CORTEZ MASTO LEADS PUSH TO PROTECT SUPPORT SERVICES FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SURVIVORS

Letter

Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Speaker McCarthy, Minority Leader McConnell, and Minority
Leader Jeffries:

We are writing to alert you to an urgent need facing victim service providers across the country and
to request that supplemental funding be provided to Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) programs. We
applaud your support for victim services, as demonstrated through the passage of the VOCA Fix to
Sustain the Crime Victims Fund Act of 2021 ("VOCA Fix"). However, these efforts have not yet
generated the baseline funding necessary for the Crime Victims Fund (CVF) to support victims
across our country.

As you know, annual appropriations to VOCA are released from the balance of the CVF. The CVF is
funded through penalties and fines imposed in federal crimes. Unfortunately, deposits into the CVF
have sharply declined, leading to cuts in annual VOCA appropriations. Cuts to VOCA present a dire
threat for many victims and their families.

The goals of VOCA are to provide direct financial compensation to victims and make funding
available to local victim service providers assisting in counseling, emergency shelter, crisis
intervention, and more.1 In Fiscal Year (FY) 2023, the appropriated funding level dropped to
$1.9 billion. In FY 2024, VOCA is expected to face another reduction in funding of a proposed $1.2
billion in appropriations.2 Without access to additional funding, the availability of victim services
across the country will significantly decrease, and smaller providers that target rural, underserved,
and low-income communities will suffer the most. While the VOCA Fix that Congress passed is
improving the financial situation for the Crime Victims Fund, it will take time for the impact to be
fully realized.

The significant reduction in funding currently being proposed will diminish the ability of victim

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service providers across the nation to maintain programs and resources. We therefore ask that
you work to provide supplemental funding for VOCA, in conjunction with annually appropriated
funds. We cannot afford to lose critical funding for victim services. We appreciate your
engagement on this issue and encousrage you to mobilize resources for the sake of the wellbeing
of victims and their families across the country.

Sincerely,

Source