About ACP
About ACP
The Arizona Address Confidentiality Program (ACP) is a program that helps victims of domestic violence, sexual offenses, and/or stalking from being located by the person they are seeking safety from through public records. The program provides a substitute address and confidential mail forwarding services to individuals and families across Arizona.
Participants enrolled in the program use their assigned substitute address instead of their actual (confidential) address. The substitute address is to be used instead of a person’s home, work, or school address. State and local government agencies are required to accept the substitute address issued by the ACP - Secretary of State’s office.
The ACP accepts all First Class, registered, certified and election mail for ACP participants and forwards to their actual address at no cost.
The Arizona legislature established the Address Confidentiality Program within the Office of the Secretary of State in 2011. Arizona was the 27th state to create a confidential address program. On June 4, 2012, the program began assisting individuals and families impacted by domestic violence, sexual offenses and stalking.
In 2013, Arizona and Colorado hosted the first multi-state planning session to explore the need for a formal organization dedicated to confidential address programs.
In 2016, NACAP (National Organization for Confidential Address Programs) was filed as a 501C(3) non-profit organization. Arizona is a founding member.
- Title 41 – State Government, Chapter 1- Executive Officers, Article 3 - Address Confidentiality Program
- 41-161 - Definitions
- 41-162 - Address confidentiality; duties of secretary of state; application assistant
- 41-163 - Filing and certification of applications; authorization cards
- 41-164 - Change of name, address or telephone number; cancellation of certification
- 41-165 - Disclosure of actual address prohibited; violation; classification
- 41-166 - Address use by state or local government entities
- 41-167 - Request for disclosure
- 41-168 - Nondisclosure of address in court proceedings
- 41-169 - Address confidentiality program fund
- Property redaction laws
- Protected Voter registration
- Any participant, if eligible, may register or re-register to vote as an ACP Protected Voter.
- ACP protected voters can participate in national, state, and local elections without endangering the confidentiality of their actual (confidential) address. By registering as an ACP protected voter, this ensures that a program participant’s actual (confidential) address will not appear on any public registered voter lists that may be made public. The security of this process is similar to the process afforded police and judges.
- Participants should only register to vote through the ACP process.
- Participants are strongly encouraged not to register to vote through any other process other than through the ACP. By law, MVD, DES, and other social service agencies must ask everyone if they want to register to vote. ACP Participants who register outside of the ACP process will be required to provide her/his actual (confidential) address and ACP staff cannot guarantee the protection of the record.
- Any participant, if eligible, may register or re-register to vote as an ACP Protected Voter.
- U.S. Treasury - Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN)
- Customer Identification Program Rule - Address Confidentiality Programs (FIN-2009-R003)
- A FinCEN ruling regarding the acceptance of an ACP substitute address by financial institutions.
- Since its inception in 2011, the ACP has served more than 5,600 survivors.,
- Nearly 2,600 Arizona residents are active participants in the ACP.
- Nearly 40% of active adult ACP participants are registered to vote as ACP protected voters.
- ACP received approximately 11,908 pieces of mail per month in 2023.
- ACP staff manage approximately 400 calls per month.
- Approximately 330 Application Assistants are currently registered with the ACP.
- If you would like to request Arizona ACP brochures, materials, or a training at your organization, please email us at [email protected] or call 602-542-1653.