Section 9905 - Victims' rights; privacy(a) Nothing in this chapter is intended to or may be used to abrogate existing laws regarding privacy or information sharing. Family Justice Center staff members, volunteers, or other individuals given access to victims and survivors or given information pertaining to victims and survivors by a Family Justice Center shall comply with the laws governing their respective professions.(b) Victims and survivors may not be denied services on the grounds of criminal history. No criminal history search may be conducted of a victim or survivor at a Family Justice Center by staff or a partnering service provider without the written consent of the victim or survivor, except if the staff or service provider is a law enforcement officer or other lawfully authorized individual conducting a criminal history search pursuant to a criminal investigation.(c) Victims and survivors may not be required to participate in the criminal justice system or cooperate with law enforcement to receive counseling, medical care, or other services at a Family Justice Center.(d) The Family Justice Centers must maintain a victim and survivor consent policy and remain in compliance with all state and federal laws protecting the confidentiality of the types of information and documents that may be in the file pertaining to a victim or survivor, including, but not limited to, medical, legal, and victim counselor records. Each Family Justice Center shall have a designated privacy officer to develop and oversee privacy policies and procedures consistent with state and federal privacy laws and the Fair Information Practice Principles promulgated by the United States Department of Homeland Security. At no time may a victim or survivor be required to sign a client consent form to share information to access services.(e) Each Family Justice Center must obtain informed, written, and reasonably time-limited consent from a victim or survivor before sharing information obtained from the victim or survivor with any staff member or agency partner, except as follows: (1) A Family Justice Center is not required to obtain consent from a victim or survivor before sharing information obtained from the victim or survivor with any staff member or agency partner if the person sharing the information is a mandated reporter, a peace officer, or a member of the prosecution team and is required to report or disclose specific information or incidents. These persons shall inform the victim that they may share information obtained from the victim or survivor without the consent of the victim or survivor.(2) Family Justice Centers must inform the victim or survivor that information shared with staff members, partner agencies, or other service providers at a Family Justice Center may be shared with law enforcement professionals without the consent of the victim or survivor if there is a mandatory duty to report or if the victim or survivor is a danger to themself or others. Family Justice Centers must obtain written acknowledgment that the victim or survivor has been informed of this policy.(f) Consent by a victim or survivor for sharing information within a Family Justice Center or for a limited disclosure of information by a Family Justice Center made for the purpose of clinical assessment, risk assessment, safety planning, or service delivery is not and may not be construed as a universal waiver of any existing evidentiary privilege that makes confidential any communications or documents between the victim or survivor and any service provider, including, but not limited to, any lawyer, doctor, therapist, or nurse. Any oral or written communication or any document authorized by the victim or survivor to be shared for the purposes of enhancing safety and providing more effective and efficient services to the victim or survivor may not be disclosed to any third party, unless that third-party disclosure is authorized by the victim or survivor, or required by other state or federal law or by court order.(g) An individual staff member, volunteer, other individual service provider, or agency that has victim or survivor information obtained as a result of the use of a Family Justice Center by the victim or survivor may not be required to disclose that information unless the victim or survivor has consented to the disclosure or it is otherwise required by State or federal law or by court order.(h) Family Justice Center staff members, volunteers, agency professionals, and other service providers must attend a formal training program created or approved by the Executive Director or a person designated by the Executive Director consisting of not less than eight hours per year on subjects, including, but not limited to, privileges and confidentiality, information sharing, risk assessment, safety planning, victim advocacy, and high-risk case response.Added by Laws 2023, ch. 508,s 1, eff. 10/25/2024.Section 2 of the 2024 enacting legislation provides that this section takes effect immediately and is to be implemented as funds, personnel, and physical space become available.