In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. “Director” means the Director of the Victim Services Unit. “Executive Director” means the Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy. “Unit” means the Victim Services Unit.

There is a Victim Services Unit in the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy. The Unit consists of: the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board under Subtitle 8 of this title; the program for sexual assault forensic examinations under § 11–1007 of this title; a restitution section; and any other program that provides victim services under the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy that the Executive Director determines would benefit from inclusion under the Unit.

The head of the Unit is the Director, who shall be appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the Executive Director. The Director shall receive the salary provided in the State budget. The Director shall regularly consult with, collaborate with, and consider the recommendations of the federally recognized State sexual assault coalition regarding sexual assault crisis programs and policies, practices, and procedures that impact victims of sexual assault, including administration of the program for sexual assault forensic examinations under § 11–1007 of this title.

The Unit shall coordinate with the Judiciary, the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, the Department of Juvenile Services, the Central Collection Unit, State’s Attorney’s offices, and local correctional facilities to: collect data; develop best practices, using data and other evidence to the extent available, for restitution collection; coordinate and improve efforts of State and local entities regarding restitution; ensure the interoperability of justice system databases; require that each of the databases has a data field to indicate that there are outstanding restitution orders; and coordinate efforts to improve restitution collection.

The Unit shall: monitor and provide guidance to the Secretary on the adoption of regulations establishing minimum mandatory standards for State and local correctional facilities regarding victim notification, restitution, and administrative record keeping; encourage the use of earnings withholding orders to collect restitution; coordinate with the Central Collection Unit to improve restitution collection; coordinate with the Division of Parole and Probation to modernize and improve collections and collaborate on communicating with parole and probation agents on their role in restitution collection; coordinate with the Division of Parole and Probation and the Central Collection Unit on ways to expedite the referral of cases to the Central Collection Unit; develop programs to be presented to the Maryland State’s Attorneys’ Association to emphasize statutory obligations regarding restitution; promote notification to victims; and examine the current remedies available to enforce restitution orders to determine whether the remedies are being effectively used and make recommendations regarding the need for additional remedies. Except as provided in § 11–805(a)(2) of this title and subject to the authority of the Executive Director, the Unit may adopt regulations to carry out the duties of the Unit.