Use of Safe at Home Assigned Address

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Safe at Home participants are eligible to register as confidential electors, which protects their name and actual address from public inspection on the voter registration roll.  A participant who intends to vote should register as a confidential elector, as this is a safer way to vote. A Safe at Home Victim Services Specialist can help program participants with this process. 
More information about confidential electors is available from the Wisconsin Elections Commission​.

School districts may encounter participants who are students, parents, or school district personnel. All public and private schools must accept the Safe at Home assigned address as a program participant’s legal address. School districts may verify an individual’s participation in the program by requesting to view their Safe at Home provided authorization card, or if necessary, contacting Safe at Home directly. For additional guidance regarding Safe at Home participants in schools, please refer to the Safe at Home Guide for Schools.​

A Safe at Home participant may use their assigned address for all purposes. No state or local agency or unit of government may refuse to use a Safe at Home participant's assigned address for any official business, unless a specific statutory duty requires the agency or unit of government to use the participant's actual address. A state or local agency or unit of government may confirm a person's status as a program participant by requesting to view the participant's Safe at Home issued Participant Authorization Card or by contacting Safe at Home directly at (608) 266-6613 or safeathome@doj.state.wi.us.

Confidentiality of the Actual Address

If a Safe at Home participant submits a written request to a local clerk that they keep the participant's actual address private, the local clerk may not disclose any record in their possession which would reveal the Safe at Home participant's actual address, except pursuant to a court order.  [See Wis. Stat. § 66.0504(2)]​​

The right to inspect or copy information in a public record does not apply to the actual address of a Safe at Home participant.

A Safe at Home participant may use their assigned address for all purposes. No person who has received  a notification f​orm from a Safe at Home participant may refuse to use the assigned address for the participant, may require a Safe at Home participant to disclose their actual address, or may intentionally disclose to another person the actual address of a Safe at Home participant.  

Presenting the Safe at Home issued Participant Authorization Card can also serve as notice that a person is a lawful participant in Safe at Home.  

If a Safe at Home participant submits a written request to a local clerk that their actual address be kept private, the local clerk may not disclose any record in their possession which would reveal the Safe at Home participant's actual address, except pursuant to a court order. It is the responsibility of a Safe at Home participant to file a Notice to Court of Participation in Safe at Home Form for every case in which their actual address appears.   

If a Safe at Home participant files a Notice to Court of Participation in Safe at Home, the clerk of courts will:

  • Verify participation in Safe at Home by requesting to view the participant's Safe at Home Participant Authorization Card. 
  • Waive the filing fee.
  • Enter the form into CCAP as a court record event.
  • Locate and remove all references to the actual or last-known address in the court record, including any reference on the Notice to Court of Participation in Safe at Home form and in electronic filing records.
  • Replace the participant's actual or last-known address with the Safe at Home assigned address listed on the Notice to Court of Participation in Safe at Home form.

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