The Valley’s centralized domestic violence hotline, SAFEDVS, is scheduled to shut down on May 15, 2026, leaving shelters and advocates scrambling to steer survivors toward other support. For roughly 15 years, the single number has coordinated shelter placements and crisis referrals across Maricopa County. Advocates say staff stopped accepting new callers on April 15 so they could work through an existing waitlist.
The line costs nearly $600,000 a year and, according to the Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence (ACESDV), about 60% of that budget came from American Rescue Plan Act dollars that expired last fall, coalition CEO Jenna Panas told Phoenix New Times. “We thought we had a plan and then those funding pieces fell through,” Panas said, and the group reported that hoped-for HUD and other federal grants did not materialize.
Who ran the line
Solari, a national crisis-call operator headquartered in Tempe, took over operation of the SAFEDVS number in November 2023 and later ended the contract after shouldering a short-term funding shortfall, according to Solari's public materials. A New Leaf previously managed the centralized screening for the county and still operates DVStop, the hotel-placement program shelters are using as a temporary referral option. Details are on A New Leaf’s site.
What survivors will face
With SAFEDVS set to go dark, callers newly in need of help will be routed to a state helpline and to an online list of seven local shelters. Advocates warned in reporting by Phoenix New Times that survivors may now have to call shelters individually to check availability, a stressful prospect for people already in crisis. The Arizona Department of Economic Security’s 2025 report shows more than 25,000 calls to domestic-violence hotlines statewide last year, underscoring demand for coordinated access to shelter and services. The paper also reported the hotline typically had a waitlist of about 200 people when it paused new intakes.
Shelters step in, but system stretched
Local shelters have already begun taking direct calls while using existing hotel-placement programs as a stopgap, but staffers say they were not hired to handle the volume the centralized line covered. Maricopa County previously put roughly $15 million in ARPA funds toward domestic-violence services, but advocates say one-time pandemic-era dollars leave the network exposed when they expire; the county outlines its ARPA spending and partnerships on its site. Maricopa County notes its grant work with ACESDV and regional nonprofits.
Advocates and shelter leaders say the shutdown is a warning sign about the fragility of short-term funding for vital survivor services and are pressing state and federal funders for long-term support. ACESDV and local providers say they are coordinating the transition. Anyone in immediate danger should call 911, the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE, or contact the Arizona Sexual and Domestic Violence Helpline via ACESDV for local resources.
