This week, Governor Roy Cooper sent a letter to Congressional leaders urging a restoration of full funding for crime victim services. The federal Crime Victims Fund is the primary source of support for millions of crime victims every year and has seen a drastic decline in funding in recent years. This critical funding source supports essential services for crime victims including mental health counseling, legal assistance, replacement of lost wages and temporary housing.
“Victims and survivors of crime suffer physical, psychological, financial and emotional harm that can severely impact their lives,” said Governor Cooper. “We must ensure full funding of the Crime Victims Fund to provide victims and survivors with essential services.”
A large portion of funding North Carolina receives from the Crime Victims Fund is administered by the Governor’s Crime Commission. North Carolina received over $100 million in 2018 and is projected to receive less than $5 million for the upcoming funding cycle. This dramatic 95% reduction puts services for crime victims at extreme risk and crime victims will suffer without the help and support they need and deserve.
“The services we fund through the Crime Victims Fund are essential to helping survivors of child abuse, domestic violence, sexual assault, trafficking, financial fraud, and homicide,” said Caroline Farmer, Executive Director of the Governor’s Crime Commission. “The decline in funding has already reduced our ability to provide these essential programs in North Carolina, and additional cuts will exacerbate the harm our nonprofits, service providers, and ultimately survivors, are facing.”
Governor Cooper’s 2024-2025 Recommended Budget included $6 million to ensure crime victims receive the most necessary services such as crisis care and legal assistance despite these federal cuts. However, state funding is not enough to make up for the losses of federal funding and action by Congress is needed. In 2021, Congress passed the VOCA Fix to Sustain the Crime Victims Fund Act with bipartisan support. While this law restored some critical funding, it was not sufficient to fully replenish the Crime Victims Fund.
Read the letter here.
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