7/15/03 On quiet streets at secret locations in Santa Maria, Lompoc and Santa Barbara, survivors of domestic violence find a safe haven.

The three shelters operated by nonprofit Domestic Violence Solutions provide women and their children with a home where they can stay up to 45 days. During their stay, family advocates work with clients on parenting, drug and alcohol issues, and family relations.

But funding for the shelters/ operating budgets of ,788,000 is tied to state grants, which may be in jeopardy due to the state budget crisis, said Rebecca Robertson, executive director of Domestic Violence Solutions.

"This is extremely urgent to us. Our board members are preparing letters to send to our legislators asking them not to let these funding cuts happen," Robertson said.

Two state grants make up a large portion of the budget for Domestic Violence Solutions/ shelter programs, according to Robertson. They are ,140,082 from the state/s Office of Criminal Justice Planning, and ,153,500 from the Department of Health/s maternal/child health program.

A proposal to cut grant funding for domestic violence shelters and programs was made last week on the state Assembly floor by John Campbell, R-Orange County. It failed, but shelter service providers and some lawmakers worry it may resurface. If the Senate passes a budget, it must be sent back to the Assembly for approval, where revisions could be made.

Assemblywoman Rebecca Cohn, D-Saratoga, is one of those speaking out against cutting funding for shelters.

"California/s budget crisis should be solved with a balanced-budget approach, not at the expense of at-risk women and children. California cannot turn its back on domestic violence victims, leaving them with no hope for escape," Cohn said in a text prepared for a speech Sunday in San Jose.

The Assemblywoman said she is a survivor of domestic violence in her childhood home, perpetrated by an alcoholic stepfather.

Cohn is running for the 15th state Senate district next year against Assemblyman Abel Maldonado, R-Santa Maria.

Maldonado said he voted against Campbell/s budget proposal primarily because of its cuts to education and healthcare, but said Monday he also objects to any plans to cut money to shelters for battered women.

Domestic violence prevention is "an important issue," Maldonado said. "That/s not an area we should be cutting."

If shelters for battered women were closed, it would make the job of local law enforcement officials harder, said Santa Maria Police Chief Dan Macagni. Without the option of referring women to shelters, officers would be left only with helping women get restraining orders, he said.

"We can help enforce the orders, but there/s no guarantee someone is not going to walk right through them. Having a safe house for battered women to go is really the answer in extreme cases," Macagni said.

Staff writer Jasmine Marshall can be reached at 739-2219, or by e-mail at jmarshall@pulitzer.net