The Mayor and City Council of Houston were given entire discretion under the will of John Battaglia dated May 27, 1942, deceased, to use the bequest of John Battaglia for charitable purposes on behalf of the people of Houston. The Agreement is effective from the Date of Countersignature through three years with two successive one-year automatic renewal periods.

Since 1983, the Houston Area Women’s Center (HAWC) has received the interest and royalty income from the John Battaglia Trust. The HAWC provides shelter and support services to survivors of sexual assault and family violence, They educate and inform the community to eliminate the causes of this violence. Their mission is to provide leadership and action to empower women to advance their role, rights and well-being. All services are free of charge. The HAWC provides the following services: (1) Family Violence Programs that includes shelter for abused women and their children and non-residential counseling services: (2) a Women’s Center Hotline that provides callers with information and referrals to community resources and serves as the intake service for the shelter; (3) a Rape Crisis Program; and (4) a Community Involvement and Outreach Program that includes community education, volunteers and funding development programs.

The HAWC is responsible for commissioning an annual audit of funds expended under the agreement and preparing and submitting an annual performance report to the Director of Finance.

HAWC received the following payments from January 2012 to June 2016:

  2012                    $28,649.70

  2013                    $46,551.80

  2014                    $10,092.89

  2015                    $32,777.32

  2016                    $13,457.00

Total Payments $131,528.71

The Finance Department recommends approval of this agreement.

MWBE Participation:

A waiver has been approved by the Office of Business Opportunity.

____________________________________

Kelly Dowe, Director

Finance Department

cc:  Ronald C. Lewis, City Attorney