FAMILY VIOLENCE FUNDS NOT USED

About 35 Southeast Missouri women and children were among thousands turned away at Missouri domestic violence shelters because available money wasn't used, a state audit said.

The audit for 1998, issued Monday by State Auditor Claire McCaskil, found counties weren't using funding for shelters and that state laws for the funding were weak.

About 1,300 victims were turned away at shelters in 1998. Although the audit, detailed by region how many victims were denied service, no information was provided on a county-by-county basis.

Statewide, there were 43,000 reported cases of domestic violence in 1998.

"We concluded that with a few changes in the law, the state could improve service to domestic violence victims," the audit said. "Current weaknesses in the law and the practices in counties and cities have caused victims to be turned away from shelters and created unnecessary burdens on the victims."

Local Safe House for Women executive director Cheryl Robb-Welch said few people are turned away at the shelter, and no one because of funding.

The Safe House, the only domestic violence shelter in Cape Girardeau County, serves families from Cape Girardeau and Scott counties. Rooms at the shelter are in family units because most women seeking refuge bring their children.

"Needless to say, there's people turned away, but that's more a matter of bed space than it is funding," Robb-Welch said. "We'll make other accommodations as far as space is concerned, so we really don't turn anyone away."

State law requires counties collect a $5 fee for marriage licenses and an optional $2 fee to support shelters. There are also $2 optional fees for criminal and civil cases that can be collected to support shelters.

Had those fees been properly collected, an additional $902,000 for shelters could have been raised in 1998.

Colleen Coble, executive director of the Missouri Coalition Against Domestic Violence, which requested the audit, said the audit "confirmed what we long believed."

Locally, most domestic violence funds were distributed during the audit period. All but $818 of the $6,537 collected in Cape Girardeau during Fiscal Year 1998 had been distributed. Countywide, $22,021 of $29,801 was distributed, leaving a balance of more than $7,700. The funding was collected through the mandatory marriage license fee and an optional dissolutionment fee charged to civil divorce cases.

Robb -Welch said she was not working at the Safe House during the audit period but has experienced no problem receiving county funding.

The audit also found that a state tax credit for businesses and citizens who donate to shelters had not been used the last three years.

Only $1.5 million in donations from a potential $12 million had been reported because there was little awareness of the program. About $500,000 in fees for shelters sat idle.

Another $16,000 in interest from the state's domestic violence fund was not used, urging a call for legislation.

The audit recommended:

* Creating a central collection and distribution system be created within a current state agency.

* Revising the distribution requirements to ensure that areas that need funding receive it.

* Providing resources to make taxpayers aware of the domestic violence tax credit.

The mandatory fee accounted for only 1 percent of the funding for shelters while optional fees accounted for 4 percent. State and federal grants and private donations and fund raising accounted for the rest.

Rep. Vicky Riback Wilson, D-Columbia, who sponsored a bill last session that strengthened domestic violence laws, said she hoped the audit will cause lawmakers to take a closer look at the issue.

"I hope that more counties will consider taking advantage of the option fees to address these issues," Wilson said.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.