recommended Standards
As part of the legislation that created the Council, the General Assembly tasked the Council to make recommendations on whether or not there should be standards and a process for the certification of organizations that provide services to victims of human trafficking. In the 2015 Annual Report, the Council recommended that standards should be created for a subset of professional sectors, and apply only to organizations and professionals who provide direct services to victims of human trafficking. The Council identified five professional sectors to which standards should be established:
Community-based victim advocates
Treatment providers (mental/behavioral health professionals)
Housing program providers
Case managers
Social service providers
As of 2018, the Council has set forth standards for three of the five identified sectors: Community-based victim advocates, behavioral health care professionals, and housing program providers.
It is important to note that the Council does not have regulatory authority over any of the above mentioned sectors. The standards developed by the Council are recommended guidance for those who work or want to specialize in working with human trafficking clients. The Council made recommendations on the types of training, experience and expertise needed to best serve human trafficking survivors. All recommended standards were developed by subject-matter experts from the field of human trafficking, including survivors of human trafficking and subject-matter experts from the professional sectors being addressed.
Recommended Standards
Community-based Victim Advocates
Community-based victim advocates (CBVAs) play a critical role in providing long-term assistance to human trafficking survivors. Standards set forth by the Council for CBVAs only apply to those who choose to specialize in serving human trafficking survivors. Standards for CBVAs set forth by the Council are intended to provide guidance on the training, expertise and experience needed to be a more successful advocate on behalf of human trafficking survivors. Learn more about Standards for community-based victim advocates by downloading the Standards for Community-based Victim Advocates (PDF).
Mental/Behavioral Health Professionals
Mental/behavioral health professionals play a critical role in providing long-term clinical interventions and support to human trafficking survivors. They counsel, help survivors access services that promote healing, and help survivors find their voice again. The goal of standards for mental/behavioral health professionals is to provide guidance to mental/behavioral health professionals on the training, expertise, and experience necessary to be more successful in working with human trafficking survivors. Learn more by downloading the Standards for Mental/Behavioral Health Professionals (PDF).
Housing Providers
Safe housing is critical to fulfill a basic need of all trafficking victims. After leaving their trafficking situation, survivors require an array of housing options during the duration of their recovery ranging from immediate emergency shelter options to transitional and long-term housing, all of which are dependent on a survivor's unique set of circumstances. The Council has outlined two separate housing provider standards: one set of standards for Adult Housing Providers (PDF) and another set of standards for licensed 24-hour child care facilities and Division of Youth Services (DYS) State-Operated Facilities. The intent of both sets of standards is to provide guidance to housing providers, not to replace or add new requirements to existing rules and regulations that govern housing providers in the state.
