and implement effective means
for preventing domestic and sexual violence and treating victims of
domestic and sexual violence.
(e) Provide assistance to the department of state police in
developing a system for monitoring and maintaining a uniform
reporting system to provide accurate statistical data on domestic
and sexual violence.
(f) Coordinate educational and public informational programs
for the purpose of developing appropriate public awareness
regarding the problems of domestic and sexual violence; encourage
professional persons and groups to recognize and deal with problems
of domestic and sexual violence; to make information about the
problems of domestic and sexual violence available to the public,
and
organizations, and
agencies which that deal with problems of
domestic and sexual violence; and encourage the development of
community programs to prevent domestic and sexual violence and
provide services to victims of domestic and sexual violence.
(g) Study and recommend changes in civil and criminal laws and
procedures
which that will enable victims of domestic and sexual
violence to receive equitable and fair treatment under the law.
(h) Advise the legislature and governor on the nature,
magnitude, and priorities of the problem of domestic and sexual
violence and the needs of victims of domestic and sexual violence;
and
recommend appropriate changes in state laws and programs ,
statutes,
related to domestic and
sexual violence.
(i)
Develop policies, budgets, and
standards which that will
reduce the problem of domestic and sexual violence and improve the
condition of victims.
(j) Administer grants from the federal government or a federal
agency and other funds as provided by law or designated by the
department.
Sec. 11. (1) The state or a county may establish an
interagency domestic violence fatality review team. Two or more
counties may establish a single domestic violence fatality review
team for those counties. The purpose of a team is to learn how to
prevent domestic violence homicides and suicides by improving the
response of individuals and agencies to domestic violence. Subject
to the requirements of this section, each team may determine its
structure and specific activities.
(2) The fatality review teams may review fatal and near-fatal
incidents of domestic violence, including suicides. The review of a
domestic violence incident may include a review of events leading
up to the domestic violence incident, available community
resources, current laws and policies, actions taken by the agencies
and individuals related to the incident and the parties, and any
other information considered relevant by the team. The team may
determine the number and type of incidents it wishes to review and
shall make policy and other recommendations as to how incidents of
domestic violence may be prevented.
(3) A fatality review team and its members are entitled to the
protections granted under this section if the fatality review team
is convened under this section and in compliance with the
requirements of this section.
(4) A fatality review team established under this section
shall
must include, but is not limited to, the following:
(a) A health care professional with training and experience in
responding to domestic violence.
(b) A medical examiner.
(c) A prosecuting attorney or a designated assistant
prosecuting attorney.
(d) A representative of a domestic violence shelter that
receives
funding from the Michigan domestic violence prevention and
treatment
board.
(e) A law enforcement officer.
(5) If a state fatality review team is convened, the state
fatality
review team shall be convened by the Michigan domestic
violence
prevention and treatment board.
(6) Subject to subsection (9), information obtained or created
by or for a fatality review team is confidential and not subject to
discovery or the freedom of information act, 1976 PA 442, MCL
15.231 to 15.246. Documents created by or for the fatality review
team are not subject to subpoena, except that documents and records
otherwise available from other sources are not exempt from
subpoena, discovery, or introduction into evidence from other
sources solely because they were presented to or reviewed by a
fatality review team. Information relevant to the investigation of
a crime may be disclosed by a fatality review team only to the
prosecuting attorney or to a law enforcement agency. Information
required to be reported under the child protection law, 1975 PA
238,
MCL 722.621 to 722.638, shall must
be disclosed by a fatality
review
team to the family independence agency. department. A
prosecuting
attorney, a law enforcement agency, and the family
independence
agency department may use information received under
this subsection in carrying out their lawful responsibilities.
Individuals and the organizations represented by individuals who
participate as members of a fatality review team shall sign a
confidentiality agreement acknowledging the confidentiality
provisions of this section.
(7) An individual who provides information to a fatality
review
team shall must sign a confidentiality notice acknowledging
that any information he or she provides to a fatality review team
shall
must be kept confidential by the fatality review team,
but is
subject to possible disclosure to the prosecuting attorney, a law
enforcement
agency, or the family independence agency department as
provided in subsection (6).
(8) Fatality review team meetings are closed to the public and
are not subject to the open meetings act, 1976 PA 267, MCL 15.261
to 15.275. Information identifying a victim of domestic violence
whose case is being reviewed, or that person's family members, or
an alleged or suspected perpetrator of abuse upon the victim, or
regarding the involvement of any agency with the victim or that
person's
family, shall must not be disclosed in any report that is
available to the public.
(9) Fatality review teams convened under this section shall
prepare an annual report of findings, recommendations, and steps
taken
to implement recommendations. The report shall must not
contain information identifying any victim of domestic violence, or
that person's family members, or an alleged or suspected
perpetrator of abuse upon a victim, or regarding the involvement of
any
agency with a victim or that person's family. The report shall
must cover each calendar year or portion of a calendar year during
which
a fatality review team is convened and the report shall must
be
provided to the Michigan domestic violence prevention and
treatment
board on or before March 1 of the
following year. If the
Michigan
domestic violence prevention and treatment board develops
a form for use by fatality review teams to report annual findings
and recommendations, fatality review teams shall use that form.
(10) A person who violates the confidentiality provisions of
this section is guilty of a misdemeanor.
(11) A fatality review team, any member of a fatality review
team, any individual providing information to a fatality review
team, or any other person or agency acting within the scope of this
section is immune from all civil liability resulting from an act or
omission arising out of and in the course of the team's, member's,
individual's, person's, or agency's performance of that activity,
unless the act or omission was the result of gross negligence or
willful misconduct. This section shall not be construed to limit
the immunity conferred by 1964 PA 170, MCL 691.1401 to 691.1419, or
any other immunity provided by statute or common law.
(12)
Subject to available funding, the Michigan domestic
violence
prevention and treatment board may
do any of the
following:
(a) Develop a protocol for use by state, county, and
multicounty domestic violence fatality review teams.
(b) Develop a form for use by fatality review teams to report
annual findings and recommendations as required in subsection (9).
(c) Develop and provide training concerning fatality review
teams.
(d) Prepare a report to the governor, the senate, and the
house of representatives summarizing the findings and
recommendations of fatality review teams and making recommendations
to reduce and eradicate the incidence of domestic violence.
(13)
If the Michigan domestic violence prevention and
treatment
board develops a protocol for use
by state, county, and
multicounty fatality review teams, the teams shall follow that
protocol.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 90 days
after the date it is enacted into law.